For Pictures of ACA’s 2018 events, please visit our Photo Sharing Website.
October 10: Acrylic Painting Class
ACA will be having an acrylic painting class starting on Wednesday, October 10th 12:30 pm to 3:30 pm at the CCC taught by Yvonne Chen. Yvonne has been participating in the Michigan Fine Art Competition since 2011 and in 2013 her artwork was selected to be displayed at the Lawrence St Gallery in which she earned second place last year. The class will have a total of 5 sessions ending on Wednesday, November 7th and no experience is needed. The class fee is $100 which includes painting materials and canvases will be $5 extra.
September 29 – October 6: ACA Caribbean Cruise
For this year’s fall outing, we went be going on an 8-day 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise. The ship departed from Miami and made one day stops at the Dominican Republic, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Turks & Caicos Island along with two days at sea.
September 24: Preventing Medicare Scam and Card Presentation
On Monday, September 24, 28 people attended the Happy Birthday 65 Presentation at Wing Wah Restaurant from 11am to 2pm. This presentation centered on information on how to get ready for medicare, compare medicare plans, remind them how to avoid medicare scam and when will they receive a new medicare card and what they have to do once they received it.
September 22: 2018 Detroit China Festival
On Saturday, September 22, Joyce represented the Association of Chinese Americans to speak about the history of Chinatown and held and ACA information booth at the 2018 Detroit China Festival in Grand Circus Park. The event included Authentic Chinese Food, Live Music, Games, Raffle Draw, Keynote Speeches and more.
September 22: B3 Leadership Summit
ACA and the OCA National co-hosted the B3 Leadership Summit on Saturday, September 22nd from 12pm to 4pm at Oakland University. A panel of important Asian American professionals from different walks of life spoke truth about their experiences and how being an Asian American impacted their life. Small group discussions talked about other important topics concerning the B3 ideals and how they should be applied to our lives.
September 15: Healthy Gardening Fair
ACA held the 2nd Annual Healthy Gardening Fair on Saturday, September 15th. This outdoor community fair at the Chinese Community Center was held in Madison Heights with info booths, vendors, and health promotion activities. The Winter Melon Growing Contest was a main part of the event with two age groups competing for the top prize. The event successfully raised awareness of how to live a healthy life in all aspects of life in a fun and lively way.
September 8, 2018: Town Hall Meeting – Tobacco Use and Safety in the Asian American Community
On September 8, 2018, the ACA hosted a town hall meeting at the Madison Heights Chinese Community Center concerning tobacco use and safety. During the meeting, findings from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and multiple local organizations Tobacco Usage Survey were discussed, as well as questions centered on the topic of fighting against tobacco for the health and future of the community.
August: Women’s ESL and Computer Courses through Stop Grant
At the CCC, a twelve-week program of ESL (began August 2) and Computer Skills (began Aug. 7) started for empowerment of women and specially targeted victims of domestic violence.
August 2: Detroit Center Health Workshop
Health Programs Manager Kaikai Chen gave a presentation to 10-15 seniors at the Detroit Service Center. The lecture topic was “Understanding Medicare and Medicaid Dual Eligible Benefits and Option.” Afterwards, seniors stayed to enjoy the Chinese Hot Lunch provided.
July 21: Canton Family Fun Day – Heritage Park, Canton
Despite rainy weather, the 4th annual Canton Family Fun Day was a huge success. Hundreds of people gathered to have fun as a community and taste a variety of Chinese food at the food bazaar. The event also included games, info booths, and performances and activities. Special guests were Canton officials: Dian Slavens, Canton Treasurer; Mark Slavens, Wayne County Judge; Kate Borninski, Plymouth Canton School Board President; and MI Senator and gubernatorial candidate Patrick Colbeck.
July 20: ACA Canton Center Health Presentation
Dr. Tang gave a presentation about elderly dementia. Her workshop focused on giving seniors a better understanding of disease types, causes, symptoms, and good nutritious supplements for prevention and control.
