Chinese (Mandarin) speaking churches or senior centers near Berkeley?
Hi everyone, my mother who is in early stages of memory loss will be staying with my husband and I in Berkeley for a month so I can take her to neurologists in the area. My husband and I will be alternating working from home to keep an eye on her but I would like to find some things for her to do.
Does anyone know of Mandarin speaking churches, senior centers or groups that are nearby Berkeley? We don't have a car so preferably it would be close but we could take a rideshare to bring her somewhere.
Thanks so much for your help!
Mar 17, 2018
Parent Replies
Hello -- Sorry about your mom's health. Check with the Berkeley Chinese Baptist Church on Sacramento. It's walking distance to the North Berkeley BART station. They have Mandarin Sunday services, but I don't know if they have any senior programs in Mandarin. The Berkeley Chinese Community Church on Acton has a senior program on Tuesdays, but most of the participants are English speakers of Chinese descent. The El Cerrito Chinese Christian Church on Stockton (just East of San Pablo) has a Mandarin ministry. There are a couple of senior programs in Oakland Chinatown. When I took my mom to the Hong Lok Senior Center (part of Family Bridges) on 11th St and there were both Mandarin and Cantonese-speaking participants. The Oakland Chinatown Salvation Army has a senior program too, but I think most of the participants are Cantonese speakers. I also took my mom to the Asian Branch of the Oakland Library (in the Pacific Renaissance Center) and my mom had a nice time reading books and getting help with setting up her iPad with Chinese TV shows. Good luck!
There is a Chinese for Christ Church around the corner from us at Prince and College in the Elmwood. We've never attended so I can't say for sure if services are in Chinese or not, but the website is bilingual and based on overhearing neighborhood foot traffic on Sundays I assume the services are in Mandarin.