Health Fair

Last Saturday was the annual health fair at the International Family Center-Seattle. We had 15 agencies participating and over 150 attendees.

Visitors got information on things such as Hepititis B, health insurance, and Chinese medicine.



There were also screenings for bone density, blood sugar, and breast health. Not to mention raffle prizes from Western Union!





All the participants learned a lot and are looking forward to bringing their friends and family to next year's event.

Emergency Operations Center

Last week, as part of National Preparedness Month, Sunshine Garden seniors took a field trip to the brand new Seattle Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Fire Station #10.

During a declared emergency, the EOC serves as the seat of Seattle City government.






The facility is equipped with state-of-the-art systems including: internet, satellite phones, video-teleconferencing, 800 MHz and short wave/amateur radio, 130 work stations, 27 LCD flat screens, and two 7' X 9' projection screens.



Unlike in days past, when it looked something more like this:




Thank goodness for technology!

New Phones

Don't know if you noticed, but CISC has been without phones for the last 5 days. Yes, our old system pooped out on us last week and we've been scrambling to get a new system in place as quickly as possible.

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The good news is that we have 20 new functioning phones as of this morning for our most critical positions - information and assistance workers, case managers, and family center staff. The rest of us will be getting our units next week and we should be fully functional by then.

With this new system, we will be better able to serve our clients, volunteers and staff with customizable voice mail prompts in different languages and a less confusing auto attendant. As we install the rest of the phones next week, we will be customizing the system to meet our needs. Hooray!

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Conversations on Race and Culture

Last night, Bellevue's Cultural Diversity Program hosted another gathering on race and culture, this time with a focus on the police and community.

Over 60 people with many diverse backgrounds participated in this event, with some even coming from Seattle and as far away as Portland!

King County Superior Court judge Steve Gonzalez and Bellevue Police Chief Linda Pillo were featured speakers, but the real work happened in the small groups, each with a police officer and 9 other community members.

Suggestions and recommendations will be taken up both by the police department, as well as the cultural advisory board on which one of CISC's staff, Alan Lai, sits.

We look forward to working with the department to act as a bridge to all our Bellevue immigrant communities.

Libraries for All

And CISC is a part of them. Check out today's front page article in the Seattle Times on the Libraries for All project.

Ten years, 27 libraries, and neighborhood branches customized to each unique community.

At the Beacon Hill Library, CISC staff Sau Lai Chan has been facilitating a play and learn group for a couple of years now. Read what she has to say about the library in the article. Scroll down to the section under Dramatic Change.

We are so happy to be able to partner with the library in this way. Not only do families discover how their children learn through play, they also are exposed to a valuable new resource in the community.

Our Seniors are Out and About!

Not content to sit at home, or even just participate in activities at Sunshine Garden Senior Day Center. No, these seniors explore new places and interests such as the Bremerton Blackberry Festival (and navy helicopters)

and Woodland Park Zoo. I didn't even know grown ups could fit in those turtle shells!

Cute Kids

Just thought we'd share some pics of our pre-K grads who came back for a series of summer classes last month. We wanted to help gear them up for school in September.

Besides going on field trips, they read silly books, and made all kinds of food - like jello, vegetable soup, Vietnamese spring rolls, wonton, and home made ice cream!

Different families helped out by contributing their talents to help all the children get ready and excited to learn in kindergarten!

National Preparedness Month

September is National Preparedness Month. And it's no surprise, with hurricanes, floods, and all sorts natural disasters.

Fortunately, we don't get that many Category 5 storms in the Puget Sound, but did you know that King County happens to lead the nation in disaster preparedness? Maybe it's all the outdoorsy, wilderness types. Or maybe we're just good planners.

CISC has been in the forefront in disaster planning amongst local nonprofits. Today, Executive Director Alaric Bien was asked to participate on a panel as part of a training for other local organizations - about 60 in total.

Sharing CISC's experience in developing our plan, talking about communication with our internal and external constituents, all were part of a half day training to help all King County nonprofits become prepared for disasters.

Whether pandemic flu, earthquake, chemical spill, fire, or locust infestation, CISC and all of our staff are trying to be as prepared as possible so we can continue to provide services to our community no matter what.

Are you prepared??

Cultural Navigator Program Highlighted by Crisis Clinic

The Eastside Cultural Navigator is featured in this month's edition of the Crisis Clinic's newsletter Resource Talk. Click here and scroll down to the second article.

Did you know that the city of Bellevue has a higher proportion of immigrants than the city of Seattle? And did you know that CISC has been instrumental in working with the Eastside Refugee and Immigrant Coalition and others to bring services to our immigant friends and neighbors across the Eastside?

It's all part of the work we do to help Asian and other immigrants make the transition to a new life, while keeping later generations in touch with their rich heritage!

Class of 2022

It's September, fall is coming, and the kids are back in school. Well, for some it's the first time they've ever been to school.

CISC's bilingual pre-K class started last week and is fully enrolled again. The kids are adjusting well and excited to make new friends and learn the skills they will need to succeed in Kindergarten.

Teacher Pei-Shih took advantage of the good weather we've been having and broke out the sidewalk chalk the other day.

Besides being fun, the kids are learning the Mandarin and English names for colors and the things they draw (they speak Cantonese or Tagalog at home). They're also developing their motor, and social skills as they play.

