ACCESS celebrated its 18th anniversary on April 10th. At the dinner, a generous anonymous donor offered a dollar-to-dollar match to funds being raised, up to $25,000. This included monetary donations, contribution from the silent auction, raffle ticket sales and pledges. Thanks to many of you who responded generously, $12,000 has been raised that night. With the permission from this donor, we are extending this challenge to May 7, especially to those of you who are not aware of this challenge. We are a tax-exempt non-profit organization and your donation is tax-deductible.

For more details, please read and return the bottom portion of this PDF.

(This is a bilingual Chinese-English PDF.)

“Do you commit yourself to being a faithful follower of Christ for the rest of your life?” asked the pastor. Choi Ying (not her real name) replied in the affirmative. When she emerged from the baptismal pool, her face was beaming with joy. She smiled at the congregation and waved to her children.

Looking at her now, one cannot imagine that only eight months ago she was in such deep despair that she even thought of ending her life. Abandoned suddenly by her husband and left with two young children, she cried until she had no more tears.

Referred by a friend who attends Boston Chinese Evangelical Church (BCEC), Choi Ying came to ACCESS. She had almost weekly appointments with our Family Service Volunteer to sort out her confusion, discuss her hurt and fears, and seek guidance on how to be a single parent to her two young children. She was determined to help her children grow up to be emotionally healthy people despite their parents’ marital trouble.

Realizing her weakness and limitations, she began to seek God and eventually decided to let God walk beside her. “Now I want to draw close to God … to gain wisdom and strength and receive healing for my body, spirit and soul. I am thirsty for God’s love and help. I want to learn more about God’s word in the Bible and surrender fully to Him. I think it will revive my soul and spirit. I have enough depression… Life really doesn’t have to be that miserable. I want to be reborn with a happy, joyful, and abundant life,” says Choi Ying.

She is extremely grateful for the support and encouragement she has received from Christian sisters at ACCESS and BCEC.

—Sau-Fong Siu

Some of the Teachers' Favorite Memories:

• The K-1 "Bug" Relay and watching students cheer one another on (by jumping up and down on tables)
• A student asking of their teacher for every blueberry - "Is this one good?" At the end he said that he didn't like blueberries and gave them to the teacher.
• Making an under the sea theme pinata
• During an exercise focusing on disabilities, one student was leading another student who was blindfolded. But the first student saw a butterfly and ran off after it, leaving the other student blindfolded and alone in the parking lot
• Older students encouraging younger ones whilst playing Capture the Flag
• During a "desert journey", this conversation took place:
  Teacher: What can you do during a sandstorm?
  Student: Talk to Jesus!
• Seeing "The Titanic" beat out all other boats in a race due to superior design
• Hundreds more grasshoppers caught
• A student telling a teacher they would be okay in college because "God will be with you even when you run into troubles"
• The chance to tell the students that Summerbridge exists because God loves them and we want to share His love with them

Dear ACCESS friends and supporters:

What can you buy with about $4? A large Starbucks coffee or a roundtrip on the Boston subway? Did you know it also pays for an hour of instruction for an adult English Speaker of Other Languages (ESOL) student at ACCESS?

Would you prayerfully consider contributing to our new ESOL scholarship program to support an ESOL student for a month ($100), a semester ($400), or even for a full sequence of 5 courses ($2000) for the next 2 years?

Donate now!

It is our hope that students in our ESOL program would not only gain valuable skills, but also experience the love of Christ through the relationships with staff and volunteers, and the support and prayers of donors. To our knowledge, this privately-supported scholarship program would be unique in Chinatown.

Why now?
During this past Easter season, the board of directors, staff, and volunteers of ACCESS have been praying for a new season of ministry. The past year has been difficult economically for many, and ACCESS was no exception. Due to economic pressures, enrollment in our adult English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program dropped significantly in 2008, threatening the viability of the agency. In early April, the ACCESS board met with some staff, volunteers, and founders during a retreat in order to consider the future of the ESOL program and the agency as a whole. The board voted to implement several cost-cutting measures. However, at the same time, we felt strongly encouraged by God to re-commit ourselves to the original vision of ACCESS to be Jesus’ servants in Chinatown. In the words of our Executive Director from ACCESS’s early years:

Do we see what He sees? Are we following His footsteps as the incarnate Christ: being and living among the common people, enjoying their company, sharing their joys and sorrows, healing and ministering to their needs, informing them of God’s love, care and provisions?

