KYCC Celebrates our Prevention Community Council with 7th Annual Flores de Mayo Event
On May 12, KYCC Prevention Education hosted the 7th Annual Flores de Mayo event to commemorate our Prevention Community Council (PCC), which currently has a membership of over 160 adult community members. Read more
Community Events
Take advantage of summer and get outside to volunteer with KYCC this month! Volunteers are needed for our upcoming Koreatown cleanups and community mobility walks.
Volunteer:
K-Town Beautiful Event July 15
Koreatown Mobility Safety Walk 7/22
DEI Corner: The Summer Solstice
By Kathleen Hobkirk, Youth Services
The Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year in terms of sunlight. On this day, the sun travels the longest path in the sky, and this is commonly regarded as a marker of the first day of summer. Ancient cultures around the world found many ways to celebrate this day, and major themes surrounding cultural holidays around this time include light, fire, balance, power, and strength. Common ways of celebrating included bonfires, weddings, feasts, and outdoor festivals. You can think of Summer Solstice celebrations as elaborate summer BBQ’s!
For me, the Summer Solstice is a time for refocusing myself on my goals and finding the “light” and “warmth” in my life. In Paganism, the Summer Solstice (also known by the Gaelic name “Litha”) is one of the 4 solar holidays. Pagan Holidays often celebrate natural cycles of life. This includes the passing of seasons, the passing through different stages of life, harvest times, and more. There are 4 solar holidays (dates are dependent on the sun) and 4 fixed holidays (dates are fixed). These holidays make up the wheel of the year, a continually-moving passing of time with no set beginning or end, which you can see in the picture below.
“During Litha [the Summer Solstice], Pagans celebrate the power of the sun and the abundance of the natural world. It’s a time to honor the longest day of the year and to connect with the energy of the sun, which is at its strongest at this time. Many Pagan rituals and traditions associated with Litha focus on themes of growth, transformation, and abundance, as well as honoring the cycles of life, death, and rebirth.
At Litha, Pagans may perform a variety of rituals and ceremonies to mark the occasion, such as lighting bonfires or candles, making offerings to the gods and goddesses of the sun, and participating in outdoor activities like picnics, hiking, or swimming. It is also a time for spending time with loved ones, connecting with the natural world, and reflecting on the blessings of the season.” (Source: Litha ~ Celebrating the Summer Solstice by Keri Bevan)
Sources:
Encyclopedia of Britannica “Summer Solstice”
Learn Religions “Litha History”
Learn Religions “Guide to Celebrating Litha”
Stevie Storck “The Wheel of the Year”
Keri Bevan “Litha ~ Celebrating the Summer Solstice”
If you are interested in writing a segment showcasing your culture for our DEI Staff Newsletters, please reach out by emailing kyccdeicommittee@kyccla.org
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Birthdays
- July 2 – Gloria Figueroa
- July 5 – Myung Kee Kim
- July 7 – Eli Oh
- July 9 – Presilla Kim
- July 11 – Hiroko Makiyama
- July 12 – Jessica M Estrada
- July 12 – Gustavo Avitia
- July 12 – Marc Sanchez
- July 12 – Ethan H Gourlay
- July 14 – Cristian A Diaz
- July 15 – Jazmin Garcia
- July 18 – Tommy Rendon
- July 18 – Jose Pantoja
- July 20 – Geraldin Lugo Alvara
- July 21 – Raymond Gutierrez
- July 25 – Brandon Gix
- July 25 – Brenda Cortes
- July 28 – Jennifer Baltazar
- July 29 – Lia Yeh
- August 3 – Sabin Kim
- August 7 – Aimee Newton
- August 15 – Ha Yeon Kim
- August 15 – Katherine Kim
- August 16 – Desiy Gutierrez
- August 16 – Tommy Rendon Jr
- August 17 – Monica Negrete
- August 24 – Amanda Rodriguez
- August 30 – Lidia Sebastian
Work Anniversaries
- July 1 – 38 years – John Ho Song
- July 6 – 2 years – Hayoung Lee
- July 6 – 2 years – Angelic Perez
- July 7 – 1 year – Tommy Rendon
- July 8 – 1 year – Marc Sanchez
- July 9 – 5 years – Santos Guttierez
- July 13 – 3 years – Aimee Newton
- July 13 – 1 year – Hermogenes Segovia
- July 15 – 4 years – Sabin Kim
- July 15 – 4 years – Amanda Rodriguez
- July 20 – 3 years – Sagar Patel
- July 21 – 1 year – Jessica Gonzales Garcia
- July 21 – 1 year – Miriam Ruiz
- July 30 – 21 years – Anabel Torres
- August 1 – 1 year – Rebecca Escort
- August 3 – 3 years – Jonathan Diaz
- August 5 – 21 years – Jessica Estrada
- August 6 – 3 years – Christine Nguyen
- August 6 – 2 years – Joseph Rodriguez
- August 8 – 1 year – Luis Licona
- August 10 – 3 years – Francesca LeRue
- August 13 – 2 years – Charisee Williams
- August 16 – 2 years – Jerry Levinson
- August 16 – 2 years – Karen Salas
- August 17 – 1 year – Samuel Lee
- August 19 – 4 years – Torin Yee
- August 22 – 7 years – Bryan Zaragoza
- August 30 – 1 year – Raymond Gutierrez
- August 30 – 2 years – Preston Bryant
Did you know
…You make the change you want to see at your work site?
If you see something that needs fixing or replacing, you can let me and Porfirio know.
We use The List to track and prioritize our work (it’s also on the wiki).
When you open it, select the tab for your location, add your request to the bottom, and leave the rest to us!
Now you know!
The Right Outreach Question
The wrong question is, “our project isn’t catching on, how do we promote it better?”
The right question is a little more nuanced and far more important,
“We’re seeking to make a change in our community. How do we find the right people and tell them the right (true) story that helps them get to where they’re going–and that they’ll tell to their peers?”
It’s worth breaking this down and understanding the components:
Make a change: Any service or project that seeks to maintain the status quo is difficult to grow. You’re here to make a change, and being clear about what that is is the first step.
The right people: Nothing worth spreading is built to appeal to everyone. So who is your someone? What do they want, fear and believe? How do you shift from being mediocre to being specific?
The right (true) story: Your message or pitch is never about the full experience of all the facts, specifications and impacts of your service or project. It’s the story we tell ourselves about it. A story of hope, of affiliation, of change and fear. If that story is true, then you can continue to build on it over time, and your audience won’t end up disappointed.
That helps them get to where they’re going: It’s very difficult to get people to want something they don’t want. The opportunity lies in helping them get what they wanted all along.
and finally…
That they’ll tell to their peers: Not to everyone, but to people who trust them. Why would they do that? They won’t do it for you, they’ll do it because it increases connection or gives them some other form of satisfaction.
Promotion might make sense after you’ve got all of this figured out.
– Seth’s Blog
No Comments