Since 2005, we has been coordinating a mentorship program with the China Care Bruins, a student-run group at UCLA.  Last year, more than 50 FCC children were paired with college student “Big Buddies.”  They participated in monthly Sunday afternoon get-togethers on the UCLA campus throughout the academic year.

We are delighted to announce that there are a few additional openings in the Buddy Program for the 2010-2011 academic year (October 2010 through May/June 2011).  We are continuing to offer two groups within the Buddy Program – the Little Buddies and the Youth Buddies.  Both run simultaneously on Sunday afternoons from 2 to 5 pm on the UCLA campus.  Parents check their kids in at one location and then the two groups will separate for age-appropriate fun.

The Catalina Island "Dark of the Moon" Weekend was great fun for the three families who participated - 3 little girls, 2 big brothers, their happy parents and one doting aunt.
 
Activities included a birthday celebration, volleyball, card games, endless relaxed conversations sitting on benches at Isthmus Harbor, walking all over the isthmus, and yes, stargazing on a very clear night.

It was an absolutely perfect and relaxing weekend - one that will be repeated next year along with, we hope, FCC Moon Festival mountain camping.

On Saturday, November 14, 2009 at Beeman Park in Studio City the SoCal Friends - Chinese the Fun Way group met to do crafts and learn Chinese with WeiWei. Luckily, they didn’t get blown away with all the wind! The children had fun making turkey headresses and Thanksgiving cards. They also learned how to say and give thanks in Chinese. Pumpkin pie was among the assortment of treats!

The group meets monthly with a different theme. The next event will be Christmas in Chinatown on Saturday, December 12. Event details will be posted shortly. Other upcoming events will include Chinese New Year and Huntington Gardens.

Contact Arlene Balkin at arlene@levyaffiliated.com for more information. And look for information of upcoming events here on this website. Come join WeiWei and friends to learn Chinese the fun way.

The little artists who attended the FCC November Art Making Workshop in Irvine on November 1, created beautiful drawings of Chinese lanterns, mandalas, dragons and butterflies. Artist, Melanie Vogel, introduced them to Chinese brush painting and oil pastels.

The best part, though, was seeing the pride on all of their faces as they viewed their masterpeice. And of course the parents didn't mind chatting while the kids were having their class.

Since 2005, FCC-SoCal has been coordinating a mentorship program with the China Care Bruins, a student-run group at UCLA. Last year, more than 50 FCC children (ages 6 to 15) were paired with college student “Big Buddies.” They participated in monthly Sunday afternoon get-togethers on the UCLA campus throughout the academic year.

We are delighted to announce that there are a few additional openings in the Buddy Program for the 2009-2010 academic year (October 2009 through May 2010). This includes the Little Buddies group (age 6 and older, up through 5th grade) and the new Youth Buddies group, for kids currently in 6th grade/Middle School and above.

Click through for a list of websites targeted to kids.