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Cultural groups come together at community picnic hosted by Cedar Rapids nonprofit
Emily Andersen
Jun. 30, 2022 2:55 am, Updated: Jul. 25, 2022 1:00 pm
Different cultural groups came together to share food and activities June 16 at a community picnic hosted by YPN, a Cedar Rapids-based nonprofit that supports young parents and families.
YPN, formerly known as Young Parents Network, hosts the summer picnic annually to celebrate parents who have completed YPN programs, or graduated entirely from the network. Parents typically graduate when their child turns 5, according to Alejandro Pino, the YPN executive director.
During the picnic, children of all different backgrounds played together on the playground and splash pad at Tucker Park in Hiawatha. Pizza was served and water and lemonade were available to keep away the heat. Several attendees also brought food to share from their home countries.
A little more than 20 parents were honored at the picnic for graduating from YPN, and several others were recognized for completing specific programs offered by the nonprofit.
“Thank you for participating, because we love you and you make our day,” Chelsey Steckley, YPN program supervisor, told the graduates as she handed out certificates.
Announcements made at the picnic were repeated four times in four different languages — English, Spanish, French and Pashto (an Indo-Iranian language spoken in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran) — to accommodate the various languages spoken by the almost 200 attendees, many of whom don’t speak English as a first language.
YPN often works with immigrant and refugee parents, helping them make connections in the community and get all the supplies they need for their young children.
Afghan refugees are the most recent group the nonprofit has begun working with. Representatives from the organization visited the hotels where many Afghans were staying while waiting to find permanent housing shortly after they were brought to the United States and offered to get the refugees connected to YPN programs.
Alima Rahimi and Masiha Saifi, two Afghan women who have been participating in YPN programs, said they are grateful for the help the nonprofit has provided. They said they’ve been able to get supplies for their kids and learn things about U.S. culture that people born here may not even think about, like how to navigate a stoplight.
“They help us with everything,” Rahimi said, through an interpreter.
“They give me a lot of information,” Saifi agreed.
Comments: (319) 398-8328; emily.andersen@thegazette.com