Our mission is to bring hope to the immigrant community of Ocean County through a renewed perspective on the challenges our immigrant families face due to fear of deportation and discrimination. Targeting the social concerns of integration and inequalities stagnating the growth of immigrant families, we desire to work collaboratively with community leaders to activate a communication channel and create a platform for the immigrant community to express insecurities; establish a relationship between immigrant families and the municipality, police and fire departments; support the social development of Latino families; create opportunities for Latinos to take an active role in the community through volunteerism and service to cultivate a sense of belonging and value.
Cultural sensitivity goes beyond learning about the culture of immigrant children and families, it requires an understanding of the process of migration, the reasons families migrate, and the process of acculturation. We spearhead the work of increasing cultural competence within Ocean County businesses and organizations to bring improved equitable services to all. Since 2010 the Latino population of Ocean county has grown from 2.2% to an estimated 9.1% according to a 2016 profile released by the US Census Bureau. Latinos are our nation’s largest minority group, numbering nearly 58 million, or 18% of the U.S. population (Pew Research Center 2016). We are on a mission to simultaneously bring practical hope for immigrant communities and embrace the diversity that at-risk immigrants bring to our Ocean County municipalities.