Rebirth for the Adult ESOL Program
In faith, the board voted to re-launch the ESOL program this summer, with a renewed commitment to serving adults with the lowest levels of English language proficiency, a new focus on tailoring instruction to meet the needs and interests of the particular students in each class, and new morning and evening class times. Most importantly, we voted to begin a new scholarship program. Until now, our ESOL program has always been fee-based (even though our tuition fee covers less than half of the actual cost). In order to make as many free- and half-fee slots available to the students in the community, all seven members of the current board have already agreed to seed this scholarship program with a total of $20,000 for the period from May 2009 to December 2010, above and beyond their regular support to ACCESS. We are excited to re-launch our ESOL ministry in the Chinatown community in the midst of this economic downturn as a testament to the abundance love and resources of God. Please join us on this faith journey.

With hope and blessings,

Mei Kee Wong
Executive Directory

Cliff Chuang
President, Board of Directors

Learn more or get involved at ACCESS!

Serve on our ESOL Scholarship Selection Committee and hear our ESOL students’ stories. If interested, please email

Read about one ESOL teacher’s experience here.

Watch a video about ACCESS here.

Join our Intercessory Prayer Team. Please email access- with Intercessory Prayer Team in the subject line.

Work with ESOL students. Our new schedule allows for more flexibility for those considering part-time work, including 4-day-a-week morning classes and 3-day-a-week evening classes. If you are interested in teaching or serving as a conversation partner, please contact or call 617-426-1070 and ask for Susanna.

Work with K-5 Enrichment Program students. We are looking for staff and volunteers for our summer program, and always welcome volunteers during the school year. If interested, please contact or call 617-426-1070 and ask for Becky.

This successful event was the handiwork of the Planning Committee: Joann Yung (Celebration Chair), Jackie Wang (Auction Chair), Jocelyn Chen, Kiki Cooper, Erin Shyamji, and Mei Kee Wong (Executive Director). Many volunteers and the ACCESS staff also contributed countless hours to the dinner and auction.

Chinese version (requires PDF viewer)

City Councilor Sam Yoon praying for the city of Boston and for Chinatown

Mr. David Wong, owner of Empire Garden Restaurant, giving a check to ACCESS board chair Cliff Chuang and Executive Director Mei Kee Wong.

Innovative Partnership Award presented to the Chinese Bible Church of Greater Boston in Lexington

Friends of ACCESS Award presented to Mr. David Wong

Auction Item List (requires PDF viewer).

6:00 p.m. on Saturday 11/3/2007 at the Empire Garden, Boston
Donate Auction Items, Buy Tables and Seats.

Email:

Official response card (requires a PDF viewer)

Mei Zhen Lee, who attended the Enrichment Program from Grade 4 to Grade 5, received a $500 award. She has just graduated from O’Bryant High School and is entering Babson College in the fall. She plans to major in mathematics in preparation for a career as an actuary.

Both Winnie and Mei Zhen are the first in their family to attend college. Some of their family members came to share the joy on June 6. After receiving the checks from Dr. Sau-Fong Siu, a member of the College Scholar’s Award Selection Committee, the winners read their essays “Growing Up Asian American: Rewards and Challenges” to the older children in the Enrichment Program. A cake was served afterwards.

Rice Barrel
by Mei Zhen Lee

When I was ten, there was one night my father was able to eat dinner with us. On this night he was not working until 2 a.m. I fervently told him about the amazing school lunch I had that day, a taco, a crispy corn tortilla filled with beef that is marinated with spicy Spanish seasoning. I suggested to my father that we have tacos someday instead of plain old rice. My father responded angrily; “We are Chinese people, we eat rice every day because that is the only thing we have. We grow it in the field by working hard every day of our lives, so we can bring home some grain to keep from starving. Now you want some foreign foods? Do you know how hard our people work to harvest grains of rice so you can have a bowl of rice every day and not starve? Why do you insist that we spend more money than we have to? What more do you want?” After that night, I began to reflect on my culture and who I really am. I was in America, but in my house I always felt trapped.

