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ALSO COVERING AUBURNDALE, COLLEGE POINT, DOUGLASTON, GLEN OAKS, FLORAL PARK
• LITTLE NECK LEDGER
• WHITESTONE TIMES
May 21-May 27, 2021
Flushing organization hosts Family Fun
Day in celebration of AAPI Heritage Month
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
The Korean American Family
Service Center (KAFSC),
in partnership with the NYPD
Queens Community Outreach
Unit, hosted its first annual
Asian American Pacific Islander
(AAPI) Family Fun Day
at Astoria Park on Saturday,
May 15, to celebrate the month
of May, which is also known as
Family Month for Koreans, as
well as AAPI Heritage Month.
More than 10 community
partners and hundreds of
people from the Asian American
community participated
in the event at Astoria Park
that featured musical entertainment
by Jay Miners, Wind
Meets West, as well as a drum
and dance performance by the
New York Pilgrim Missionary
Dance. Food trucks such as
The Maine Lobster, Carvel Ice
Cream, Frank’s Souvlaki and
Yum Dum, were also on site
serving delicious meals to the
community.
“During the Month of May
in Korea we celebrate family —
May 5 is our Children’s Day and
May 8 is Parents’ Day. There
are a lot of celebrations around
families in Korea,” Jaehee
Fischer, executive director of
KAFSC, told QNS. “In the U.S.,
during AAPI Heritage Month,
we wanted to celebrate and
give our community members
The first annual Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Family Fun day event was held at Astoria Park
on Saturday, May 15, to celebratefamily month for Koreans, as well asAAPI Heritage month.
the opportunity to learn about
Asian American culture and
for Asian Americans to participate
in the fun day to celebrate
their own heritage.”
This year’s celebration of
AAPI Heritage Month is especially
significant following the
rise in growing anti-Asian sentiment
throughout the country
that has ignited a movement
(#StopAsianHate), as Asians
are experiencing a wave of unprovoked
violent attacks in relation
to the coronavirus.
While it has been a difficult
year for the Asian community
grappling with a virus and anti-
Asian discrimination, Fischer
said the event was meaningful
just seeing everyone enjoy themselves
during a critical time.
As the executive director of
KAFSC, a nonprofit organization
based in Flushing committed
to preventing and ending
domestic violence, sexual assault
and relationship abuse,
Fischer had to also cater to the
community providing COVID-
19 information and calls regarding
anti-Asian attacks.
Courtesy of KAFSC
“We are designated by the
Office of Victim Services to be
able to assist our community
members with any crimes —
meaning that we can fill out
an application on behalf of our
clients of crimes to be compensated
by loss of job due to the
crime,” Fischer said.
KAFSC offers a broad range
of programs and services for
women, men, children and
youth. The center’s services
are provided by bilingual professional
counselors, and without
charge to the client. All client
information is kept strictly
confidential and their privacy
is protected.
However, according to Fischer,
because of language access
and cultural barriers,
many Asian American community
members aren’t aware of
the resources available to them
that are provided by the city
and state.
“We’ve been bridging that
gap more than ever,” Fischer
said. At the height of the pandemic
last year, according to Fischer,
the center received an influx
of phone calls on their one-of-akind,
24-hour bilingual hotline
regarding social emotional support
for seniors, and survivors
of domestic violence who were
trapped at home with their
abuser. Additionally, the center
was also providing self-defense
training sessions in light of
attacks against Asians, while
also disseminating information
on how to report a crime.
“If they can’t report it because
of the language capacity,
we will be able to do it for
them,” Fischer said.
Overall, Fischer acknowledged
the elected officials —
such as Borough President
Donovan Richards and Senator
John Liu — who have been
outspoken about the issue and
have encouraged everyone to
stand up against Asian hate.
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