 Hi, my name is Archana Madovan and I translate from Korean into English. In 2022, I participated in the Ulta Emerging Translator Mentorship Program as the mentee for Korean poetry under the guidance of Jack Jung. This program was an incredibly worthwhile experience for me because it offered me a path into a world that felt very distant and unreachable. My academic background is in science and technology and I currently have a day job in the tech industry, so aside from a few workshops and panels I've attended in the past, I'm mostly self-taught as a literary translator. So during the Ulta Mentorship Program, I had four poems and translation published, as well as my first book-length work. One of those publications was a direct result of the valuable feedback I received from my mentor. In November, I also had the opportunity to travel to Tucson to meet my fellow program mentees and the mentors for the first time in person. Being able to connect face-to-face with my fellow translators and future colleagues in this dedicated time and space made me feel a real sense of community that I hadn't felt before. In addition, the opportunity to read my translation to an audience helped me foster an even deeper connection with the poet I'm translating as well as build my own confidence. The poet I'm translating was delighted to be able to watch the recording from her home in Korea and she told me she couldn't wait to hear more of my work. I think that's the first time I started to feel like a real translator. None of this would have been possible for me without the support of Ulta. I hope that you'll consider making a donation to help Ulta raise $15,000 by December 21st so these gatherings can continue in the future. Thanks!