The Baby Therese Rose / Sara Chavez Kids Corner was unveiled today at the Ribbon Cutting ceremony at the Alhambra Police Department. With press on hand to document the event, Mary Glenn did the honors and officially made the room "open for business."
Pictures from the event can be viewed by clicking on the slideshow below:
An article about the room ran in the Pasadena Star-News.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
My story and the Mental Health Task Force Connection
by Esther Siu (Mental Health Liason)
I like to go back in my early days and find traces of my early life working with community back home in Hong Kong. The earliest experience I remembered was in middle school when I joined an after school program. I was assigned to read to the blind at a Catholic center while the blind person typed it in Braille. I remember how nervous I was at the beginning and how they laughed and thanked me for what I did. That helped and made me understand, they were just like me. As I became a young adult, I had a friend who was a social worker working with mentally challenged children. I went to visit her and spend the morning at the center with the children. The staff there showed a lot of patience and love. I can tell the children felt it because they were laughing and playing. A morning well spent and perhaps led me to think of what I wanted to do later on in life. Becoming part of Kingdom Causes Alhambra, gave me the opportunity to continue some of these early beginnings as I work with the mental health task force in the city of Alhambra.
Mental health awareness became an interest of mine because I have an uncle who struggled with schizophrenia for a good part of his life. Before my grandfather passed away, he told the brothers and sisters to take care of their youngest and most tender brother. So they took turns taking care of him up till the very end. I had the privilege to visit Uncle Chester once at the institution where he was hospitalized. It was quite a challenge to be among so many people with mental health illness issues. When my uncle passed away, he left behind some money. Since he had no children, the money was distributed among the nieces and nephews. I used it to subsidize my tuition at Fuller. I tell his story because I owe him a “thank you.” I took comfort that many people will benefit from what he gave me. This is how I would remember him.
by Esther Siu (Mental Health Liason)
I like to go back in my early days and find traces of my early life working with community back home in Hong Kong. The earliest experience I remembered was in middle school when I joined an after school program. I was assigned to read to the blind at a Catholic center while the blind person typed it in Braille. I remember how nervous I was at the beginning and how they laughed and thanked me for what I did. That helped and made me understand, they were just like me. As I became a young adult, I had a friend who was a social worker working with mentally challenged children. I went to visit her and spend the morning at the center with the children. The staff there showed a lot of patience and love. I can tell the children felt it because they were laughing and playing. A morning well spent and perhaps led me to think of what I wanted to do later on in life. Becoming part of Kingdom Causes Alhambra, gave me the opportunity to continue some of these early beginnings as I work with the mental health task force in the city of Alhambra.
Mental health awareness became an interest of mine because I have an uncle who struggled with schizophrenia for a good part of his life. Before my grandfather passed away, he told the brothers and sisters to take care of their youngest and most tender brother. So they took turns taking care of him up till the very end. I had the privilege to visit Uncle Chester once at the institution where he was hospitalized. It was quite a challenge to be among so many people with mental health illness issues. When my uncle passed away, he left behind some money. Since he had no children, the money was distributed among the nieces and nephews. I used it to subsidize my tuition at Fuller. I tell his story because I owe him a “thank you.” I took comfort that many people will benefit from what he gave me. This is how I would remember him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)