BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — When Za Nei Thuai needed help finding work, she turned to the Burma Center. Now a restaurant owner and chef known as Suipi, she is helping the organization celebrate 15 years of serving the community.
The center is marking the anniversary with its annual Friendraiser, bringing together families, supporters and community partners.
Suipi, who owns Suipi’s, arrived in Michigan as a refugee from Burma in 2013. She said the center helped her prepare a resume when she was looking for a job. People connected with the organization later helped her on the path to restaurant ownership.
“Burmese center is everything for us,” she said.
Her experience reflects the needs that led to the center’s founding, said Executive Director Christina Khim.
As Burmese families settled in the Battle Creek area, Khim says many needed help navigating schools, health care and employment.
She says the organization began as a small grassroots effort with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, offering English classes, employment assistance and connections to essential resources.
The center estimates that between 2,500 and nearly 3,000 Burmese people live in the Battle Creek area. Khim said that estimate is based on information gathered from local Burmese churches, rather than a census count.
Today, families turn to the organization for help with job applications, medical appointments and bills, interpretation, translation and other services.
“Our role is like bridging our community members to the resources and guiding them and connecting them,” Khim said.
The annual Friendraiser recognizes the relationships that have helped sustain that work. This year’s event also celebrates the organization’s 15th anniversary.
Khim said the event’s emphasis on friendship is intentional: Building relationships with people and organizations has helped the center support the community and expand its work.
Residents can get involved by volunteering with youth programs, helping maintain the center’s facility, becoming program partners or donating, she said.
For Suipi, participating in the celebration means sharing her cooking with others.
“I want to show love to everybody with what I cook,” she said.
As the center looks ahead, Khim hopes those community relationships will continue.
“We feel loved, we feel seen, and we hope that we will be able to continue partnering and walking alongside this community for the next 15 years," Khim said.
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