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Freshman nursing student Kim King has lived in Radcliff, Ky. for most of her life.
“It’s a pretty small town right between Ft. Knox and Elizabethtown and I usually get a funny face when I say that’s where I’m from,” King said. “Nobody seems to know where it is, or at least the people I talk to.”
King was named by her older half sister and her middle name, “Ann,” is her mom’s maiden name. It should have been spelled with one “n” in the Korean form, but the hospital made a mistake and added the second “n.”
King’s mom is Korean and she hopes to visit there someday to meet her mom’s side of the family.
She went to North Hardin High School in Radcliff and really enjoyed school. She participated in the National Honor Society, the academic team and was part of the newspaper staff.
“I still have friends that go there, so when I can, I go back and visit them and some of my old teachers at school,” King said.
King received a scholarship from the National Honor Society from North Hardin High School and is hoping to receive another scholarship for next year. She had intended on going to the University of Kentucky, but after a visit there proved to be a bit intimidating, she visited the University of Louisville and it fit just right. She said she liked the way the campus was laid out and the fact it is close to home.
“It took me a while to get used to it though. At first I wasn’t sure if I made the right choice, but after being here, the school grows on you,” King said.
King now lives at Kurz Hall with Mindy Morris, a friend from high school. Together, they work at Hollister at Mall St. Matthews. King said it doesn’t pay much but she loves the clothes. It is her first job and she is starting a work-study position at the library on campus.
According to long time friend, Amanda Chahalis, a freshman anthropology major, “Kim is a very good student, dedicated and always strives for that ‘A.’
“Kim’s more the humanitarian type, which is why I think she will make a good nurse some day,” Chahalis added.
Here at U of L, King is part of the Rotaract Club, Colleges Against Cancer and is a team leader for the Relay for Life, where she said, “[I] basically guide my team members in getting donations and collect the money to turn in.”
In her spare time, King likes to watch television, hang out with friends and go home to see her family. She said she always seems to find her way to a computer, to visit Facebook and MySpace, “the greatest procrastinating tools on earth,” she said.
She also enjoys drawing cartoons and doing creative things, like making collages with old pictures and decorating.
Her mom works at a sewing shop and her dad, at Ft. Knox, and she tries to get home as often as she can to spend time with her family and friends.
King admitted when people first meet her she is really shy, but gets more talkative and sarcastic as she gets to know them.
“Kim is very sarcastic, but it’s the kind you can’t get enough of because it’s always so clever,” said Chahalis. “That’s one of Kim’s best qualities though; she can turn a frown upside down with her humor. I think it’s what attracts her friends to her.”
King’s boyfriend of two years, Robert Rios, also a U of L freshman, is her best friend.
“I can act like a complete idiot and he’s right there with me doing the same thing,” she said. “It’s great.”
Friends seem to be very important to King, old friends as well as new.
“She’s kind, fair and is always concerned about her friends’ well being,” said Chahalis. “Kim is starting to really shine in college. She’s truly finding herself and good niches to rest in here at U of L.”
