NATIONAL CONVENTION EARLYBIRD PRICING DEADLINE EXTENDED
 

The deadline to purchase the earlybird tickets for OCA's 50th anniversary National Convention has been extended to Friday, May 12th! Go register NOW to save money on registration before prices increase. Full-package registration includes access to all meals and special events, including Youth Recognition Luncheon, Friday Night Community Event, Chapter of the Year Luncheon, and Gala Awards dinner.

Creative Arts Scholarship - Deadline: May 5

AAPI college students 25 years old or younger who've participated in OCA National youth programs between 2019 and 2023 are eligible to receive a full-ride scholarship to attend OCA's 50th anniversary National Convention in Washington, D.C. by submitting an original visual or written creative work.

The deadline to apply has been extended to May 5, 2023.

T-shirt Design Contest - Deadline: May 15

Submit a t-shirt design for OCA's 50th anniversary National Convention for a chance to win a free full-package registration.

The deadline to enter the contest is May 15, 2023

Olga May Wong Memorial Public Service Scholarship Fund

We are honored to announce the Olga May Wong Memorial Public Service Scholarship Fund that will benefit Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander college students in their pursuit of public service. One college student with an unpaid internship at a government office, federally or locally, in the U.S. will be awarded a $2,000 scholarship.

This scholarship is established by the Wong family in honor of their family matriarch, loving wife, mother and grandmother, Olga May Wong, who passed peacefully on August 3, 2022, at the age of 94, surrounded by her husband, children, in-laws, and grandchildren.

The deadline to apply is Sunday, June 18, 2023 at 11:59 PM PT.

If you have any questions please contact [email protected].

(FUN)D-A-THON with OCA
 

Join us during our 24-hour-long fundraising event to celebrate our 50th Anniversary! From 5/19-5/20, you can join us as we pie Thu and friends (tin pies filled with whipped cream), have a late night mukbang with OCA National staff, play jeopardy and trivia, watch chapters live stream karaoke, and many more.

We'll be live-streaming the fundraising event on Facebook via Zoom, and we hope you will be able to support us as we celebrate OCA's legacy! If you are interested in joining any of our in-person events during this fundraiser, please fill out the form in its entirety. Events take place at multiple locations and the addresses are listed in the form.

All questions can be directed to our Development and Policy Associate, Caroline Buaron ([email protected]).
 

TransformAsian by AMHC
 

Asian Mental Health Collective (AMHC) is a 501c3 grassroots nonprofit that aims to normalize and destigmatize mental health within Asian communities by making mental health conversations and treatment available, accessible, and approachable.

AMHC is hosting their 3rd annual virtual TransformAsian conference, Mixed Realities and Blended Spaces: Mental Health in the Digital Landscape on May 6th, 2023 (9:30-3:30pm PST // 12:30-6:30pm EST). We hope to create a space for dialogue in how we navigate the constantly rapid changes in technology as it relates to mental health, and the ways in which we use digital spaces to support and uplift one another.
 

Click HERE to access the webpage
 

FreeWill + OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates
 

Plant your legacy today! As spring brings new life and renewal, it's a reminder that we all have the power to plant the seeds for a better future. To celebrate our 50th anniversary, I invite you to plant a seed and Pass the Torch to future generations of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) by including a gift to OCA in your estate plan.

To help, we’re highlighting our partnership with FreeWill, an online tool that guides you through making your will and including a legacy gift, 100% cost-free. No matter its size, planning your gift today ensures that our communities thrive socially, politically, and economically for another 50 years and beyond. Plant your seed for a brighter future today!

Intern Alumni Directory Form

We are requesting all OCA National internship program alumni to fill out the OCA Intern Alumni Directory Form to help us update our internal database so we can stay in touch with our intern alumni from the last 30+ years. If you are a former OCA National internship program participant, please complete this form. Any questions can be directed to [email protected].
 

2021 Annual Report
 

K-12 AANHPI Curriculum Project
 

• FOLLOW and SHARE our Instagram where we post a majority of our content! @k12aanhpi_project
• VISIT our Linktree and donate to our project, sign our petition, and visit our website to learn more about our project in-depth!

If you have any questions, please email OCA's Executive Director Thu Nguyen.

OCA-St. Louis

As one of the OCA founding chapters, St. Louis chapter is celebrating their 50th Anniversary Gala on May 6 - and the tickets are SOLD OUT! 

If you are still interested in attending, please don't hesitate to contact us at [email protected] to be added to the waitlist. We will do our best to accommodate any additional requests.

OCA-San Mateo

April 29 Scholarship Luncheon. San Mateo OCA gave out 9 scholarships to outstanding HS students identifying as AAPI. Donors included Adrian and Monica Yeung Arima's community service scholarships, Wade Loo Jr in memory of his father Wade Loo Sr. and Karen Gok Lee's White Sky Falling Dragon scholarship in honor of Chinese Veterans in WWII, and PG& E.

April 8 Local History and Food Tour #2: Elizabeth Gamble Historic House and Garden Tour /Singaporean Lunch in Downtown Palo Alto Docent Gloria Hom gave a tour of the Gamble Estate and talked about her grandfather's cannery business in Palo Alto and Alviso in the 1930s. We concluded with a group enjoying lunch at Kopitiam Killeney, it's namesake famous as the oldest cafe in Singapore.

OCA-Wisconsin

OCA-Wisconsin is proud to have partnered with the League of Women Voters to support the 5th Annual Health Conference organized by the Milwaukee Consortium for Hmong Health. We volunteered to do Voter Education to encourage, register, and educate attendees about "Why and How to Vote" and to promote the issues at stake for AAPI communities. We were also able to hand out over 100 children's books donated by Undercats Media and OCA National, which the attendees really appreciated!

