Helping Link, or Một Dấu Nối, is a nonprofit organization that has served primarily Vietnamese immigrants and refugees since 1993. The organization started offering its first English as a Second Language (ESL) classes in September of that year at the Rainier Beach Library, and the office eventually moved to the Chinatown International District. Today, Helping Link has moved to Renton and provides a wide range of programs, including job referral services, youth mentoring, and interpretation and translation assistance.
Khoa To is a volunteer ESL teacher with Helping Link. A senior biology student at the University of Washington, he hopes to attend medical school and explore the impact of healthcare policies on immigrants.
“America is built by immigrants, right? So this is a very important thing to talk about,” To said. “I can’t imagine getting ripped from your home to start over at the new country. How would that impact their mental and physical health?
To began volunteering with Helping Link to connect with his parents’ experiences as refugees after the Vietnam War. Students in the ESL and citizenship classes are typically adults who have recently immigrated to the United States.
“My students resemble my parents so much,” To said. “I see my parents in them, which helps motivate me to continue teaching and trying my best.”
The lessons To teaches can range from how to navigate doctor visits in English to reading parking signs in order to avoid a ticket. They are held twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and can average between 10 and 20 attendees in each beginner, intermediate and advanced session. Classes are open to people from all ethnic backgrounds.
Mariah Olson started as a volunteer ESL teacher at Helping Link in 2023 in an effort to reconnect with her Vietnamese heritage as an adoptee. At the time, she was a senior at Seattle Pacific University.
“[I] have always wondered, where do I fit within the Asian community as an adoptee?” Olson said. “I don’t think adoptee stories are talked about very often, and especially the trauma or the internal complications that may arise because of it, especially when it is like a transracial adoption. Being able to have this opportunity to connect with the Vietnamese community here in Seattle has made such a big impact on me.”
She is now a volunteer substitute teacher at Helping Link, creating lesson plans and presentations for classes.
“[It] sometimes feels like the only lifeline between me and my ancestral heritage,” Olson said. “I think there’s a lot that I can benefit from, and they too. We all have different stories. I think the main story for the Vietnamese community here in Seattle is [being] refugees after the Vietnam War. My experience, of course, is a little different. My grandpas and grandmas didn’t have that experience.”
Despite coming from different backgrounds, both To and Olson share similar positive personal experiences as ESL teachers. Volunteering has given them an opportunity to navigate their bicultural identities while simultaneously serving the local immigrant and refugee community.
Hong Ta (she/her) is a news writer from South Seattle and grew up going to the CID, specifically in Little Saigon. She graduated from the University of Puget Sound with degrees in Political Science and Spanish. You can read more of her work at thienhongta.com.
