Having grown up in Hong Kong, Kai Fai (Ray) Lum didn’t know what to expect when, at 16, he arrived in Flint to be reunited with his father. “It was culture shock. It was language shock,” remembers Lum. “When the plane touched down at Bishop Airport, I noticed that the houses all had metal things sticking up out of the tops. I had no idea what they were until I found out that they were antenna for the TV or radio. We didn’t have TV in Hong Kong when I was growing up. It blew my mind.”
The Latinx Technology & Community Center of Greater Flint (previously named Hispanic Technology & Community) is a community service and educational agency established to secure equal opportunities for Hispanics and other minority individuals, as well as the local community. According to LTCC Director, Asa Zuccaro, the name was changed to Latinx at the beginning of 2019 because it is a more inclusive term. “Latinx is a term encompassing everybody, Hispanics and anybody with Latin American origins,” says Zuccaro. “Through our work here, we are breaking language and cultural barriers for a healthy community.”
For Flint native, Jasmine Hall, things have come full circle. While studying at Harvard University, her mind would often wander to thoughts of Flint and how, one day, she would return home. After graduating from the Ivy League school this past May, earning a master’s degree in neuropsychiatric epidemiology with concentrations in public health leadership and population mental health, Hall has returned to her beloved hometown with the goal of making a difference. And that goal is well on its way to being met as she will be working under the direction of Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the local pediatrician whose own research exposed Flint’s water crisis and who directs the Flint Registry.
I came to Flint from South Africa and I am working toward my nursing degree. I have followed a strict vegetarian diet since birth. My family adheres to the practice of Hinduism and I love to read, swim and travel. I have three sons.
Arab-American Heritage Council (AAHC) Executive Director, Devin Bathish is proud of the roles that Arab Americans have played in Flint’s history. “Arab-Americans have been a part of Flint since the 1940s,” he says. “We came to Flint because of the opportunities of the auto industry and the population. We moved in, worked in plants and set up groceries and small business. We have been successful here.” His own family immigrated to Flint from Palestine in 1970 and he has called Flint home since then. “I am proud to be from Flint and it is wonderful to see the city’s people succeed,” he adds.
In the late 60s and early 70s, Flint began to see an influx of immigrants from India. They were drawn to the great potential of a city thriving. Doctors, educators, accountants, engineers and other professionals came to the city to try their hand at prosperity. “My family was one of the first to settle here,” recalls former president Bharat Rao. “My father went all over the United States looking for the best place to start his practice and he found no better place than Flint.”
For many years, FISH of Grand Blanc has lent a helping hand to all residents living within the Grand Blanc Community School District, according to Chairperson, Barb Smith. The nonprofit, nondenominational organization was founded in 1974. The word FISH represents the symbol of the early Christians to identify themselves, Smith explains. And the need in the area is great as Grand Blanc is Genesee County’s largest school district. “One in three Grand Blanc students living within the district participates in the Free/Reduced Lunch Program,” reports Smith, a FISH volunteer for 42 years.
When taking over as executive director of the Flint Jewish Federation (FJF) in 2011, Steven Low wasn’t sure what to expect. After arriving and finding his feet, he was pleasantly surprised. “I came from the St. Louis area, and the level of enthusiasm and passion here in the Jewish community and our collaborations are astonishing,” he says. “I think Flint is one of the best-kept secrets around and I wish I had discovered it a lot sooner.” For nine years now, Low has been one of the nearly 10,000 Jewish individuals who call Greater Flint home.
The religion of Islam has many followers from all walks of life and nationalities, and many of them call Greater Flint and Genesee County home. “We have a growing Muslim population,” explains Niman Shukairy of the Flint Islamic Center, “and our community is very diverse. We have Syrians, Egyptians, Sudanese, Jordanians, Palestinians, Pakistani and Yemeni, as well as a large African-American Muslim Community.”
As part of this year’s welcoming week celebration, the International Center of Greater Flint in partnership with the City of Flint and Genesee County hosted a welcome reception at the Greater Flint Arts Council. The purpose of the event was to welcome immigrants and refugees, and to acknowledge their contributions to this nation and Genesee County. Since the beginning, immigrants have contributed much to art, culture, community and commerce. Let’s work together with everyone who calls Genesee County home, as we move toward a better future.
I was born and raised in Haiti until the age eleven and a half. I have been married for 22 years to Tony Haywood and we have four beautiful children: Aujaurie, Cyerra, Caleb and Carlens, our adopted son in Haiti. I speak three languages and I own and operate Unique Children’s Center in Flint, where we serve children from infant, preschool, PreK and before- and-after-school care. I have been in business for almost ten years and I have a brother who resides in Lansing and is also in business (Good Painting). I run a foundation in Haiti named after my mother, Le Foundation de Nelie Desir. Through my foundation, my family and I give away needed goods such as clothing, food and personal hygiene items, as well as paying for medical needs and children’s tuition. I love being a Haitian and despise what is going on there, though I do enjoy going to my native home and spending time with my son and family. Haiti has a rich culture and the natives there are so friendly and hardworking. They make means with whatever they have.
