This spring semester at MTE was filled with more colorful and enriching moments than ever before. Together with the children, we laughed, learned, challenged ourselves with new experiences, and encouraged one another as we took small but meaningful steps toward a bigger world.
Spring Break
During spring break, we had a special opportunity to visit a kimchi factory, 'Ms Lee's Natural Foods', operated by a business owner in North Vancouver. Beyond simply touring the factory, the students naturally began discussing how they might one day work and connect within society, and how practical experiences, such as work placements, could become part of their future journeys.
We also visited the rehearsal studio of the Korean theater group Hanuri. Watching professional actors rehearse up close allowed the students to deeply feel the passion and dedication that go into preparing for the stage. It was truly a precious experience.
Activities for both physical and emotional well-being continued throughout the semester. At Ice Shipyards Ice Rink, the students experienced the joy of falling and getting back up again through ice skating. At the same time, at Grouse Mountain, they enjoyed snowshoeing together through the beauty of the winter landscape.
To enrich their emotional lives, we also attended the musical The Addam's Family together, sharing both laughter and the moving power of the arts. These moments of moving, laughing, and marveling together are gradually becoming treasured memories in the hearts of our children.
Diverse Learning Experiences
Several MTE students have been participating in monthly theater workshops led by professional actors, slowly nurturing their dreams of becoming performing artists. Some of these students once found it difficult even to stand in front of others, but now they look forward to stepping onto the stage and are discovering the joy of self-expression. Watching their small but growing confidence has been deeply meaningful for all of us.
In addition, Ms. Jina Kim, a former Ewha Womans University dancer, shared lessons on stretching and nutrition to help improve the students’ health and well-being. Through her guidance, the children are learning healthy habits such as exercising regularly, taking Omega-3 supplements and multivitamins, and caring for their own bodies. Though these may seem like small routines, they are becoming important first steps toward healthier lives.
We were also grateful for the warm time spent with Ms. Sun-ok Yang, a Korean Minhwa (traditional folk painting) artist and director of Aria Minhwa Studio, who briefly joined us during the “Flying with AI” event. The students painted traditional Korean folk art on hanji paper using beautiful Korean colors, and through watching the paint slowly spread across the paper, they experienced moments of healing and calm. The completed artworks will be displayed at an upcoming MTE fundraising event, and we hope that the beauty created by the students’ hands will bring comfort and encouragement to others as well.
Another meaningful story continues to unfold through our soccer class, which first began with the dream of one student. What started as the small wish of a high school student with borderline intellectual disability has now become a source of hope not only for him, but for many other children as well — showing them that dreams really can come true.
Our children may each carry different diagnoses, but those diagnoses do not define who they are. Every child has their own name, their own story, and their own unique personality given by God. Each one is precious and deeply valuable.
A World We Live in Together
We are also thankful that MTE was recently selected to receive the BC Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Grant, receiving $5,000 to support neighbors in need within our community. In addition, through Ms. Jenny, who serves as a Settlement Worker with the Vancouver Board of Education, we were able to receive fundraising donations collected by high school students from the Vancouver Korean Youth Council.
Most of all, we are grateful that MTE is growing beyond being simply a community that receives help, and is becoming a community that shares blessings with others.
The students not only experienced many new opportunities, but also participated in “plogging” activities, walking through the streets while picking up litter. They attended charity concerts supporting single mothers in Vancouver and also joined events such as the Milal Mission fundraising night and other community concerts. Through these experiences, they are gradually learning what it means to live together in community with others.
A Beautiful Journey
As we shared in our previous newsletter, on July 4th, we will be holding a fundraising concert together with professional musicians to support MTE and neurodiverse families.
It is truly moving to see our students growing into people who are not simply receiving help, but who are becoming hosts of spaces where others can be invited, comforted, and encouraged through their talents and their presence.
MTE hopes to continue becoming a community that passes on the love and blessings it has received to even more people. The children who once needed help themselves are now growing into channels of blessing who comfort others and bring warmth to the world. And this beautiful journey continues even today.
You are already truly More Than Enough.
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