Hi FCC-SoCal Families!

We are the new Co-Chairs of Families with Children from China in Los Angeles.  We’ve been in office since February 1, 2010 and have only had the opportunity to meet a small section of the membership.  If you see us around please come up and say hello, we would love to meet you and your family!  Here is a little bit about us:

Sarah Koff is an adult Taiwanese adoptee from the Los Angeles area.  She was first introduced to FCC by former co-chair Jodi Wilf whose husband was Sarah’s high school AP Literature teacher at Cleveland Humanities Magnet in Reseda.   Sarah graduated from UCLA in 2008 where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Art History and rowed for four years.  She currently works in advertising for Sony Pictures.  Her first experience with FCC was when she spoke at a Jane Brown workshop in 2004.  Building off of FCC’s amazing families and supportive board members, Sarah hopes to spear-head new programs in Teen Advocacy and Parent Education along with fellow board member and adult adoptee, Priscilla Hefley.

Maureen Hemler, along with her husband Ed, is the adoptive parent of three daughters from China.  Alyssa, from Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province, is 11 years old and was adopted in 2000 at 11 months ; Amanda, from Tongling City, Anhui Province, is seven years old and was adopted in 2004 at 12 months; and Megan, from Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province, is six years old and was adopted in 2006 at 2 years 11 months old.  Maureen is a retired senior manager with the state court system for which she worked for 30 years.  She was active in many organizations including the Los Angeles County Management Council, where she was a member of the Education Committee, and the California Court Association where she was Vice President.  She very much enjoys working for associations and organizations that are associated with things that are important to her such as FCC.

Ed and Maureen joined the FCC San Gabriel sub chapter in 2000 and have belonged to FCC off and on for the past ten years.  Maureen believes that this is the perfect time for the girls to get involved in FCC to learn more about their culture and connect with other children in the area that have been adopted.  They have really enjoyed attending the Chinese New Year Banquets over the years and LOVED marching in the Annual Golden Dragon Parade for Chinese New Year with FCC and the Chinese Historical Society!  The girls can't wait to get more involved and meet more folks!
 
We are both incredibly excited about the new opportunities on the horizon for FCC.  There are great member events in the works for young kids, teens and parents.  We welcome suggestions and invite ALL members to take an active role in the success of FCC.

We look forward to meeting all of you at upcoming events!

-Sarah and Maureen