Thank you 2012!!!

I subscribe to a few blogs and a few of them sent out thank you notes to their subscribers. I have no idea why I didn’t think of that. And now that I have I wanted to send out a quick thank you for all of you that take the time to read about what’s happening with our organization.

I love PAASSC. I know what motivates me to keep it going and I know why my children continue to look forward to each event but I would love to hear more of why it works for you and your family.

Top 5 Reasons I love PAASSC!

Great Kids: Most of the kids have no idea what PAASSC is – especially the younger ones. They just show up for a play date, meet the teacher and are again immersed into the Chinese language for about an hour with students from all of the bay area (from Berkeley to the Peninsula). I anticipate that PAASSC outings will continue to help our youth build their confidence and comfort in speaking Chinese in the community.
Excellent Volunteers: I don’t know where we would be without our volunteers. My daughter has fallen in love with Tian Qian Laoshi (and her husband). Tian Qian brings a warm and caring presence to her instruction and has has made significant contributions to our lesson plans. An additional hats off to Lynn & Justin. They have been an amazing asset to our organization with their enthusiasm for what we are building at PAASSC. Their commitment and support has been amazing. Xinfeng’s participation last year helped to raise the bar. She pulled out all the stops to engage the children and for that we continue to be thankful. Our Mandarin speaking volunteers are one of the most valued assets of our organization.
Enthusiastic Members: While membership is lower than we had hoped we still have super excited members. I love the phone calls, texts, check ins and the “rotating” participation – you may not all show up to the same event but you do show up. In addition to members the subscribers to our site have been a wonderful inspiration to me. We average a new subscriber every other week. I always get a little smile when I receive an email confirming a new subscriber. And so far we have not had one person “unsubscribe”.
Supportive Administrators: Every time I have an opportunity to speak with a school administrator I receive a significant amount of support and encouragement. It continues to be difficult to identify the specific direction that PAASSC will take over the next year because there are so many options. The feedback from administrators has been very helpful in exploring these options as we are narrowing/expanding our focus.
The Hanban (Chinese Ministry of Education): There is nothing that can compare to my trip to China. A heartfelt thank you to the Hanban and the Collegeboard for sponsoring an incredibly informative and inspiring trip. While it was a very difficult time to be away from family, it was an extraordinary excursion and has widened my perspective of the Chinese culture and has definitely influenced the PAASSC planning process.