XFYD recently held our 5-Year Celebration! This gala celebrated the years of impact XFYD has had on Cerritos, Artesia, and Bellflower, as well as our growing branches in Westminster, CA; Milpitas, CA; and Austin, Texas. Through the short span of a few years, XFYD has grown from holding a few classes a year to holding several classes monthly. We’ve held our first large-scale events, starting with our quarterly 30-person Chess Tournaments and culminating in our STEM Tournament. We’ve even partnered with Bank of America to hold a Financial Literacy Seminar.
Last year, we greatly expanded our STEM Divisions, holding large lab-based classes in Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Computer Science. We also started our community podcast, highlighting the diverse experiences and insights of ordinary people in our community. All of these accomplishments were put on center stage with our 5-Year Anniversary Event. With the generous support of over 100 attendees and over 1000$ of support from nearly 20 local businesses, we were able to make this the largest XFYD event yet!
As guests entered, they were treated to a brilliant performance featuring Ben Luu (guitarist), Elijah Patrick (bassist), and Alexander Chen (drummer), experienced musicians of the WHS Jazz Club! They played I’m Not Okay (by My Chemical Romance) and American Idiot (by Green Day). This was the perfect explosive beginning to the XFYD banquet.

They were followed by one of the most impressive acts that night: dancers from the XFYD Dance Crew Xavier Zhang, Kainen Wen, Geffery Chao, Gareth Chao, Steven Tang, Avha Dauis, Nai, Joyce, Emily, and Sonya! These young students wowed all of us with their vigor and boundless vitality, dancing to Bye Bye Bye (NSYNC), Apt & That’s What I Like (Rosé and Bruno Mars), and Rock Your Body (Justin Timberlake). After that, Connor Wang, aged just 7, gave a brilliant breakdancing performance. We look forward to seeing how brilliant they will all be in just a few years’ time! Kamea Nguyen and Avha Dauis followed up this performance with their own Hip Hop HipHop Dance Duet, dancing to Its Ok Im Ok (Tate McRae).



After that, Rylee Wang gave a beautiful solo Chinese Folk Dance – the Dunhuang Flying Apsaras. The swirling silks on her costume, and the energy of her dance, combined to create an act unparalleled in its gracefulness.

Trisha Lapidario followed up this with her passionate performance, singing Impossible (Shontelle) and You Are The Reason (Calum Scott). In a particularly special moment, after her act had been completed, Trisha came back to give a completely impromptu performance, singing From the Start (Laufey) as the WHS Jazz Band accompanied her.


The President of the XFYD Westminster Branch also came up to show off his performance. Travis Dang, on top of a capable and skilled administrator and passionate community leader, wowed us with his technical prowess and long-practice violin skills, playing the Accolay Concerto #1.

Finally, we had our Team Parade, where all our teachers and students who helped make all of XFYD’s programs possible were invited up. Groups featured was our Cerritos XFYD Student Board (HQ), our Westminster Branch Student Board, our Art Team, Chess Team, Dance Crew, Math Team, STEM Team, Triathlon Team, Adult Dance Crew, and Alumni! We celebrated all the teachers, parents, students, and volunteers who made these classes possible, giving back to the community and helping forge the organization we are today.

After these performances, XFYD served a full-course dinner to all 100 of our attendees. We presented awards to our highest-impact students, who have demonstrated significant growth and potential as they took part in XFYD Classes. These students, many who have participated in our free classes for years, have universally demonstrated their love of learning and willingness to challenge themselves in our competitions and tournaments.
Our leading XFYD volunteers who have demonstrated extraordinary dedication to leadership and serving their community were also awarded and recognized. They’ve demonstrated extreme vision, hard work, and commitment to leading the community. Throughout the course of our 5 years, these students and teachers alike have brought their passion to what they do, leading classes, organizing events, and bringing XFYD programs to areas far away from our home base of Cerritos. They’ve pushed themselves, going beyond what they’re comfortable with to create positive change in the community. In particular, we welcome the XFYD Westminster Branch, who, despite their short history, have already held their first few events holding STEM activities at local youth shelters.
Congratulations to all the award-winners, and we look forward to seeing the great things you will all achieve!



We want to send out a heartfelt and warm Thank You to all our sponsors! Their generous giving has made this event possible and supported XFYD programs for months to come. Thanks to them, we will be ready to hold more community-impact events in not just Cerritos, but in areas around the nation.
