What is the
Dim Sum Race?
Chinese Mutual Aid Association’s annual Dim Sum & Then Some 5K/10K & Kids Dash is a unique race, fundraiser and community event highlighting the diversity of the Uptown neighborhood- with all proceeds benefiting the low income immigrant and refugee community.
The race offers participants a unique experience, with all proceeds reinvested back into the community through the work of our staff. At the onset of the race, runners are treated to a rite of good luck by partaking in a Lao ceremony whereby a string is tied around participants’ wrists. Lion head dancers perform a traditional Chinese dance signifying good fortune to kick off the race. Throughout the course, participants will pass some of Uptown’s historic attractions and continue along the Chicago lakefront. Lastly, finishers will have the opportunity to participate in a post-race block party, where they’ll receive dim sum and bubble tea while enjoying performances by CMAA’s youth dance troupes. Through this event, CMAA endeavors for people from Chicagoland to experience the heritage and diversity of Uptown and its residents.
The Dim Sum & Then Some 5K/10k & Kids Dash is a fundraiser benefiting Chinese Mutual Aid Association (CMAA). CMAA’s purpose is to serve the needs, promote the interests, and enhance the well-being of low-income, diverse immigrant and refugee communities across metropolitan Chicago through social services, advocacy, educational programming and assistance for youth, adults, the elderly and small businesses.
CMAA was officially established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in Chicago’s northside neighborhood of Uptown in 1981 by local Asian community leaders who were also ethnic Chinese refugees. Grateful for the assistance they had received as new immigrants themselves, this community came together to help other newly arrived immigrants, leading to the formation of CMAA.
Since then, CMAA has evolved into a pan-immigrant social services agency, serving clients from over 40 countries, including from Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. Our offices currently offer job preparation & placement services, social services and case management, after-school & summer youth programming, teen mentorship programs, adult education English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, in-home elderly care services, immigration & citizenship case assistance, food & housing assistance, an Illinois certified Small Business Development Center and Covid-19 emergency relief programming.
To learn more about CMAA, Click HERE!
