Great Wall Center (1999) was founded by members of the Malden Asian Pacific American Coalition; and built upon the social work practice of a professional social worker, Richard W.P. Cheng, LICSW, a graduate of Simmons Colllege School of Social Work in Boston. He is a native of Hong Kong and a naturalized U.S. citizen. He served in the many Malden organizations' boards including TriCAP, Malden Access TV, Immigrant Learning Center, Cultural Council and the area's DMH and DSS community advisory boards.
Having worked for the Asian populations struggling for a place to pursue their American dreams in a mental health clinic for many years, Cheng was committed to helping local Asians find some solutions in Malden, where he lived for 20 years since he was a graduate student.
Following a series of successful volunteers driven projects produced by the Malden Asian Pacific American Coalition (MAPAC) where Cheng served as a volunteer organizer, community leaders in the area's Asian communities, and members of the coalition and Cheng founded the first Asian oriented nonprofit in Malden to address the unmet needs of the Asian populations living in the area.
Prior to the inception of the Coalition and Great Wall Center, Cheng, as therapist/clinician in private practice, served as a volunteer chair of the Cultural Diversity Task Force of the Healthy Malden from 1995-1998, a project collaborated between the City of Malden and the former Malden Hospital, which organized the first Asian conference for the city of Malden, titled "Windows to Harmony" 1996 and initiated with Rev. David Kilpatrick, former Executive Director of Healthy Malden,the first Malden Lunar New Year Celebration at the Malden Hospital. Cheng joined the Malden Hospital Family Helath Center to assist in a project to enhance accessibility of the growing Asian populations to access local healthcare and youth outreach. He was recognized both by the Family Practice Residency of the Family Health Center and the Malden City Council for his leaderships.
Cheng initiated the first Asian community TV show--'Asian Spectrum' 1997 produced by the Malden Asian Pacific American Coalition at the MATV. The successful community access TV show provided vital information such as Asian legal services, healthcare and religious and local public affairs segments regularly for Malden's Asian/Chinese residents for the first time. The program was also cablecast at Boston BNN regularly. Cheng served at the board of Malden Access TV from 1998-2000; and in the Malden Cultural Council from 1999-2001.
To stimulate community change and encourage Asian American's civic participation, Cheng ran for the Malden City Council as the first Asian American city councillor at-large nominee in 2001. Although, he did not win, Malden's voters became more cognizant of the underrepresentation of its growing and unserved Asian populations and their lack of access to essential government representation and services.
In the following year, a group of MAPAC 'volunteers'--mostly uninformed and misled, for fear of losing their personal stakes over the successful community access TV program--Asian Spectrum, where Cheng served as a volunteer executive producer since it started, incorporated the community access program without the Coalition's board resolve and approval; and later attempted to disband the coalition by preventing its remaining members to apply for incorporation from the state of Massachusetts. Consequently, This internal difference led Malden officials removed committed funding to MAPAC without a due process. A ruling from the Secretary of State approved in 2002 a petition of the Malden Asian Pacific American Coalition to become incorporated; and to maintain its originality and integrity--one that truly serves Malden residents in need.
Great Wall Center has since served as MAPAC's fiscal conduit of this community group that comprised with volunteers and organizations that aims to serve low income and vulnerable populations in Malden.