Asian Counseling and Referral Service (ACRS)

08/20/2026

🎉 Meet Sam, a case manager in our Aging & Adult Services department and a proud graduate of the PACE program!

The People’s Academy for Community Engagement (PACE) takes a linguistically and culturally responsive approach to building civic leaders. Through it, Sam gained tools to help organize people and resources to create real change—both here at ACRS and across our communities.

We’re so proud to have team members like Sam who bring that commitment to everything they do.

Heck yeah, Sam! 👏🙌

cc: Seattle Department of Neighborhoods

Meet Sam, a participant of the 2024 People’s Academy for Community Engagement (PACE) cohort hosted in partnership with Asian Counseling and Referral Service (ACRS). We connected with Sam to learn how the program helped them gain insight into local government and sharpen community leadership skills. Link to full story in comments

08/20/2026

Join us for the ACRS Gala (bit.ly/ACRS2026Gala) on Saturday, October 3, at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue for an unforgettable evening celebrating community, resilience and the people who inspire us to build a more just and hopeful future.

As ACRS deepens its commitment to protecting and standing alongside the communities we serve, we are especially honored to recognize a longtime advocate whose career has been dedicated to advancing civil rights, justice and belonging.

Featured Honoree & Speaker: Karen Narasaki

Karen Narasaki is a nationally recognized civil and human rights leader whose career has spanned more than three decades advancing voting rights, immigrant rights, racial justice and Asian American civil rights.

As the longtime leader of Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, Karen helped lead efforts to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act, expand federal hate crimes protections and strengthen voting access for Asian American communities. In 2014, President Barack Obama appointed her to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, where she helped shape national work on some of the country’s most pressing civil rights issues. Earlier in her career, while an associate at Seattle-based Perkins Coie, she served on the legal team for Gordon Hirabayashi’s successful appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Also featured in this year’s program

Troy Osaki, our featured spoken word artist, is a Filipino-Japanese poet, organizer, attorney and three-time grand slam poetry champion whose work explores migration, justice, identity and community. Troy will share poetry reflecting on detention, incarceration, family history and resilience — and the ways our communities have turned to one another for collective support.

Our MC, Angela Garbes, is the acclaimed author of the national bestseller Essential Labor and Like a Mother, an NPR Best Book of the Year. Through her writing and public speaking, Angela explores care, family, labor and the systems that shape our lives. Her TED Talk on what working parents need from workplaces has been viewed more than two million times.

Together, these extraordinary voices will bring reflection, artistry and purpose to an evening celebrating the strength of our communities and the work ahead.

Early Bird discount ticket prices end after Friday, Aug 28. GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY: bit.ly/ACRS2026Gala

Join us for a powerful evening of connection and celebration while helping fuel ACRS’s work to build social justice and belonging.

P.S. Help us spread the word! Our Gala ShareKit (bit.ly/GALASHAREKIT) has ready-to-use graphics and social media content to share with friends, family and networks. Every share helps us build excitement and bring more people into the celebration.

Special thanks to our event sponsors:
PREMIER: tms | Amazon.com | Asians at Amazon
ADVOCATE: EvergreenHealth | Gates Foundation | Muckleshoot Indian Tribe
PARTNER: All Ways Caring HomeCare | Liberty Mutual Insurance
COMMUNITY PARTNER: Inatai Foundation | Morgan Stanley | Viet Wah | USI Kibble & Prentice
PHOTO BOOTH SPONSOR: Winnie's The Booth

ACRS Gala 2026

08/19/2026

We had a terrific time at the Big Day of Play this past Saturday. Thank you so much to Seattle Parks and Recreation for once again, putting on such a fun and vibrant community event and thank you to everyone who stopped by our table. 🙏🙏🙏🙏

08/18/2026

🚨 ACTION ALERT: Protect access to U.S. citizenship

Monday, August 24 is just one week away — and it’s the deadline to oppose a proposed federal rule that would eliminate full and reduced fee waivers for the N-400, the application used to apply for U.S. citizenship.

At ACRS, 76% of citizenship clients were eligible for a full or reduced application fee. Without these waivers, the cost of applying for citizenship could become financially out of reach for many immigrants and refugees.

📣 Speak out by August 24 and help us stop the citizenship paywall.

👉 Submit a public comment at bit.ly/StopThePaywall (It only takes two minutes)

08/18/2026

“I want to help be a voice and advocate for our community.”

For Youth Civic Institute participant Shelby, 22, that means challenging the idea that Asian Americans are “perpetual foreigners” despite generations of contributions to this country.

ACRS’s eight-week summer Youth Civic Institute brings young people ages 18–24 together to build skills in advocacy, organizing, storytelling and civic engagement - and turn their voices into action.

