2012 Open House On a bright, clear October 14 afternoon CHF held its eighth open house at the Gramercy Park party room. It was attended by a convivial crowd that included devoted contributors, grant award recipients and honorees and their families.

Upon arrival, attendees were greeted with a sumptuous yet light brunch, meticulously assembled under the watchful eye of Yin Simpson. There was a hum of pleasant conversations throughout the party room as friends greeted each other and made new acquaintances with newcomers.

As the list of grant awardees indicated, CHF is continuing its reach into the wider Twin Cities arts community. Stages Theatre, a mainstream theatre based in Hopkins, received a grant for the development of a novel, Where Mountain Meets the Moon by Chinese author Grace Lin. Our Honorary Chinese Minnesotan of Note, Patricia Puffer, pointed the way towards promoting mutual understanding among all Minnesotans before even CHF was created. Her innate generosity showed through in her friendships with the first China Scholars in the 1970s.

Recipients of our Volunteer of the Year awards, Stephen Tsui and Stephen Mao, also showed their strong volunteerism. Stephen Tsui had been volunteering in the Twin Cities since his student days at Luther Seminary. Our community has been blessed with many as yet unsung heroes.