BCNC Portraits: Jinqi

My name is Jinqi and I am a BCNC Adult Education student. In April 2019, my husband and I moved to Boston from China with our daughter and son. At that time, my husband and his family had already been in America. In the beginning, living in America was difficult because I did not speak any English. Though my husband works part-time at a restaurant, he has poor health because he had lung surgery. Doing things like running errands, taking the bus, and taking my husband to the doctor were very hard.

Before the pandemic, I would take English classes in the morning and then go to work after class. My English teacher Katie is hard working and kind. She helps me and all the students set goals and figure out how to reach them. BCNC helped me and my family in many ways. Last year, BCNC helped us get an affordable internet plan so that I could attend BCNC’s English classes online. My daughter also really enjoyed being a part of the Youth Center.

Right now, I work part time as a cashier at a supermarket in Quincy.

“After learning English for one year, I can ask for directions, take the bus and subway, and bring my husband to the doctor’s office on my own. In the future, I hope to improve my English skills, to get my driver’s license, and to get my cosmetology license so that I can open my own beauty business.”

Even though English is still hard for me, I am determined to keep on improving my life. Thanks to the support BCNC has given me, I feel confident that I can reach my goals. I am so grateful to BCNC and I hope that BCNC can help more immigrants like me in the future.