Being a Chinese-American, I have often viewed myself as having one foot in two cultures; from one perspective, I have to contend with what American society expects of me, and from the other, I must respect the traditional rules of my parents. I learn that burning incense demonstrates my respect for my ancestors, and the history of my people. My parents taught me traditional Chinese rules so I can appreciate my heritage. My view of American society comes from my friends and school. My friends give me the impression that being American means hanging out with friends, having the most updated electronics, and having abundance of money for shopping.

Growing up poor influenced the ways my parents viewed American culture, especially my father, who is retired now after working for more than forty years as a chef, who is impatient with Americans whom he believes spend money carelessly. He worked long hours so he could earn enough money for rent and food. My mother, the youngest of eight children, made a challenging decision to leave not only her family but also her village so her children could have a better future. My parents try to instill in me the desire to work hard. They want me to take advantage of the opportunities of the opportunities I have in this country.

Even though I appreciate what my parents did for me, I was still upset about my identity as a Chinese American. Last year, my father encouraged me to go to an Italian restaurant instead of a Chinese restaurant for my birthday, which pleased me, because now he views me as not only Chinese, but American too. Despite my battles over the years with myself, my father, and sometimes even with society, I know that I can be both Chinese and American without being ashamed.

Growing up Asian American: Rewards and Challenges
by Winnie Chiu

Ever since I was very young, I have always been that shy little girl who always tries to hide and avoid being noticed. I have always been the more conservative one, and I often lack confidence in myself. Maybe it is because of the different culture I was raised in. I never seem to fit in with my classmates. Many of my classmates are raised in a more Americanized environment while my family put in a tremendous amount of effort to raise me in a more Chinese-based culture. I am always the one that is unnoticeable to everyone with the exceptions of my first and second grade teachers. They would frequently worry about me falling behind everyone in classes. Both of them would always find extra time during each and every open house to talk to my mother, and they would discuss ways on helping me catch up in school.

Around the middle of my second grade, one of the teachers’ assistants introduced my mother to the ACCESS, an after school program that acts as a tutor program to help me on my homework. It was the final chapter of my invisibleness and the beginning of a new me. I can still remember that first day when I entered ACCESS. My mom held my hands to give me a sense of confidence as we walk towards the room. The first thing I heard when I stepped into the room was prayer. One of the teachers came up to me, held my hand, guided me in, seated me, and put my two hands together for a prayer. By the time I opened my eyes from the prayer; my mom was gone, and I was lead by the teachers, to the front of the class. She introduced me to everyone and to the building. I was very nervous on the first few days. The unfamiliar surrounding scared me, but I slowly adjusted to this new environment.

I met my first best friend, Janet, at ACCESS. She had already been there since the beginning of that year while I had just entered in the middle of the year. Janet was a more outgoing and confident girl. For many people, she may have been a little hard to be friends with in the beginning, but she is a really caring and supporting friend. Being new to ACCESS, Janet had always been by my side helping me and guiding me. ACCESS, slowly imbued me with confidence and introduced me to Jesus, to God. This is where I felt my life has truly begun to take flight. ACCESS has taught me a lot about this new unfamiliar person in my life and taught me how He loves us and will always be there for us through misery and joy.

The more I learned about God, the more I wanted to be a good person and to help others like He has helped us. I find myself slowly change and become a new person through the nurturing of ACCESS. I began to enjoy every moment I spent there whether they are with my friends or during the prayers to God -telling him how much I loved him, how sorry I am for sinning in the past, and how much I wanted to accept him into my heart and be guided by him for the rest of my life.

ACCESS has nourished me into the more successful and confident person I am today. I feel that if ACCESS hasn’t invaded my life, I would not be who I am now. ACCESS took the time to understand me, to take care of me, and to help me in everyway they could. It was a guidance that brought me up from the bottom of a pit. I felt that ACCESS had come into my life to rescue me during my most miserable times. It gave me more self-esteem and confidence when I present myself to others or sharing my side of views. The corner of the room may miss me, but I no longer desire to be there.