Vera Koo - The Most Unlikely Champion: A Memoir

THE MOST UNLIKELY
CHAMPION

A Memoi r by

VERA KOO

with Justin Pahl

Copyright 2017 Vera Koo.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Designed by Amy Swan.

Balboa Press

A Division of Hay House

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.balboapress.com

1 (877) 407-4847

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

ISBN: 978-1-5043-8848-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5043-8849-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5043-8857-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017914158

Balboa Press rev. date: 11/05/2018

CONTENTS

W hen Vera Koo enrolled in a firearm safety course at a college in the 1980s, she could not have looked more out of place. She was a petite, middle-aged Chinese-American woman in a class mostly full of men. She had little experience with firearms and took the course to further her knowledge so she would no longer fear guns. Little did she know that safety course would set her on a path to becoming one of the worlds most accomplished professional womens shooters.

An immigrant from Hong Kong who was raised under traditional, conservative Chinese values, Koo was taught from an early age that a womans place is to serve her family and her household. While she strived to uphold the values of her Chinese upbringing, she also carved her own path. Koo became the most unlikely pistol champion. Shes an eight-time winner of the womens division of the NRA National Action Pistol Championship, known as the Bianchi Cup. More than an athletic endeavor, Koos venture into sport shooting became a vehicle that helped her navigate lifes challenges. Koo and her husband saw their business teeter on the edge of bankruptcy before they built it back up. She experienced the pain of a parents worst nightmare when the couple lost their first son. And then, nearly 25 years ago, she endured a personal betrayal that rocked her to her core.

In her debut book, Koo details these events and how she came to deal with them thanks to her faith in God and her passion for sport shooting, which became her therapy.

Koos response to lifes waves of adversity taught her a valuable lesson: The most spectacular rise can only come after you fall.

W hen I met Vera Koo, in December 2014, we were both skeptical that I would be able to tell her story, a goal shed been
working toward for more than a decade. After all, on the surface, Vera and I had little in common. Vera was Chinese-American and nearly 70. Shed been a successful businesswoman, an eight-time sport shooting womens national champion, and a loving, supportive mother to four kids.

Me? I was a middle-class white guy in his late 20s. Neither of us was sure it was going to work.

Then Vera started telling me about her life. Its a quintessentially American story one about family and business, success and failure, and determination in the face of great odds. Listening to her story, I became certain that there was no story quite like it and no person remotely like Vera Koo. Her story might be unique, but its scope is universal. Although not everyone knows what its like to be an immigrant, almost everyone understands how it feels to, in Veras words, search for the thing you are good at. Most of us will never be sport-shooting champions, but all of us have adopted new hobbies and wondered how far we might take them. And although most of us hopefully will never lose a child, almost everyone has felt the sting of failure or the pain of lost love.

This universality motivated Vera to tell her story. She hopes that people, especially women, will recognize aspects of their lives in hers. As Vera told me the first time we met, When people look at me, they dont think Im a champion. They dont think Im anyone. Her story is a testament to that old truism looks can be deceiving.

In Veras case, her slight frame hides the spirit and determination of a champion. The extraordinary woman who emerges throughout the course of this book is the woman I got to know during the two years we spent working together. Veras incredible determination is matched only by her kindness and generosity. (Most of her friends attest to this fact: Vera is famous for bringing gifts whenever she visits someone. And every time we met up for work in a hotel lobby or restaurant she knew every employee by name. She always wanted to know about how their day was going.) Although shes accomplished things she never dreamed were possible, she hasnt lost her sense of humility an inheritance from her mother or her self-deprecating humor. Writing a memoir suggests a degree of hubris, and yet Vera has almost no ego. She works tirelessly and is quick to joke about herself. Her stories, even of difficult times, are not just funny, but told with the warmth of someone who loves people and life.

Capturing the heart of these stories, as well as Veras unique voice, was the most important part of our work together. Veras life has taken her from Hong Kong to San Francisco, from working mother to world champion; its had more twists and turns than a great novel. My greatest fear was not doing that story justice. I think the work weve done has captured not just Veras essence but also the incredible arc of her life.

The more time I spent with Vera, the more I came to admire her. Shes overcome incredible odds to get a new business off the ground, to hold her family together through trials and tribulations, and to reach the peak of a sport in which she was initially an outsider. Shes been, time and again, a woman in a world made for, and by, men. But she never let her outsider status stop her. Through her faith in God, the support of her family, and her indefatigable work ethic, she became the most unlikely champion. And for me, she became the most unlikely friend.

- Justin Pahl , February 9, 2017

Justin Pahl is a writer based in Juneau, Alaska. He grew up in Valparaiso, IN, and attended school in Philadelphia, PA. At the age of 27, he moved to a village on the Greek island of Rhodes, intending to write his first novel. He then spent two-and-a-half years in Istanbul, where he hosted the citys only English-language open-mic night. Over the years hes worked as a gardener, greenskeeper, grant writer, editor, shoe salesman, wallpaper-describer, moon bounce operator, and pizza deliveryman. Hes had short stories and poems published and is still working on that first novel.

B y the age of 70, Vera Koo was both a national and world titleholder in the sport of Action Pistol Shooting. Vera was the first and only woman in the history of the NRAs Bianchi Cup to win eight National Womens titles. Shes won two World titles, and was the first woman to place in the overall top 20 at the NRA Bianchi Cup, in 2001.