Education Fund

Update from Li-Lan March 2021

We are starting our second round of the Integrative Immune Health in Spanish this month with challenges to support implementation of healthy habits.  Li-Lan continues to reflect on creative and sustainable ideas to support this fund.  In 2021 sales from all Tones for your Bones self-paced practices available at the each season (Element) will be donated to this Education Fund.  All funds from last year’s fundraiser went towards scholarships for low income families and families with children with disabilities.  Another way that this course is moving towards sustainability is due to the experience of running the previous course, we have streamlined what works best for our Latinx community, what they are looking for and can easily apply, what motivates them, the importance of group coherence to sustain the whole group, increased familiarity with the use of virtual platforms; thus the cost of this next series can be offered at $70 only and 1/2 price for previous participants.  40% of all class fees goes into the Education Fund.

If you are interested in Tones for your Bones and how to embody Chinese medicine philosophy into your life for physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being, purchase Li-Lan and Alex’s Tones for your Bones Winter/Water element self paced course that includes original music, Qi Gong, acupressure, and reflections for $30 with this link: https://checkout.square.site/buy/FDHQYGGMUAZXUMSPKQPJ2NTD

August 2020

In my ongoing heart-centered commitment to the Spanish speaking community and equity-based work, I feel the urgency to create virtual education programs that offer the best of traditional medicine with sound scientific knowledge and a safe space for community support.  Since June, our Armonia Health LLC team has been working behind the scenes to ensure the organized and safe re-opening of in-person sessions.  The sliding scale community acupuncture was a large focus and source of income for both practitioners and the clinic, but in the midst of a pandemic, that model is not feasible.  Thus, we have pivoted to create an education fund and pilot a three month virtual class in Spanish for essential workers and their children.  In the month of August, we are running a fundraiser to support this fund, please read more about the focus, intention, and details of this initiative below and if it resonates to donate or to share with others, you can donate through our fiscal sponsor NC Congreso Latino.   Thank you!  Li-Lan

Li-Lan Hsiang Weiss is the founder of Armonia Health LLC, a woman/minority-owned health clinic that offers acupuncture, Traditional Chinese herbal medicine, massage, and health coaching. They have a diverse clientele and are the only acupuncture and massage clinic in the area with Spanish-speaking practitioners and sliding-scale community acupuncture.

Li-Lan has been helping the Spanish speaking community as an acupuncturist since 2005 and Armonia Health LLC’s practitioners work to empower clients with tools and knowledge to manage their own wellbeing. Affordable health education has been a part of our work, but it has not been a sustainable component of our business. Our vision for the next six to nine months is to develop a self-sustaining educational fund to support Armonia Health’s outreach and education.

In the past three months, we have seen a surge in physical and social-emotional issues in our community related to the pandemic. These issues are further exacerbated by the inequality of healthcare access. In response, we are planning an interactive, online class on “Integrative Immune Health for Adults and Children” (Salud Integrativa Inmunológica para Adultos y Niñ@s).  We will pilot the class in Spanish and aim to have 30 participants. This course is geared toward essential workers and their children. We will deliver four hours of content through pre-recorded video instruction that participants can watch at their leisure plus additional time of live virtual instruction and online discussions. We will run the course September through November and will be providing follow up and engagement support during this time to help participants effectively integrate the information and practices into daily life. 

This is a brand new class and we need resources to develop it. Usually, we rely on income from Armonia Health’s direct services (massage, acupuncture, etc.), but, due to the pandemic, we had to close the clinic from mid-March to late May. We are not able to offer the sliding scale community acupuncture clinic due to social distancing requirements. These services brought in the majority of the income for the practice and allowed Li-Lan to offer affordable health education classes.

We see an urgent need for this class, but we are not able to fund it alone. The budget to realize the course is $2,500, which includes time to develop and deliver instructional materials, hold the live weekly sessions and provide ongoing support during the three months, support participants to set up Zoom and instruct them on the virtual structure of the course, grassroots marketing, scholarships to reduce the class fee for those that need it, accountability support, and a free guided meditation app in Spanish created by mental health and medical professionals.  The participants will pay a modest fee for the three month course.  

We are asking local businesses and individuals to help us raise $2,500 to launch this much-needed course. The NC Congress of Latino Organizations (The Latino Congress) has graciously agreed to be our fiscal sponsor to receive tax-deductible donations.  A  donation of $100 or more from a business will be acknowledged in the Armonia Health’s newsletter and social media outlets.  Any amount donated is greatly appreciated and will go towards supporting the wellbeing of Latinx families through education.  

Would you join us in investing in this project and in the health of our community members?

Donate online through the Latino Congress’ website

When one donates, in the NOTE box, write Armonia Health LLC. All donations to the Latino Congress in August will be for Armonia Health’s education fund.