ORLANDO, Fla. —Spectrum News 13 is proud to be celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

In the Chinese culture, one of the symbols of the dragon is strength. It takes a lot of strength to move a dragon boat around Orlando's Lake Fairview, but that's what a group from a local nonprofit does regularly. 

What You Need To Know

  • Orlando dragon boat team member Shally Wong is an immigrant from Hong Kong 

  • She says she has volunteered with the Asian and Chinese communities for the last two decades 

  • She has been part of the dragon boat team for 14 years

Shally Wong is part of that group, which has a calculated, careful method of getting their dragon boat going. She and her fellow paddlers know how to do it.

"It's been 14 years, we start from 2010," Wong said.

It started with an invitation from another team of paddlers. Wong said her group saw what they were doing, so they followed suit.

"Probably six out of our eight board members, we all came together and say, ‘Why don't we try it, too?’" Wong said.

An immigrant from Hong Kong, she has been volunteering with the Asian and Chinese communities for the last two decades.

Professionally, she's a special assistant to Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings. She's also with the group called C.H.A.R.G.E., which is the Orlando-based dragon boat team organized by the Chinese American Association of Central Florida.

Wong said she really wants to help those who aren't connected in the community to become engaged so they can feel like they belong.