SIREN Recognized as 2021 CA Nonprofit of the Year!
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For Immediate Release:
June 29, 2021
Contact: Jose Servin, Communications Manager, SIREN
jose@sirenimmigrantrights.org, 714-728-2520
Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN) chosen as a
2021 Nonprofit of the Year
NONPROFIT HONORED BY ASSEMBLYMEMBER ALEX LEE
San Jose, June 29 – SIREN is proud to announce it has been selected as a 2021 California Nonprofit of the Year by Assemblymember Alex Lee representing California's 25th District.
SIREN is one of more than one hundred nonprofits that will be honored by their state senators and assemblymembers for their tremendous contributions to the communities they serve.
At SIREN, we provide free legal services related to immigration, refugee, and asylum cases to protect our community from detention and deportation. We also engage in policy advocacy, community organizing and civic engagement. Every year, we assist thousands of clients with affirmative and defensive legal services, including DACA renewals and citizenship applications.
“The team at SIREN works everyday to try and improve the lives of immigrants in our community who are directly impacted by a prejudiced immigration legal system. We do this work out of experience and passion. It's truly a humbling honor to be recognized by Assemblymember Alex Lee as a 2021 Nonprofit of the year,” comments Maricela Gutierrez, SIREN’s Executive Director.
“The pandemic and shelter-in-place orders of the past year and a half have put nonprofits – usually hidden in plain sight – in the spotlight,” explains Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits (CalNonprofits). “California Nonprofit of the Year is an opportunity for our elected officials to celebrate the good work they see nonprofits doing in their districts, and for everyone to appreciate the collective impact of nonprofits in our communities.”
Additional Background
California Nonprofits Day, now in its sixth year, was formally recognized by 2021 Assembly Concurrent Resolution 80, authored by Assemblymember Luz Rivas, and co-authored by Senator Monique Limón. Each year legislators from across California have chosen a Nonprofit of the Year in their district.
Traditionally, honorees and legislators are invited by CalNonprofits, Chair of the Senate Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector Senator Monique Limón (Santa Barbara), and Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector Assemblymember Luz Rivas to a celebratory luncheon on California Nonprofits Day. This year, like 2020, the luncheon was canceled in response to pandemic restrictions, but legislators moved forward with honoring nonprofits doing great work in their districts.
According to “Causes Count,” a 2019 report commissioned by CalNonprofits, the nonprofit sector is the 4th largest industry in the state, employing more than 1.2 million people. Each year, California nonprofits generate more than $273 billion in revenue and bring in $40 billion in revenue from outside of California. The unpaid labor contributed by volunteers at nonprofits is equivalent to 330,000 full-time jobs every year.
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