Staring out the window of her South End apartment, Mrs. Chan feels overwhelmed. Frustrated that she cannot speak English, she is concerned about her two children who have hearing disabilities. She asks “How can I make sure my children go to school and learn, like other children? Who can help me talk to the teachers?”

Building upon many years of serving children, youth and adults, the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center (BCNC) launched the family services program to give families the support they need to stay strong and healthy.

While her children were enrolled in our child care center, Mrs. Chan was referred to our Family Services program. There, she began working closely with Joseph Wu, our bilingual family worker. Together, they went and talked with the teachers and administrators and developed individual education programs, including speech therapy for her children. At the same time, she began attending our bilingual parenting class to learn more about the public school system.

Today, Mrs. Chan is active in her children’s school. She also volunteers at BCNC helping organize parent workshops and activities, and encouraging other parents to do the same.

This coming year, we will offer 10 parent workshops including health prevention, love and discipline, mental health issues, children and internet safety, and understanding the school system. These workshops are conducted in Chinese by professionals who understand the culture our families come from. The program also conducts staff trainings, parent support groups, and counseling for individual children and their families.

We ask you to consider a donation to support this important work: $500 will pay for one workshop for 20 parents, $250 will provide bilingual materials for a new parent resource library, $100 will cover one counseling session for a family, and $50 will enable one parent to attend a workshop. Any amount is greatly appreciated. If you would like to sponsor a workshop in honor of a special person in your life, we would love to hear from you!

We deeply appreciate your partnership in building healthy families.

In Friendship,

Annie Chin-Louie

President of the Board of Directors

P.S. Supporting families builds strong communities. Please give generously.