Seniors Vote!

Last week's primary election caused intense interest among our Chinese seniors who came together to exercise their right to vote. A workshop was held at CISC to educate them how to cast their ballots and make their voices heard.

Staff never instruct anyone to vote one way or another, but do walk through the ballot and explain any points of confusion and help clarify language when necessary, even though the ballots are printed in Chinese.

With the presidential election coming up in November, this was a good practice for all of us. So make sure you, your friends and family get engaged, register to vote, and cast your ballot on November 4!

Cooking with Christine

This month's menu for the Sunshine Garden cooking class featured Italian pasta and a Hawaiian dessert.

Our dedicated volunteer shared her techniques and tricks for delicious Western food that many of our seniors love, but don't know how to prepare.

Also on tap this month was a class in digital videography, led by a student from Bellevue Community College's Digital Media Arts program. Way to go seniors!

End of Summer Activities

Can you believe this weather we've been having?! It's November in August! But that didn't stop our Eastside seniors from celebrating the last days of summer with a picnic and cakewalk at the North Bellevue Community Center.

Bingo, blood pressure and hearing checks, crafts and a (cup)cake walk were the highlights of the day. The oldest cake walker was 95 years young!




And on the other side of the lake, the Kirkland Sound Steps seniors celebrated with a picnic at Woodland Park Zoo. Lots of wild animals and walking to top off another year of healthy exercise for Kirkland residents 50 and better. CISC seniors have been an integral part of this program designed to encourage physical activity and social interaction in the community.

Partner in Preparedness

CISC is been nominated for the Partner in Preparedness award of the International Association of Emergency Managers. We were cited for the work we have done in the community, particularly in the Chinatown/International District, with our agency, our staff, our partners and constituents around emergency preparedness.

We are proud to be on the forefront of emergency preparedness among nonprofits in King County, and will be participating on another panel held by Public Health Seattle-King County on September 9 sharing our experiences and any insights with other nonprofits who are still in the process of developing plans.While our own plans are always being updated and improved, we are glad to be of any assistance to others who may be just starting their process. Remember, preparedness is not a state, it's a state of mind!

By they way, have you seen the new comic book on pandemic flu? You can download it in 12 different languages by clicking here. Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the links.

Next Week is the Primary

For those of us who have been on vacation or engrossed in the Beijing Olympics, you may have missed the fact that the Washington State primary election has been moved up to August 19 this year. In fact, absentee ballots have already gone out and people are starting their voting by mail.

(Don't know why this picture isn't showing up,
but click on it and you can still see the original.)

In keeping with CISC's mission to empower all our community members to succeed in their new community, and to encourage civic engagement on all fronts, we want to make sure that everyone knows that there is voting assistance available for those who need it.

Information is available in Chinese on the King County Elections web site. CISC staff can also help with in person assistance for those who need it, although they cannot and do not recommend or endorse any particular position or candidate.

Remember, this year we are moving to the Top 2 Primary in which you need not declare a party affiliation in order to vote. Just get out there and cast your ballot!

Civic Engagement in the APIA Community

In this election year, CISC has been working with Raising our Asian Pacific American Representation (ROAR), OneAmerica, and the Minority Executive Directors Coalition (MEDC) to encourage all members of our community to educate themselves, register to vote, and make their voices heard.
We are happy to announce the opening of a special exhibit sponosored another community partner, the Wing Luke Asian Museum. Our Voice… Our Democracy: Civic Engagement in the Asian Pacific Islander American Community opens August 20 and runs through January 18, 2009.

This exhibition examines voting and civic engagement in the Asian Pacific Islander American community and promotes dialogue around the question, “What does it mean to be actively engaged in our democracy?”

Come check it out and see the museum’s new multi-million dollar space at 719 S King!

Nutrition Workshops

The International Family Center - Seattle recently concluded a series of nutrition workshops covering healthy eating habits, making economical and healthy meals on a budget, learning about the food pyramid, and how to read nutrition facts on labels.

Some of the dishes participants made included cold noodles, crunchy frozen bananas, and healthy, kid-friendly snacks. All participants received a certificate of completion at the end of the course and went home ready to help their families live better and healthier lives.

Idealist.org

Internships at CISC. That's what Idealist.org is promoting (as well as 2,000 other positions at community based nonprofits).

CISC is a great place to volunteer, learn about community service, or explore career opportunities in the nonprofit sector. For a current listing of volunteer opportunities at CISC, check out our Volunteer page.

Idealist.org is a great place to explore misconceptions about working in the nonprofit world, and explore reasons for choosing a career outside corporate America. More information on their web site at www.idealist.org!

Summertime

Last week CISC had its annual agency picnic at Newcastle Beach Park in Bellevue. A tradition on the last Friday in July, we closed our doors early, assembled CISC staff and family and had an old fashioned picnic with food, games and lots of fun.

It was a beautiful day at the beach for swimming, sunning, and playing in the sand. Playing Telephone with folks who speak Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Spanish and English was a hoot! As was the Memory Game which didn't require any words at all.

Hula hoop contests, tug-of-war, and good old fashioned gunny sack races were a blast from the past, and likely the source of more than one sore muscle back in the office on Monday!