July 16-August 3: Canton-Plymouth Cultural Education Camps
This 3-week cultural education camp provides children in the metro Detroit area a quality, multi-cultural summertime education experience. Under management of Director Chris Quiambao and ED Joyce Li, around 80 children participated this year. Through games, classes, hands on activities, presentations by special guests, and field trips, campers practiced Chinese calligraphy, made dumplings, learned cultural dances, did kung fu and taekwondo, learned Mandarin, and were exposed to a wealth of Chinese culture. The camp was supported by many volunteers and high school and youth counselors.
June 29: Presentation for Seniors at Canton Center
Mr. Yin Changsong brought the lecture, “The New Era of Cooperation and Development” to the senior group. It presented China’s development direction and prospects – cooperation and exchanges with countries around the world. About 27 seniors attended.
June 27: ACA Detroit – Health Workshop: Understanding Benefits and Assistance
At 11 A.M. on Wednesday, June 27, Health Programs Manager Kaikai Chen led a one-hour workshop session to Chinese-speaking seniors on the topic of understanding medical benefits and assistance. Approximately 10-15 seniors attended, many from the Westland Senior Apartments.
June 21: Summer Camp Counselor Training
An all-morning training session for ACA Canton Summer Camp counselors was held at FlexTech High School in Novi. Andrew Lo, an OCA National staff member, flew in from DC to help with the training. This training is another kind of APIA-Y training but is designed especially for our Summer Camp Counselors.
June 16: Detroit Chinese School
ACA volunteers and staff participated as a vendor organization with cultural display tables at the American Chinese School of Greater Detroit’s annual China Day at Derby Middle School in Birmingham. At the event, ACA also did fundraising for its Chinese Community Center Capital Campaign and passed out health information about the dangers of smoking, tobacco, and hookah as part of its tobacco prevention outreach activities.
June 12: Macomb Senior Fun Fest
On June 12, at least 300 people attended the Fun Festival. ACA sent a group of seniors, including the ACA choir who performed songs at the event. The senior group participated in the many activities, including: browsing the event info booths, collecting balloons and goodies, and dance activities.
June 10: Comcast Digital Inclusion Graduation
On Sunday, June 10, 2018, 14 middle & high school students graduated from the Comcast Digital Inclusion Program, held at the Chinese Community Center. The program runs throughout the school year and it is our 6th year and 8th graduating class. Throughout the program, the students were educated in digital literacy and responsibility, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy. Students also each received a new Lenovo laptop as a reward for graduating and completing 50 hours of community service.
May 26: Madison Heights Memorial Day Parade
A group of ACA members young and old marched in the Memorial Day Weekend Parade on Saturday, May 26 in Madison Heights. ACA President Roland Hwang, former board member Sue Sung, and Health Program Manager Kaikai Chen were on hand, as well as drummers from the Cantonese Music Group. The parade route went down John R. and ended at City Hall where a ceremony was held.
May 20: Chinese Abstract Art Exhibit
With cooperation from the China Abstract Art Promotion Salon, Liu Xinyuan Foundation of Asian Art, and Curator Ma Yiying, ACA held the second showing of the China Abstract Art Exhibition at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial on May 20, 2018 from 12:30 P.M. to 6:00 P.M. The event featured over 20 pieces of art spanning the last century. The opening ceremony featured a violin performance by Hai Xin Wu of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and a vocal opera performance by Professor Jinsheng Zhang of Wayne State University.
May 13-15: Ohio Mother’s Day Spring Outing
Staff members David Liou and Kaikai Chen led a group of over 50 seniors on a 3-day, 2-night trip to Ohio. The group explored the regions around Cleveland and Columbus, visiting city and country, and stopped at Lake Eerie beaches, The Wilds Zoo, Hocking Hills State Park, went on a World War II submarine tour, visited a winery, caves, and much more.
April 21: Comcast Cares Day 2018
Throughout Saturday morning, ACA volunteer groups met and worked at sites in Plymouth and Sterling Heights to pack food as volunteers for the Kids Against Hunger Coalition. ACA had a large cohort of varied-age participants. This was the 7th year ACA participated in this service opportunity.
April 21: Ceramic Lecture Series Pt. II: The Art of Chinese Folk Pottery
Marie Woo, ceramic artist and historian, gave a presentation on Chinese Folk Pottery to over 70 attendees at the Chinese Community Center. The event also included an educational video and a display and auction of Ms. Woo’s personal collection of historical artifacts. The Michigan Asian Art Society sponsored the event.
