Nov 12, 2009 7:19 pm US/Eastern
NYC Chinese Adoptees Learn Culture - Through Dance
Laurel Project Teaches Chinese Culture, Language To Adopted Girls Via Dance Group
Reporting
Cindy Hsu
SOUTHPORT, Conn. (CBS) ―
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Meet some of the girls from the Laurel Project, a dance program in Manhattan created for children adopted from China. They start as young as two years old, learning Chinese dance and language.
CBS
Millions of families nationwide are celebrating "National Adoption Awareness Month," including a group of beautiful young girls who are learning about their Chinese heritage – through dance.
Meet some of the girls from the Laurel Project, a dance program in Manhattan created for children adopted from China. They start as young as two years old, learning Chinese dance and language.
Many of the girls grew up in the program that started 12 years ago, and love to hit the stage.
"We get to perform it in front of our parents, and then they cry," nine-year-old Mia Fanuzzi said.
A strong bond has developed between the families as well. Olivia and Djuna are about to turn seven years old, but have known each other since they were babies.
"They were in the same orphanage and they were crib mates, actually," Olivia's mother, Jennifer Suomi, said.
Both adoptive families live in Manhattan, and made a commitment to keep the girls close. Many of the parents are not Chinese, and the Laurel Project helps them teach their girls about their history.
"Being a Caucasian mother with Chinese children, I can't tell them as much about their culture as I would like them to know," mother Christine Westlund said. "So having another venue meet other kids, and enjoy the learnin,g and gaining that pride of being from China just means everything to us, it really does."
CBS 2's own Cindy Hsu has a daughter, Rosie, who has been in the class since she was 3. Growing up with the amazing family of little girls has helped her understand her adoption, and she's very proud of being from China.
"It's my home, and I was very happy to see another mom pick me up and just be my real mom," six-year-old Rosie said.
Mei-Yin Ng, a professional dancer, created the program. She says anything's possible for her girls.
"I see a lot of opportunity, so I hope they'll be exposed to everything that's available so they can choose what they want to be when they're growing up," Ng said.
She says keeping it fun is her mission, and she's definitely succeeded.
"I like it when she says 'peegu,' because she always says it so we don't stick our 'peegu' out," seven-year-old Jiji Westlund said.
For those of you wondering, 'peegu' means 'butt.'
These wonderful girls, who had a challenging start in life, consider themselves lucky to have found a family of friends.
While the Laurel Project was created for Chinese adoptees, little dancers from all backgrounds have now joined the group.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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