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The Gateway Friends Church in Diamond Bar organized a “workday” with  20+ volunteers of all ages. In preparation for more refugees and classes at NAC, they wiped down cupboards, scrubbed bathrooms, floors, raked & trimmed bushes, installed new light fixtures, sorted backpacks, set up bunk beds, vacuumed, dusted every room, and installed a big NAC sign out front. Just as most people of faith do, Gateway Friends fully understand the plight of newcomers.

Local nonprofit Shoes that Fit partnered with NAC to provide new athletic shoes for NAC families. Feet were measured by volunteers from Pomona Fellowship Church of the Brethren led by Pastor Lauren Cohen. Several members of this congregation have since returned to assist NAC families with English lessons. We are grateful to our partners for helping with this event to provide new shoes to our families.

One of the biggest challenges refugees face is learning English. Some refugees already know English but need practice, others are starting from scratch. Our volunteers help tutor refugees family members from all levels, preschool to professional. Tutors come to our office and tutor in person, or they may tutor remotely via Zoom. We are hosting a Tutor Appreciation Coffee on Saturday, December 11.

Giving Tuesday: Help Local Refugees On Giving Tuesday, we invite you to help refugees in our community by donating to Newcomers Access Center (NAC), a small nonprofit in Claremont that connects refugees in the Inland Valley with services that help them become self sufficient and productive. We currently help more than 45 families in the

We are offering our next Citizenship Application Workshop on Wed Nov. 3. Appointments are required. NAC partnered with the Immigration Resource Center of San Gabriel Valley (IRSGV) to offer these workshops. Certified experts from IRSVG come to our office in Claremont to meet with clients applying for citizenship. Each appointment lasts about 45 minutes and gives the expert time to review paperwork and make sure the application is filled out completely and accurately.

Newcomers Access Center (NAC) is connecting with U.S. government agencies and the State Department by partnering with the International Institute of Los Angeles (IILA), an official Refugee Resettlement Agency for Southern California.

Founded in 1914 to help newly arrived immigrants integrate into their new lives in Los Angeles, the IILA has been providing assistance to refugees and immigrants for more than a century. IILA’s Reception & Placement program is  working with NAC to help newly arrived Afghan refugee families resettle in Southern California. The CEO and senior leadership team from IILA visited NAC in October to learn about NAC and see the apartments NAC is setting up on the campus of the Claremont School of Theology.

Pictured left to right at NAC office in Claremont are: Lilian Alba, VP of Immigration and Refugee services; Cambria Tortorelli, President & CEO of IILI; Dalia Ulloa, Program Manager for low income families; Hasmik Ktoian, Assistant Division Director of Family Empowerment; Anne Thorward, VP, NAC Board of Directors; and Tom Thorward, NAC CFO. Not pictured, Sandy Hester, NAC Treasurer.

When Outreach Minister Danny Hsu of Gateway Friends Church in Diamond Bar heard about Afghan refugees coming to the Inland Valley, he knew his congregation would want to help. Hsu reached out to Newcomers Access Center to see what the refugee families needed most. NAC Board Member Anne Thorward mentioned that new sleeping bags are needed for new families, and Hsu quickly went out, bought a dozen sleeping bags which he and his wife dropped off at the Newcomers Access Center office. Hsu also invited Thorward to speak to his congregation over Zoom on a Wednesday evening.  At the Zoom presentation, Thorward described NAC’s work and thanked the church for the donation and for congregants’ offer to volunteer to help make repairs on apartments for the Afghan refugees.  Congregants had good questions about the refugee process and looked forward to more participation with NAC in the near future.

Bikes in good working order are urgently needed for newly arrived refugees in Claremont. Newcomers Access Center (NAC) welcomed new refugee families to temporary housing in Claremont. More family members are coming in the weeks to come. Until the adults get their California driver’s licenses and purchase vehicles, they are dependent on volunteers to help with transportation. Bikes would allow adults in the family to shop nearby on their own. Riders also need helmets and bike locks.

We are specifically looking for bikes that are ready to ride—they do not have to be fancy bikes, but they must be in good working order and not in need of repair.  If you have a used bike, helmet or lock in good working order, please consider donating to NAC. We can also accept financial donations that would allow us to purchase bikes, helmets and locks. We are located at 1401 N. College Avenue Building F (on the way to the Botanic Garden). If you have a bike to be picked up, please email us. Thank you.