OCA-Wisconsin is proud to have partnered with the League of Women Voters to support the 5th Annual Health Conference organized by the Milwaukee Consortium for Hmong Health. We volunteered to do Voter Education to encourage, register, and educate attendees about "Why and How to Vote" and to promote the issues at stake for AAPI communities. We were also able to hand out over 100 children's books donated by Undercats Media and OCA National, which the attendees really appreciated!

OCA-Greater Tucson

April 11. OCA Greater Tucson attended the Maximizing Health Program, part of the NIH-sponsored All of Us research project. NIH is conducting a 10-year study of health in an attempt to build one of the most diverse health databases in history. Data could someday help researchers identify what makes people more likely to develop a disease; find out how environment, lifestyle, and genes can impact health; and build better tools for detection a health condition and encouraging healthy habits.

The goal is 1,000,000 participants with emphasis on including AANHPI’s. Current count is 460,000 total participants. Find out how to join this historic study HERE

April 12. Leslie Moe-Kaiser presented OCA’s mission and major national programs to the League of Women Voters Greater Tucson DEI Committee as part of a collaborative effort to participate in each other’s local programs. We are working together to increase voter outreach to underserved communities.

April 19. Leslie Moe-Kaiser met with YWCA Greater Tucson CEO, Magdalena Verdugo to increase the audience of OCA programs, such as APA-Y Advocate, and to increase AANHPI awareness of YWCA programs that we can support, such as Start and Grow Your Business and Your Sister’s Closet which provides slightly used business attire for young women.

May 6: Dance Night - OCA-Westchester & Hudson Valley

You are Invited to the Dance Night Party on Saturday, May 6th in celebrating the 50th Anniversary of OCA. Free for OCA-WHV Members, $10 for Non-Members. Light refreshment will be provided. Payments made in advance to [email protected] will have free raffle tickets to win to prize!

Address: 32 Garibaldi Pl, Rye Brook, NY 10573.
Registration link is HERE
 

Any questions? email us to [email protected].

May 8: Judge Michael Wei Kwan's Celebration of Life - OCA-Utah

Judge Kwan has been described as a true visionary, a fierce advocate for justice, peace and equity, a moral leader, a mentor, and a very kind and gentle soul who treated everyone he encountered with respect and dignity. His amazing optimism was reflected in the many leadership positions he assumed with his personal mantra -“ There is nothing we can't fix, If we fail or fall, we get back up and do it again”.

We are asking Judge Kwan’s family of individuals, organizations and colleagues to share their personal witness of his legacy in making this a better world. His actions were felt at local, national and global levels. Tables will be available to display photos, awards, plaques, posters, and written memories. Please have these personal items marked with your name, so that you can retrieve them at the close of the program,

Venue - Mid Valley Performing Arts Center
2525 Taylorsville Blvd. Taylorsville, Utah

Date - Monday, May 8, 2023

Time - Reception - 6:00pm - 7:00pm; Program - 7:15pm - 8:30pm

Donation can be made to CRWDA for the Salt Lake Community College Michael Wei Kwan Scholarship on Venmo @UT-CRWDA-154

Light refreshments will be served. Space is limited, we are accepting reservations for 350 people. RSVP HERE

May 18: AAPI Month Film Screening - OCA-Westchester & Hudson Valley

 "And Then They Came For US" is the event OCA-WHV planned specially for Asian Heritage Month. Mr. Tak Furumoto is a Japanese American born in the internment camp, he will give a short speech and answer questions after viewing the video  "And Then They Came For US".

The event is on Thursday May 18th at 7 pm at White Plains Public Library, White Plains, NY 10601. RSVP HERE

May 11-21: CAAMFest - OCA-San Mateo

San Mateo OCA is so excited to be a community partner for #CAAMFest2023, celebrating Asian American Stories May 11-21, 2023, presented by @caamedia.

About CAAMFest:
CAAM (Center for Asian American Media) presents CAAMFest (formerly the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival) in May, the world’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian film, food and music programs, annually presenting over 100 works in San Francisco and Oakland. Since 1982, our film festival has been an important launching point for Asian American independent filmmakers as well as a vital source for new Asian cinema.

For tickets and info, click HERE

May 12-21: Annual AAPI Restaurants Week - OCA-Greater Chicago

OCA Greater Chicago is hosting the second annual AAPI Restaurants Week to take place May 12-21, 2023 in celebration of OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates’ (OCA National) 50th Anniversary and Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with the 57 participating AAPI-owned restaurants.

There is no cost for restaurants to participate. The only criterion is that the restaurant must be owned by at least one individual of Asian, Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander descent. The cuisine is less important than supporting AAPI restaurateurs and their businesses.

The aim is not to incur additional cost for restaurants but to get people to explore the many AAPI-owned restaurants in the Chicago area.

To make it special for Heritage Month, the restaurant may choose to offer a discount or prix fixe menu or donate a percentage of the proceeds to a cause of their choice, but there is no obligation to offer any special deals.

The complete (searchable) list of participating restaurants/cafes/food trucks can be found HERE.

You can also check out some interviews with some participating restaurants:

• AAPI Restaurants Week 2023 Restaurant Showcase Playlist
• AAPI Restaurants Week 2023 Interviews

May 20 & 21: Cleveland Asian Festival - OCA-Greater Cleveland

You're invited to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at the 2023 Cleveland Asian Festival on May 20 & 21 in Cleveland's AsiaTown neighborhood.  Join us for Live entertainment including cultural performances and martial art demonstrations on two outdoor stages, a World Marketplace of 100+ vendors and exhibitors, local restaurants and food trucks serving authentic Asian cuisines, health screenings at the Health Pavilion inside Asia Plaza, free activities, a Trivia Challenge and an Asian Pop Dance Competition.
 

Learn more HERE.