~ Past Events (2004) ~

The Spirit Of Christmas (Service)
Saturday, December 11, 2004

CASA's first Spirit of Christmas event at the Chinatown Library was a great success! Armed with scissors, shiny ribbon, and colorful paper, kids and volunteers got into the holiday spirit turning their creativity into tree ornaments, homemade cards, and braided wreaths. When not busy with the arts and crafts, the kids sat with volunteers for story tellings and caroling. The day was complete with a final reading of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Special thanks to Wainie for putting the whole event together.

Fall Hiking Trip (Social)
Sunday, September 26, 2004
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It was another sunny Southern California Sunday when a bunch of CASA members met for a hike up Mt. Hollywood. We began at the Griffith Observatory, gathering by a tree that must have been home to a colony of hummingbirds. Hiking a labyrinth of paths to the summit (and using horse droppings as our trail markers), we were rewarded with a great view of Los Angeles when we scaled the Hollywood hills. The peak did offer views of Glendale, the Hollywood sign, and downtown Los Angeles. Poking out of the signature LA haze was the First Interstate World Center building. Afterwards, lunch at a Thai place completed a very fulfilling morning.

CAM's Eighth Annual History Makers Awards Banquet (Service)
Friday, September 10, 2004
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Simply Help (Service)
Sunday, August 22, 2004
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Once again, our intrepid volunteers spent a warm and sunny Sunday afternoon sifting and sorting through piles of clothing, shoes, and other miscellaneous items. Collected by Simply Help, these donated goods are destined for the needy in foreign countries like Cambodia. Eagerly sought after computers and other electronic equipment will eventually find their way into labs to teach computer skills like data entry. To donate items and for more information, visit Simply Help's website (www.simplyhelp.org).

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CASA 6th Anniversary Dinner (Social)
Sunday, August 1, 2004

Still going strong after six years, about thirty CASA members and potential members attended our anniversary BBQ/Potluck to celebrate our birthday and to kick off our 7th year of volunteering and servicing the Chinese community in Los Angeles. In attendance were five original members who were responsible for the genesis of CASA: Hoa, Frank, Amy, Van, and Samantha. With plenty of food, conversation, and good company, the celebration lasted a good 5 hours! Amy, our treasurer, was graceous enough to host the soiree. My thanks to her for all of her hard work, preparation and post-party wrap ups. And thank you to all of you who showed up early to help prepare for the BBQ, everyone who brought food and took food home afterwards, and all of you who were on-the-spot with the clean up after the party began to wind down. I feel confident that six years from now, we will be celebrating another anniversary.

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Chinese Food Festival (Service)
Saturday, June 19, 2004

Opening day at the Chinatown food festival was a success largely due to the efforts of the CASA members who assisted with the festival's setup and its operations. About 20 members began the day setting up the food booths, the entertainment stage, and taking care of all the details that goes with setting up a festival.

Once the festival opened at 2:00 to a throng of visitors, CASA members mobilized to take care of the cash register, manning the food booths, educating the visitors about Chinatown, assisting the cooking demonstrations, and enforcing the entrance gate.

Most of the CASA members worked one of the half day shifts, but Andy Loh and Ben Chung volunteered their time for the entire day (11:00 - 7:00). Thanks to our contact with the Chinatown Service Center, Jean Chan, and our own Jenny Wong for getting the event organized.

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3rd Annual Pasadena Cherry Blossom Festival (Service)
Saturday, April 3, 2004

People from all around Pasadena turned out for the Pasadena Cherry Blossom Festival, in despite of the overcast skies and occasional shower. There were martial arts demonstrations, music, lots of food, arts and crafts, and the ubiquitous booths selling odds and ends. There were even some real cherry blossoms, if you looked hard enough! As for the volunteers, we helped out with setting up the booths in morning, teaching the kids to fold origami flowers and make butterflies from coffee filters, and guarding the winning paintings from the art contest. Although the parade and fashion show were the next day, there were still plenty of things to see and do, including the Aquarium of the Pacific's mobile aquarium, the Dodgers' pitching game to win bobble-head dolls, and a crazy one-man-band.

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26th Annual LA Chinatown Firecracker Run (Service)
Sunday, February 8, 2004

Sunday, February 8, 2004 marked the 26th Annual Los Angeles Chinatown Firecracker Run. Close to a dozen CASA volunteers arrived in Chinatown before the crack of dawn at 6 a.m. in the morning to help with checking in runners, distributing t-shirts and goodie bags, and assisting with last minute registrations. A few of our volunteers also did a good deal of running of their own when they helped with delivering the runners’ results to the tabulators. The volunteers were also on hand to cheer on the runners as they approached the finish line. As always, CASA would like to thank all the volunteers for their hard work and especially for showing up extra early to help out at this particular event.

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Annual Ski/Snowboarding Trip (Social)
Friday, February 26 - Sunday, February 28, 2004

The third annual CASA ski trip was another resounding success as we made the trek up to Big Bear after a phenomenal snow dump on the weekend of February 27th through the 29th. CASA stayed at an awesome cabin that was a block from the base of the mountain. This was especially appreciated after a hard day on the mountain had sapped us of every ounce of energy and we didn't have to trudge a long distance or fight the traffic to get to a hot shower. Most of us took up snowboarding but we did have one lone skier who braved the double black diamond runs and survived the weekend with only one bad spill. Most of us had a few minor bumps and bruises and a great weekend to remember. Thanks to Samantha who planned the trip, reserved the cabin, and made sure that everyone had rides up to the mountain. Her and Van also made sure we all had enough to eat!

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CASA got together on Saturday January 31st for a beginning-of-the-year social. Fourteen CASA members and a few recruits showed up, ate pizza and had a great time playing scattegories, taboo, cranium, and a little known game of Chinese cops and robbers. (for which the rules I have yet to clearly understand). Thanks to Samantha, our social chair for setting up the event, Jeff for being a great host and ordering the pizzas, and all of the CASA members and recruits who showed up.

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