PORTLAND, Ore. — It’s Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and one center in Portland is helping thousands in the Asian community get the healthcare they need. 

“I’m so thankful for the chance that I can volunteer here, and I can also play ping pong. I’m so thankful,” said Kwisook Chong, who has been coming to the Asian Health and Service Center for over a decade. 

The Asian Health and Service Center first started in 1983. Its purpose is to reduce health inequity and improve the healthcare quality of all Asians.

“We’re using what we call cultural-specific, linguistic-specific services to engage people in the community and make sure they’re aware of what resources in healthcare they can access,” said Christine Lau.

The Asian Health and Service Center, which serves about 60,000 people in the Portland metro area, helps break down some of the barriers to healthcare. 

“The people we help is a group of people with no voice. Why I say that is because they can talk, of course, but they have the language barrier. They have the cultural barriers. They don’t understand,” Lau explained.

The center also offers health and wellness services, a cancer resource center, and mental health services. 

“Mental health is part of our health. If we don’t feel well physically, we don’t do well (and) vice versa. So, when we take care of an individual, it should be both mental and physical together,” Paul Leung said.

Besides taking care of healthcare needs, the center offers a sense of community. 

“I wish more people would come because we learn a lot of things that we couldn’t just learn if we stay home,” said Eunsook Kim Haddad. 

It also takes pride in helping those in the Asian community that would be lost without the services they provide. 

“Somebody needs to talk for them, advocate for them. The Asian Health and Service Center is so proud that we can help them in this journey,” Lau said.