FCC Updates
China Book & Story Group
This new dual event will be a good opportunity to get to know other FCC-SoCal parents without worrying about child care.
In the first event, Ms. Shawna Lai, instructor at South Coast Chinese Cultural Center, will entertain her audience with a class on Chinese folktales and music. Parents may enjoy the class with their children, or socialize in the adjoining room.
In the second event, adults will discuss the book Factory Girls: from Village to City in a Changing China by Leslie T. Chang. Sitters will be available to look after the kids and lead a craft in the adjoining room for the nominal fee of $5/child.
Click through to the full post for details and a link to RSVP. Come for either event or both! Admission is free.
The Blazing Paddles Team Does It Again!
Genevieve Davenport writes:
Our team, Blazing Paddles had a great Long Beach Dragon Boat Festival this year! Our mixed team did wonderfully. We showed our team spirit and persevered to the end. We ended up placing second in the final race in our division on Sunday. We placed fourth in our second race on Saturday. Our women’s team (mostly moms and daughters) looked great and had three great races.
This year our team really understood that technique was more important than speed in every stroke that we paddled. Everyone worked as a unit which made the boat surge forward.
Orange County's 13th Annual Moon Festival Banquet
In China and throughout many Asian countries people celebrate the Harvest Moon on the 15th day of the eighth month of their lunar calendar. This year, the Mid-Autumn festival falls on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 - but that's a school night! So please join your FCC-SoCal family in a weekend celebration of togetherness on Sunday, September 26, 4:30-7:00 pm at the Ten Ten Seafood Restaurant in Artesia. The festivities will include games and prizes for the kids and teens, traditional Chinese entertainment and great food, including mooncakes.
Summer Reading
Add Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China by Leslie T. Chang to your summer reading list, and get ready for FCC-SoCal's book discussion event in October!
Factory Girls demonstrates how the mass movement from rural villages to cities is remaking individual lives and transforming Chinese society, much as immigration to America’s shores remade our own country a century ago."
FCC-SoCal will host a discussion of Factory Girls on Saturday, October 16 in Irvine. A concurrent storytelling event will be held for kids in an adjoining room. Location, exact times and more details will be posted closer to the date. Mark your calendars now - you won't want to miss this new FCC activity!
Chinese New Year Banquets - Save the Dates!
UPDATE: Event info now posted here (1st banquet) and here (2nd banquet).
Planning for Chinese New Year festivities is underway and we are hard at work to ensure that the ever-popular FCC-SoCal Chinese New Year tradition continues to be a favorite for all!
We are holding twin banquets on the first and last Saturdays in February – the 6th and the 27th. Registration materials will be emailed out by the first of the year. Chinese New Year falls on February 14th and the Golden Dragon Parade will be on February 20th.
Brush Painting and Oil Pastels at the Art-Making Workshop
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.
China Care Buddy Program - NEW FAMILY Registration Due Oct 4
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.