This year for #GivingTuesday, AccessCal’s incredible supporters helped us double our fundraising goal! Because of our generous community, we’re able to continue supporting immigrants, refugees, and the underserved in Orange County through our 100+ health and human services.

With our initial goal of $2500, our amazing donors helped raise over $5000! We can’t wait to share the impactful ways your contributions will radically transform the lives of those in our community.

We can’t wait to share the exciting ways we’ll get to give back to our community with your contributions.

AccessCal’s recent fundraiser to raise funds for housing for recently arrived Afghan refugees was featured in The Daily Bulletin. Nahla Kayali, the Founder and Executive Director, spoke about California’s role in welcoming refugees.

“California is very generous,” Kayali said. “We’ve been busier than ever with recent arrivals. That’s a good thing.”

To read about AccessCal’s contribution during these difficult times, click here to continue reading.

Want to change the lives of children, families, and seniors in your community? Donate to AccessCal this GivingTuesday! GivingTuesday is a global day of generosity that will take place on November 30^th, 2021. This is an opportunity for people around the world to come together to thank, help, show kindness, and give what they have to those in need.

Our goal is to unleash the power of radical generosity to transform our community right here in Southern California. Through our 100+ free health and human services – immigration, mental health, employment, and more – we are able to bring life changing opportunities and support to immigrants, refugees, and all underserved communities.

This GivingTuesday, Join AccessCal through the month of November to witness the dedication of our staff to our mission, but to also give back to those who look to us for support. AccessCal is counting on supporters, sponsors, and donors like you to join us in continuing preserving dignity and enriching lives one human at a time. 

Nahla Kayali, AccessCal’s Founder and Executive Director, along with AccessCal’s staff, attended the Refugee Scholarship Awards at UC Irvine! Kayali spoke to youth about her inspiring story of starting AccessCal, and encouraged youth to never set a limit on their dreams.

“I know the future is in good hands with everyone in this room,” Kayali said.

In 2017 Iman Siddiqi, creator of the Refugee Students Scholarship Program, saw a gap in how many scholarships were available to refugee youth and sought to create a scholarship specifically for this population.

Kayali, who was once a refugee herself, joined forces with Siddiqi and became a fiscal sponsor of the program. This year, the program awarded five amazing students scholarships for their dedication to their higher education.

Youth were able to network with industry professionals, as well as listen to the stories of their fellow peers and local officials. The City of Irvine’s mayor, Farrah Khan, was also in attendance, and praised the scholarship program and AccessCal for their contributions to the community.

Everyone’s hearts at AccessCal have broken since the news in Afghanistan, and our team has been working tirelessly to step up and provide the resources and support incoming Afghan refugees need in our community. Through fundraising for housing for newly arrived Afghan refugees and collecting community donations, AccessCal’s efforts to support our newly arrived Afghan refugee sisters and brothers have been recognized across several media outlets.

Michelle Gile of KCAL9 stopped by our office to talk to our Founder and Executive Director, Nahla Kayali, and one of our case manager’s, Sunbul Siddiqi, about the over 100 services we provide to our community and how we’ve already began helping recently arrived Afghans. To watch Gile’s piece on AccessCal, click here to watch. Along with KCAL9, Christiane Cordero from ABC7 came out to our ‘Amplifying Afghan Voices’ panel to hear the experiences of our Afghan community members and the support newly arrived refugees need at this time. To watch Cordero’s piece on AccessCal, click here to watch. 

AccessCal is now offering free services to obtain Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals from Burma, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, or Yemen. If you qualify for TPS please contact Rania at (714)-917-0440 or rania@accesscal.org.

The new school year is here! It is time for us to come together to help the underserved children in our community start their classes with confidence and joy. The families of these youngsters do not have the financial means to purchase new backpacks and school supplies. Our Back-to-School Donation Drive helps ensure these children have their basic school necessities. This small act of kindness generates excitement and propels their desire to go back to school. We hope you will join us by donating to our Back-to-School fundraiser via this link – . You can also drop off new backpacks and school supplies to our office or have them delivered via Amazon. Please have them sent to the attention of Suzanne at 631 S. Brookhurst St., Ste 107, Anaheim, CA 92804. We look forward to your support!

Our new Citizenship Classes will kick-start on Tuesday, July 6, 2021. These classes are held on Tuesday and Thursday from 5:30 to 7:30 PM and Wednesdays and Fridays from 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM. Led by our Department of Justice Accredited Representative, Diana, these classes provide a network to the students to fall back on for support and guidance as they prepare for their exam. Many of our clients have passed their test after having attended our Citizenship class. We hope you will share this important information in your network. To sign-up or learn more, please call Diana at (714) 917-0440.