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NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Feb. 28, 2019—The Orange County Bar Association Charitable Fund announced its annual grant recipients, providing a total of $222,000 to 17 law-related organizations and programs in Orange County. Over the last decade, the OCBA Charitable Fund has provided over $1.4 million in grants to law-related charities in Orange County.
In previous years, the OCBA Charitable Fund grants provided critically needed services to a broad range of clients including victims of domestic violence, legal services for low-income residents of Orange County and foster youth, diversity pipe-line efforts, and assistance for homeless residents. This year’s grants will ensure that these vital community programs continue. Moreover, additional projects will support child abuse prevention, expand access to legal education, and serve the immigrant and homeless throughout Orange County.
A special reception for grant recipients was held on Feb. 13, 2019, at the OCBA office in Newport Beach, Calif. Attorney Michael Baroni, 2018 OCBA Charitable Fund Board President, presented the grants to recipients on behalf of the OCBA Charitable Fund.
The OCBA Charitable Fund extends its appreciation to the donors, sponsors, and volunteers who have helped to make this work possible through their support of its mission – to enhance the system of justice in Orange County and promote access to equal justice for all.
See the complete list of grant recipients below.
CALIFORNIA YOUTH CONNNECTION CYC Creating Leaders From Within • Grant awarded: $5,000 Providing a transformative experience for current and former foster youth through its dual goals of empowering youth and improving foster care.
CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY DALE E. FOWLER SCHOOL OF LAW Bette and Wylie Aitken Family Protection Clinic • Grant awarded: $12,000 Provides free legal representation, legal advice, and pro per workshops to indigent and low-income people and survivors of family violence, sexual assault, and trafficking.
COLLABORATIVE COURTS FOUNDATION Orange County Participant Assistance Program • Grant awarded: $12,000 Provides Orange County Superior Court, Collaborative Courts participants with support necessary to graduate and become productive members of society.
COMMUNITY LEGAL AID SOCAL Legal Aid in Action to provide direct legal assistance to homeless individuals in Orange County • Grant Awarded: $35,000 Helps Orange County neighbors fight injustice by providing compassionate, high-quality legal aid, and advocating for stronger communities.
CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY IRVINE United We Stand: Civility, Citizenship and the Constitution • Grant awarded: $2,000 Empowers students through the liberal arts and professional studies for lives of learning, service and leadership.
CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS FOUNDATION – ORANGE COUNTY (CRF-OC) The Civic Education Project • Grant awarded: $45,000 Provides civic and law-related educational programs made available to all high school students in Orange County including Mock Trial, Peer Court, Constitution Day, Law Day, and the Orange County Career Forum.
COURT-APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES (CASA) Mentor Advocate Program • Grant awarded: $4,000 Provides a voice for youth in the child welfare system through a unique one-on-one relationship with trained and supervised court-appointed volunteer advocates.
ELDER LAW & DISABILITY RIGHTS CENTER (ELDR) Senior Center Legal Clinic and Homeless Citation Clinic • Grant awarded: $2,000 Provides access to justice and education through legal services for seniors, people with disabilities, and their families.
FAMILY LEGAL ASSISTANCE AT CHOC CHILDREN’S 2019 HEALTH Initiative: Helping Expand Access to Lawyers, Treatment & Healthcare • Grant awarded: $5,000 Provides low-income families with free legal representation to increase their access to health care for critical medical conditions.
HUMAN OPTIONS Legal Advocacy Program • Grant awarded: $10,000Provides victims of domestic violence and late life family violence with education on legal rights, court accompaniment and support, direct assistance, and resources.
LAURA’S HOUSE Legal Advocacy Program • Grant awarded: $10,000 Provides victims of domestic violence with a broad range of services and support to assist them in understanding and securing their legal rights so they can lead safe, productive, and violence-free lives.
OCBF PROJECT YOUTH Project SELF • Grant awarded: $5,000 Provides low-income and at-risk high school students with hands-on internships in the legal field.
PUBLIC LAW CENTER (PLC) Orange County Expanded Domestic Violence Assistance Project • Grant awarded: $25,000 Provides free civil legal services, including counseling, individual representation, community education, and strategic litigation and advocacy to challenge societal injustices.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE SCHOOL OF LAW Pre-Law Outreach Program (POP) • Grant awarded: $5,000 Provides assistance to undergraduate students from disadvantaged backgrounds to prepare for the law school application and admissions process, and to understand the unique demands of legal education.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE SCHOOL OF LAW Saturday Academy of Law (SAL) • Grant awarded: $5,000 Provides an educational pipeline program for underserved ninth-grade students from Santa Ana, Anaheim, and Garden Grove school districts.
VETERANS LEGAL INSTITUTE Pro Bono Veterans Legal Mobile Clinics • Grant awarded: $30,000 Provides pro bono legal assistance to homeless, at-risk, disabled, and low-income veterans and service members. Seeks to eradicate barriers to housing, education, employment, and healthcare and to foster self-sufficiency.
WOMEN’S TRANSITIONAL LIVING CENTER (WTLC) Survivor Immigration Legal Services • Grant awarded: $10,000 Assists individuals and families to escape the depths of domestic violence and exploitation, and specifically assists survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking with immigration relief such as U-Visas, T-Visas, and VAWA petitions.
About the Orange County Bar Association Established in 1901, the Orange County Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary bars in California. The mission of the Orange County Bar Association is to enhance the system of justice, to support the lawyers who serve it, and to assist the community served by it.
About the Orange County Bar Association Charitable Fund Founded in 1995 as the charitable giving and fundraising arm of the Orange County Bar Association, the OCBA Charitable Fund provides resources to organizations and programs in order to enhance the system of justice in Orange County and promote access to equal justice for all. Over the last decade, the OCBA Charitable Fund has provided over $1.2 million in grants to law-related charities in Orange County.
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