Learn more about Youth Civic Institute 👉

https://acrs.org/youth-civic-institute-building-the-next-generation-of-civic-leaders/

08/10/2026

Citizenship should not depend on someone’s ability to pay more than $1,000 to apply! Join ACRS for a Public Comment Party and get help speaking out against proposed higher citizenship application fees and the elimination of fee assistance.

📅 Tuesday, August 11
🕛 12–1 p.m.
📍 ACRS Computer Lab
3639 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S., Seattle

💻 Computers, assistance and snacks provided! We’ll help you submit your comment before the August 24 deadline. Please share with your networks and help us ensure community voices are heard.

Can’t make it? Submit your comments at bit.ly/StopThePaywall

⚠️ Public comments become part of the public record, so please don’t include home addresses or other sensitive personal information.

08/07/2026

It was a hot day at Seahawks Training Camp — both on the field and off! ☀️🔥🏈

About 15 ACRS staff and volunteers joined the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle at the VMAC this week for our Spirit of 12 volunteer day - and the Hawks are looking good!

We’re so excited and grateful to be a Seattle Seahawks Spirit of 12 nonprofit partner for the second year in a row. 💙💚

Throughout the season, proceeds from Seahawks yearbook sales and 50/50 raffles at games will support 12 nonprofits serving communities across Washington, including ACRS.

Huge thanks to the Seattle Seahawks and the 12s for investing in our community - and to our amazing ACRS crew for showing up and braving the heat. 🔥

Want to join us for another Seahawks game day? We're looking for 75 volunteers to join us for the Dec. 13 Seahawks game against the Giants! 🏈 Interested? Learn more and sign up at www.bit.ly/RAFFLEVOLUNTEER.

08/06/2026

ACTION ALERT: Help stop the citizenship paywall

The Department of Homeland Security is proposing to eliminate full naturalization fee waivers and the reduced-fee option while raising the cost of applying for U.S. citizenship to as much as $1,330.

This would have a significant impact on the immigrants and refugees ACRS serves.

From January 2025 through July 2026, 76% of ACRS citizenship clients qualified for a full fee waiver or reduced application fee.

Without these options, clients who currently apply for free or at a reduced cost would be required to pay the full application fee. For many, that cost could delay or prevent them from applying for citizenship.

The proposed changes are not yet in effect. The public has until August 24, 2026, at 8:59 p.m. Pacific Time to submit comments urging DHS to preserve the current application fee and naturalization fee assistance.

📣 Take action:

Submit a public comment: https://bit.ly/StopThePaywall

You can also join ACRS for our Public Comment Party on August 11 to learn more and get help submitting your comment.

Citizenship should remain accessible to everyone, not only those who can afford it.

08/01/2026

Great news! We've extended Early Bird pricing for the ACRS Benefit Gala (bit.ly/ACRS2026Gala) through Friday, August 28, 2026, giving you more time to reserve your seats at a special rate.

• Friend Ticket: Early Bird price: $225 (regularly $250)
• Friend Table for 10: Early Bird price: $2,250 (regularly $2,500)

Join us on Saturday, October 3, 2026, at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue for an inspiring evening of connection, celebration and collective action.

As our communities face growing uncertainty - from attacks on immigrant communities to threats to essential services - this year's gala is more than a celebration. It's an opportunity to stand together in solidarity, reaffirm our shared values and invest in a future where everyone can thrive.

Together, we'll celebrate the resilience, courage and joy that sustain our communities while raising critical support for the compassionate, culturally responsive services that thousands of individuals and families rely on each year.

Looking to deepen your impact? Consider our Champion and Sustainer ticket and table packages, which include exclusive benefits while providing even greater support for ACRS's mission.

Reserve your seats by August 28 to take advantage of Early Bird pricing. We can't wait to welcome you on October 3.

Interested in sponsoring the gala (bit.ly/ACRS2026GalaSponsor)? We'd love to partner with you. Contact us at [email protected] to learn more.

Special thanks to our event sponsors:
PREMIER: tms | Amazon.com | Asians at Amazon
ADVOCATE: Muckleshoot Indian Tribe
PARTNER: All Ways Caring HomeCare | Liberty Mutual Insurance
COMMUNITY PARTNER: Viet Wah | USI Kibble & Prentice
PHOTO BOOTH SPONSOR: Winnie's The Booth

07/31/2026

Primary Election Day is Tuesday, August 4!

ACRS staff and volunteers have been helping community members get informed and ready to vote, from hosting a King County Council District 2 candidate forum to sharing reminders through our Get Out the Vote phone bank.

Now it’s time to make your voice heard.

Return your completed ballot to an official drop box by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, August 4 to make sure it is counted.

📍 Find a ballot drop box near you: https://bit.ly/4g5y8HW

Your voice matters. Your vote matters. Make a plan to return your ballot!