California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation

✨ Thank you to everyone who attended our annual Luchando por Justicia gala awards dinner this past Friday evening! ✨ We are deeply grateful to our incredible community of advocates, supporters, and friends who made this gathering possible. Your presence and generosity fuel our mission to protect and uplift California’s farmworker and immigrant families, from the fields to the Capitol. This year, we were honored to recognize Champions of Justice Eric Cohen (Executive Director, Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC)) and Angel Barajas (County of Yolo Supervisor) for their visionary leadership and tireless advocacy. Their work reminds us of the power of persistence, partnership, and courage in advancing justice for all. We also thank our talented youth performers—Mariachi Sembrando Tradiciones and Folklorico Latino de Woodland—for filling the evening with vibrant music and dance that celebrated our culture and community. Thank you California Museum for providing such a beautiful venue. Guests enjoyed an unforgettable dinner from Cielito Lindo and wines from Tierra Luna Cellars and Vintner's Diary, all of which made the night even more special. To our sponsors, staff, volunteers, raffle donors, and everyone who contributed—you made this event a true success. Together, we continue to build a California where every family has access to dignity, equity, and justice. 💛 (We’ll see you again next year!) ⭐ BIG THANKS TO: Our presenters: Bill Ong Hing of University of San Francisco and Marlon Cuellar of The California Endowment. Our sponsors: Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC), Assemblymember Maggy Krell, The Villegas Law Firm, APC, Christine Brigagliano & Mike Baller, Schoenleber & Waltermire, PC, Richard Pearl, Dan Zurita & Virginia Villegas, Aidín Castillo & José Olivera, Arroyo-Pérez & Pérez Families, Aimé Castillo & Jesse Avina, Professors Bill Ong Hing & Jacqueline Brown, and US Immigration & Deportation Defense Clinic. Our raffle donors: Tierra Luna Cellars, Vintner's Diary, Sean Guerra, Destiny Women Global Leadership, Represent Media Studios, Shake Shack, and Lisa Silver. Our event planner: Blue Dress Events.

We are excited to invite you to this year's Luchando por Justicia recognition dinner, which will honor Champions of Justice Eric Cohen, Executive Director of Immigrant Legal Resource Center, and Angel Barajas, County of Yolo Supervisor. This special celebration will be held on Friday, September 26, 2025, beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the courtyard of the California Museum in Sacramento. With scheduled youth performances by mariachi Sembrando Tradiciones and Folklórico Latino de Woodland, an award-winning dinner by Cielito Lindo, and featured wines from Tierra Luna Cellars and Vintner's Diary, you won’t want to miss it! We welcome you to join us in paying tribute to the leaders and organizations committed to equity and justice by advocating for greater access to healthcare, affordable housing, safer workplaces, quality immigration services, higher education opportunities, and other critical services for California's essential workers. Purchase tickets here: https://lnkd.in/g7VE7w8U

Make sure to “save-the-date” for our annual “Luchando Por Justicia” Gala awards dinner! It will be Friday, September 26, 2025 (5:30-8:30 P.M.) at The California Museum in Sacramento. We will share ticket registration and other updates in the coming weeks. Stay tuned! Also, if you’d like to get involved by donating a raffle prize or learning more about sponsorships, please email rsophia@crlaf.org for more information.

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Noe Paramo, CRLAF Director of Sustainable Rural Communities Project, spoke at the Equity on the Mall event at the Capitol earlier this month. He helped organize this event as a convener of the Immigration and Health Subcommittees the last few years with The Center at Sierra Health Foundation. A bit about Equity on the Mall – this annual event (celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year) brings together a powerful cross-section of community leaders, advocates, public officials, and organizers who drive change across the San Joaquin Valley and other parts of California. From grassroots champions to statewide policymakers, each speaker brings a unique voice and deep commitment to advancing equity in health, housing, education, environmental justice, immigration, and economic opportunity.

Another great OCPSC Region 2 meeting on the books. Our staff had a wonderful day of collaboration a couple weeks ago alongside California Office of Community Partnerships & Strategic Communications and several nonprofit organizations, ensuring we continue to work together to uphold strong and vibrant communities. We also had the opportunity to share challenges and workshop potential strategies for bringing the CalKids program to those who need it.

Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts. Because of your generosity this #BigDayofGiving, we are one step closer to building a more just and compassionate future for California’s migrant farmworkers and immigrant communities. Your support directly helps provide critical legal aid, emergency assistance, and advocacy for those facing detention, deportation, and exploitation. Every dollar you gave is a statement: that dignity, safety, and human rights should never be negotiable. Thank you for standing with us — and with the people who feed our communities — in this urgent fight for justice. #thankyou #BDOG2025 #bigdayofgiving #bdog #nonprofit #makeadifference #fundraising #support #farmworkers #migrants #migrantfarmworkers #california Sacramento Region Community Foundation

Just a couple more hours to donate for #BigDayofGiving! Can you help us get to our goal of $20,000? Please make sure to donate to our profile https://lnkd.in/gjYvep-6 before 11:59 p.m. tonight! #BDOG2025 #bdog #nonprofit #farmworkers #migrants #immigrantrights Sacramento Region Community Foundation

We're half-way through the day! Just 12 hours left to donate for #BigDayofGiving! Noe Paramo, CRLAF's Director of Sustainable Rural Communities Project, a Policy Advocate and Partial DOJ Accredited Representative, is requesting your support. Your donation could help us unlock special prizes! Did you know that today, $500 is awarded every hour to the nonprofit that has the most unique donors during that hour? Give between 12-1pm PT to help us toward this prize! Finally, if you donate with a Golden 1 debit or credit card, your gifts could be matched up to $100,000 by the credit union. Help us reach our $20,000 goal by donating to our BDoG profile. Every gift counts, no matter the size. (Donations will be accepted until 11:59pm today on May 1st.) https://lnkd.in/gjYvep-6 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀! #BDOG2025 #bigdayofgiving #bdog #nonprofit #makeadifference #fundraising #support #farmworkers #migrants #migrantfarmworkers #california #sacramento #immigrantrights #workersrights Sacramento Region Community Foundation

Today is officially #BigDayofGiving. Right now, immigrants and migrants across the U.S. are being swept up in an increasingly cruel and chaotic immigration system. In California, we’ve seen a disturbing rise in wrongful deportations of migrant farmworkers, many of whom have lived and worked in the country for years and have no criminal histories. Under unfounded accusations and without legal representation, community members are being separated from their loved ones and deported to a country that is not their own. For more than 40 years, CRLAF has been at the forefront of defending immigrant and farmworker rights and uplifting the stories of farmworkers, low-wage workers, and mixed-status families who contribute to our food system and local economies. Your donation not only fuels our work but helps ensure a just and equitable future for all. Help us reach our goal of $20,000 (before 11:59pm tonight), and stand with us in solidarity with farmworkers and immigrant families— we are stronger together. https://lnkd.in/gjYvep-6 #BDOG2025 #BigDayofGiving2025 #BDOG #nonprofit #nonprofits #support #advocate #immigrants #migrants #deportation #legal #farmworkers #migrantfarmworkers #california #sacramento #immigrantrights #workersrights Sacramento Region Community Foundation