Elly Sedita - EARN Maryland Program - Asian American Center of Frederick (AACF) – Testimonial - Workforce Development and Adult Learning

“My name is Elly Sedita, or Wang, Qin/ 王琴 in my native Chinese language. I came to the United States from China on April 1, 2004, and married soon after my arrival. When my son Jonathan was born in 2006, I devoted 100% of my life and attention to my family responsibilities.

Before immigrating to the United States and becoming a wife and mother, I had earned a college degree in Hospitality Management and gained work experience as a waitress, salesperson, restaurant manager, and restaurant owner. When my son was grown, I started looking for a job. I took a pharmacy technician class at first, but then I learned about the Asian American Center of Frederick (AACF) and its community interpreter training. I applied, had a very good test result, and shortly after I became a contractor interpreter for AACF. It felt good to make some money on my own!

In a year or so, I found out that AACF offers another training for Community Health Workers (CHWs) supported through the EARN Maryland program. I graduated from this training last year and was recently hired by AACF as a CHW. I love being a community interpreter and a CHW! It makes me feel so good to be able to help other people like myself, who came here from other countries and work hard for this country! I am also grateful for the opportunity to learn something new and start a new career.”