The Woman’s Club of Claremont learned about new refugee families from Afghanistan being resettled in Claremont at its October lunch meeting. Anne Thorward, a board member from nonprofit Newcomer’s Access Center (NAC), spoke to about 40 members, sharing the news that NAC has moved its office to the campus at the Claremont School of Theology (CST) and that CST is offering temporary housing to newly arriving refugees. These refugee families will live at apartments at the school until they can establish more permanent housing. Thorward described how NAC helps refugees when they first arrive to connect with needed services and continues to help them as they integrate into society. The club presented a $300 check to NAC and many members also asked how they could donate or volunteer.

USC Students Learn About Afghan Refugees & Raise Money USC students learned about Newcomer’s Access Center’s work helping Afghan refugees in Southern California during a Zoom panel held October 7, 2021, sponsored by Delta Phi Epsilon (DPE), a service-oriented international relations fraternity. Each semester, DPE has a “Week of Action” when the group focuses on

Website Makeover Newcomers Access Center (NAC), is pleased to announce a makeover of our website! We now have images to showcase our mission to help refugees and immigrants in the Inland Valley areas of Southern California. The new web design was done by our Office Administrator Kim Peasley, who also has a graphic design business,

We have all been riveted by the recent news in Afghanistan, and many people want to help. On October 10, the Refugee and Immigration Concerns Team of Claremont Presbyterian Church partnered with Newcomers Access Center (NAC) to provide a wonderful opportunity to meet a family from Kabul and learn about their delicious food—and at the same time raise needed funds for refugees. In a Zoom class, Mrs. Parwani prepared a traditional family recipe of “Bolani,” a flatbread with potato filling and a special dipping sauce. Attendees were sent the recipe ahead of time in case they wanted to cook along. The suggested donation for the class was $20 and funds raised will help purchase mattresses for incoming new arrivals resettling in Claremont. Each mattress costs $150. Claremont Presbyterian Church matched all donations!  Thank you to Claremont Presbyterian for partnering with us with this creative idea to help our refugee families. 

With the help of dozens of volunteers, Newcomers Access Center (NAC) has set up temporary housing in Claremont, California, for Afghan refugees. Even before the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, Newcomers Access Center, was planning ahead looking for possible housing for potential refugees. We reached out to local faith communities and thankfully found support from both Claremont Friends (Quakers) and from the Claremont School of Theology. Finding temporary housing is one of the biggest hurdles in settling refugees, so we are thrilled that these two groups stepped up to partner with NAC.  

Newcomers Access Center (NAC) has moved.  We are located on the Claremont School of Theology (CST) campus.  The new office will allow NAC to better serve refugee and immigrant families. NAC will be able to expand workshops, tutoring, Citizenship clinics, meeting space and events. We are most grateful for the partnership with CST.

Our new address is:

Newcomers Access Center (NAC)
1401 North College Avenue, Building F
Claremont, CA 91711

As the crisis unfolds in Afghanistan and new refugees arrive in the U.S., many Americans are asking how they can help. At Newcomers Access Center (NAC), a local nonprofit, we are gratified for the many people who have reached out to volunteer. People all across the greater Los Angles/San Bernardino area have signed up to help: cleaning apartments, picking up and delivering furniture, organizing new apartments, sorting/purchasing household items, bedding and more. We love and appreciate our volunteers who graciously gift us their time, talent and treasure. But the biggest need we have now is financial contributions.

Are you eligible to apply for naturalization but don’t know where to begin?  Newcomers Access Center (NAC) has a relationship with the Immigration Resource Center of San Gabriel Valley. They can be a great help to you with: Naturalization, application fee waivers for citizenship and certificate of Naturalization, and referrals to immigration lawyers and other non-profit immigration legal service agencies.

Trauma and Stress Workshop Newcomers Access Center (NAC) would like to invite you to a FREE workshop on trauma and stress on Tuesday, October 13 from 2-4pm. Please click here for more details, including the zoom link. Let us know you are coming by emailing administrator@newcomersaccesscenter.org. This is 2 hours that can help make your life a

Census: Be Counted Every 10 years all people in the USA are counted.  We do this online. It only takes a minute. The totals affect benefits such as Medi-Cal, WIC, food stamps, school lunches, education and how our representatives are selected. When more people are counted, more money is given to each state. This 2020

Donations for Rent and Food Supplements Thank you to many generous donors during this Covid-19 quarantine. Several refugee breadwinners have become unemployed or had work hours reduced. NAC was able to give some families rent supplements to maintain their housing during these difficult times. A special THANK YOU goes to one of our Community Partners*

Book Club Helps Refugee Mom with Driving Lessons A local Monthly book club raised enough $ in December  to offer a young refugee mother driving lessons.  She was very excited to be able to get herself and her children to school, appointments and grocery store without carrying everything home.  This refugee mom from Afghanistan enrolled