David Young Yun

David Yun (1976-2023) passed away on Thursday, August 31st.

You could always count on three things with David - good food, good drink, and never a dull moment.

David was a lifelong entrepreneur who started his first company as a teenager. In the 90s, he founded Small Empire, a chain of skate shops and a skatepark which were instrumental in building New Jersey skate culture and community. He played a key role in a movement helping towns build municipal skateparks during a time when skateboarding was banned in public spaces. He went on to build skateparks at high-visibility events and locations, including Chelsea Piers and Central Park in New York City.

Once in Los Angeles, David started in real estate and founded the Eighty8 Group; in less than a decade, he became an award-winning agent and developer and founded one of the country's top-performing teams. He was named one of the Top 100 Real Estate Agents by the LA Business Journal, and made the Wall Street Journal's Real Trends List multiple times, as his success landed him in the top half of the top 1% of all real estate professionals in the country. He was invited to speak at Zillow and Compass events across the country.

More important than hustling and building empires was David's love of family. He was a fiercely loyal son, brother, father, husband, uncle, cousin, and nephew. He was most proud of his children and the relationship he built with them. To spend more time with his sons Lucas and Zeke ("EZ") when they were young, he sold his businesses and spent 16 months traveling around the world with the family. Upon returning to the States, he spent four years as a stay-at-home Dad while his boys were in elementary school. His favorite thing to do was to watch his boys play soccer and do things they loved. He loved eating, traveling, skiing, and golfing with his sons.

David believed in people and helped people believe in themselves. He inspired and mentored people to start new businesses, take chances on new relationships, and explore new places and ideas. He was a generous philanthropist, supporting many causes, and he believed you won in life by showing up and giving back. And he gave everyone a chance, no matter where they came from.

All people die, but not all people live. David lived! He packed so much life into his 46 years. He never liked to play it safe, believed many rules were meant to be broken, and had lightning in his veins. He traveled extensively, got his adrenaline going riding motorcycles, treasured old friends, and made new friends everywhere he went. He could poke fun at himself, liked people who could take a joke, and didn't take fashion rules or advice from anyone. He wore tees and jeans in an industry where business-formal is the norm. He loved a good deal and a great meal. And everyone wanted to party with him.

For everyone who remembers and loved David, his family asks that they remember him in their own way - which is what he would have wanted. He hated formality, stuffiness, and arbitrary rules. Everyone has a David story, and he'd want you to keep telling them. Wherever you are, he'd love if his friends raised a glass and shared an outrageous memory or prank he'd pulled off. (One of his best April Fool's pranks was announcing a run for Mayor on social media and immediately receiving campaign donations.)

He wanted to have a laugh and make an impact, and he has done that in spades. He loved fiercely, gave generously, and didn't always follow the rules. Please honor David's legacy by living your life to the fullest.

David is survived by his sons, Lucas and Zeke; his co-parent Naomi; his parents Hyungkoo and Insook; his sister Grace; his brother Josh and sister-in-law Romi; and many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews.

A celebration of his life will be held on Thursday, September 7 from 1-2 pm at Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park in Westwood, CA.

Instead of flowers, please consider donating to a cause in David's name. He championed and supported charities for children, entrepreneurship, the homeless, and anyone else down on their luck.