January 4, 2021 to January 8, 2021

Dear Community,

WE DID IT! We are so proud to share that we raised a total of $20,648 through our year-end #PaperCraneWish Campaign. Gratitude to all who made a gift to CAAL, folded a crane and shared your wish for a brighter tomorrow. Thanks to you, we boldly take on the New Year with more hope, courage and determination than ever before.

We encourage you to search “#PaperCraneWish” on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter and enjoy post after post of smiling faces, beautifully folded cranes and wishes for the New Year.

We are also excited to announce Aki Shibata and Jun-Li Wang as the lead artists for our #PaperCraneWish art installation. They will be crafting a mobile installation inspired by Chinese temple incense spirals and hanging paper cranes, which will stand as a symbol of solidarity, unity, and hope for our shared future. Stay tuned for our installation unveiling on Lunar New Year!

If you would like your folded paper cranes to be used in the creation of our art installation, please mail your cranes to us by January 15, 2021, at: CAAL Office, 941 Lafond Ave, Ste 205, St. Paul, MN 55104

With gratitude,

Julia Gay
Communications and Marketing Coordinator

Samantha Sencer-Mura is a local non-profit leader and bi-racial Japanese American woman living in Minneapolis. She grew up in Minneapolis and became passionate about closing the educational opportunity gap after her time as a student in the Minneapolis Public Schools, where she witnessed deep inequities within the system. She earned her B.A. in Critical Theory and Social Justice from Occidental College and her Master’s in School Leadership at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Since 2017, she has been the Executive Director at 826 MSP, a youth writing, tutoring, and publishing center with a mission to empower the next generation of Twin Cities authors. 826 MSP is a part of the 826 national network, the largest network of youth writing centers in the country. She is also currently a board member for New Leaders Council Twin Cities, a training program for young progressive leaders. She was a member of the #MinneAsianStories advisory board in 2018 and 2019, and is currently a SPARK leadership fund recipient.

Shoua Lee is Vice President, Community Development for Wells Fargo based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Ms. Lee’s work is focused on meeting the credit needs of low- and moderate-income communities on issues of housing affordability, small business growth, and financial health. Ms. Lee serves on the Local Advisory Committee and chairs the Community Investment Committee for Local Initiatives Support Corporation Twin Cities. She also serves on the Leadership Team for the Homeownership Opportunity Alliance and on the Wells Fargo Public Affairs Diversity and Inclusion Council and chairs the committee on Demonstrating Diversity & Inclusion. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Ms. Lee worked in public involvement for the Metropolitan Council on the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit Project and in the first-time homebuyer program and housing development team for the City of Saint Paul. Ms. Lee is passionate about her work with under-represented communities as those are the very communities in which she was raised. She is a homeowner on Saint Paul’s East Side and is also a creative writer. In her free time she works on story preservation projects with her family and storytelling projects coordinated and archived by the Minnesota Hmong Museum.

CAAL ACTIVITIES & EVENTS
 

Research Briefing: Redefining Wealth Through Communal and Cultural Assets
Wednesday, January 20, 2021 from 4:00 PM –  5:00 PM CST

We are pleased to invite you to join us for the official launch and briefing on the findings of our recently published economic research report on Asian Minnesotans and wealth building entitled, “Redefining Wealth Through Communal and Cultural Assets.” This first research of its kind was conducted with communities from 10 different Asian ethnic groups and offers a deeper look at practices and values that drive wealth building in this population. At this event, we will go in-depth about the research findings. You’ll then hear from leaders working on wealth building from various angles who will react to and share how they imagine using the research findings.

In this critical time, when everyone is contemplating how we will build back more inclusively and better, we must explore future prosperity models grounded in cultural intelligence and values to combat poverty and build wealth. Whether you are moving solutions in the banking, housing, workforce, small business, or in the general community development field, the report findings can help you innovate and align efforts with the community’s values and definitions of wealth.

Please register in advance for the event here.

CAAL Media Consultant – Request for Proposals (RFP)

Project Timeline: The project timeline is January – June 30, 2021.
Proposal Deadline: All proposals must be sent via email to Nick@caalmn.org by Friday, January 22, 2021, at 11:59 PM.

We seek an experienced media consultant to support our communications work to build power narratives that have the potential to ensure systems become more inclusive and equitable for Asian Minnesotans. We seek to improve how the media covers our communities and want to improve our overall media advocacy work so that the community-centered solutions we
build reach decision-makers and our allies to ensure systems are equitable and inclusive.

The consultant will work with our team to develop relationships with mainstream and ethnic media, pitch stories, write op-eds, and pursue other strategies to ensure our community’s stories and solutions are covered. See full RFP here.

OTHER OPPORTUNITIES & EVENTS
 

Book Talk: Kao Kalia Yang and Somewhere in the Unknown World: A Collective Refugee Memoir
Thursday, January 7, 2021 at 7:00 PM CST

East Side Freedom Library and the Ramsey County Historical Society invite you to a conversation with Kao Kalia Yang about her new book, Somewhere in the Unknown World: A Collective Refugee Memoir. In Yang’s exquisite, poetic, and necessary telling, the voices of refugees from all over the world restore humanity to America’s strangers and redeem its long history of welcome. This event will feature a conversation with playwright and poet Saymoukda Vongsay, union and community activist Sangay Taythi, writer and community activist Thet-Htar Thet, and doctor and activist Najaha Musse. Register today! 

Kao Kalia Yang Scholarship for Fall 2021
Deadline: Friday, April 2, 2021 at 11:59 PM PDT

The Robin-Hwajin Yoon Kim Foundation which supports education, the underprivileged, and positive social impact initiatives has established ‘Kao Kalia Yang Scholarship’ to help economically-challenged Hmong American youth fulfill their dreams of obtaining higher education. The scholarship is open to high school seniors planning to attend college in the Fall of 2021. If selected, $5,000 will be awarded each year for up to four years (or upon graduation). Learn more here!

Remembering Minnesotans Lost to COVID-19

Have you lost someone to coronavirus or do you work with victims’ families? The Sahan Journal, a nonprofit news site that writes about immigrants, refugees, and new Americans who live and work in Minnesota, is looking to memorialize the lives of new Americans who have lost their lives to COVID-19. Learn more and find out how you can help.