April 12: Detroit Center Health Workshop
Kaikai Chen gave a 1-hour presentation at 11 A.M. on “Safety Living” at the Detroit Service Center. The event attracted senior citizens who learned about maintaining a safe environment at home and behaviors to encourage safety. Lunch was served after.
April 7: Ceramic Lecture Series Pt. I: Ming Dynasty Porcelain
ACA held a lecture event from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Chinese Community Center with featured speaker Professor Jianxin Jiang of the Jingdezhen Institute of Archaeology in China giving the lecture: “Study and Appreciation of Official Kiln Porcelain of the Ming Dynasty.” The event attracted over 100 guests, including local art enthusiasts, collectors, and representatives of local museums. In addition, ACA cooperated with the Confucius Institute at the University of Michigan to hold the lecture at U-M on April 4th.
Read a bilingual recap with pictures here.
March 27: Detroit Center Health Screening and Workshop
ACA’s Detroit center organized a health screening and workshop event at its office from around 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The event attracted around 20-30 participants, both regular attendees and seniors from Westland and outer suburbs. Lunch, ESL class, health screenings by WSU Medical School student volunteers, and a workshop lecture on fraud prevention by Kaikai Chen were all offered.
February 24: Lantern Festival – Chinese Community Center
ACA held its annual Lunar New Year Lantern Festival at the Chinese Community Center in Madison Heights on Saturday, Feb. 24 from 11 AM to 3 PM. The event attracted crowds of people who flooded the center to enjoy Chinese snacks and food, cultural activities, and traditional performances. The festival brought to Michigan an authentic flavor of the New Year from China.
Read a bilingual recap with pictures here.
February 22: Quarterly Health Workshop – presentation luncheon
On Feb 22, 18 people attended at Wing Wah Restaurant for the celebration of Lunar Year and had lunch together and ordered some Chinese dishes. The content of the presentation included the new Medicare card, how the new MI Marketplace Option is going to affect seniors and also different services that can benefit seniors 60+ provided by Macomb Community Action.
February 17: Annual Lunar New Year Banquet – Golden Harvest Restaurant
On Saturday evening, February 17, upwards of 300 guests attended ACA’s annual New Year’s celebration and fundraising event. The evening included networking, opening remarks from President Roland Hwang, silent auction and raffle prizes, a traditional 10-course Chinese meal, and a choir performance. In addition, many VIP guests attended the event.
Read a bilingual recap of the Banquet and Open Houses here.
February 16: Canton Center New Year Party
ACA’s Canton Center opened to the public, both Chinese and non-Chinese friends alike, to offer a New Year Party with food, cultural displays, calligraphy, and a viewing of the Spring Festival TV broadcast. Many regular center attendees participated and helped make food. The event was a success in bringing community members from different backgrounds together. Roland Hwang, Joyce Li, and Community Health Manager Kaikai Chen offered remarks at the event.
February 15: Detroit Center Lunar New Year Open House
ACA’s Detroit office welcomed in a crowd of visitors to celebrate the New Year. The event offered cultural displays, dumpling making, a calligraphy bookmark booth, a broadcast of the Spring Festival Show from China, free health screening by Wayne State Medical School students, and a catered Chinese buffet lunch. ACA President Roland Hwang and Executive Director Joyce Li also offered remarks. In addition, FBI Community Outreach Specialist Rhonda Kennedy and APIA-Vote representatives attended and informed seniors about their community activities.
January 28: ACA helped organized Chinese New Year Flash Performance
Along with CAGD and other groups, ACA helped organize the Five Continents Chinese New Year Flash Performance, which was held at Somerset Mall in the afternoon and drew several hundred spectators. Many local choir groups, dance groups, and Chinese organizations performed. ACA’s senior qipao group also participated in the performance.
January 28: Cultural Walk at Library Expo
ACA volunteers set up a booth for the Cultural Walk at Detroit’s Redford Branch Library. They displayed an array of traditional Chinese culture, taught basic Chinese phrases, and led festive crafts.