A woman stuck in a marriage with a man who was having an extramarital affair with his elder brother’s wife can be a traumatic situation to be in, especially since that woman was new to the country. This lady came into an Indian store to cry about the circumstances she was in. One day, a family friend of Rusi and Chandrabala Alamshaw heard the woman’s sad story and told them about the Alamshaws and their work. The two along with five others,
founders of Sahara, helped the woman to get out of her horrific situation. Now she has relocated and is since happily remarried.
In 1991 Sahara was born, an organization to help and provide services to people from the South Asian community. Sahara stands for South Asian Helpline and Referral Agency.
Sahara was formed by five clinical social workers – Chandrabala Alamshaw, Rusi Alamshaw, Sheela Mehta, Charu Mody, Smita Patel and two physicians Pratibha Patel and Sulochana Trivedi. This group of seven mutually understood the need of the underserved individuals from the South Asian community in Southern California. ‘Sahara’ is a Hindi term which translates to “support” in English. The organization consists of board members, staff, volunteers, and supporters who all work together to help individuals from the South Asian community have access to a large number of available programs.
“A social worker by profession, we had people come up to us at social gatherings with situations and ask us to help them,” said Rusi Alamshaw, explaining why the need for such an organization became evident. One of the many goals of Sahara is to create an environment in which individuals feel safe and can come to when they need assistance. “Sahara was founded on the belief that services should be offered in a culturally sensitive environment where individuals feel a sense of safety, connectedness, respect, and dignity,” said Dora Jacildo, Executive Director of Sahara.
Sahara additionally strives to help all individuals who require their support in any way possible.
“Our aim is to serve the growing South Asian community in Southern California by providing information, referrals, skills development, and other culturally-sensitive support services needed to meet the unique challenges they face, and to deal with the personal crises of South Asian survivors of domestic abuse,” said Jacildo.
An example of this was when Chandrabala Alamshaw, would wake up early in the morning to go to the home of one of the women who had come to the organization for help, pick her up, and drive her to work every morning. Not only that, but they also taught this survivor how to drive. Understanding that every relationship is unique in its own way, Sahara arranges tailored support to the individuals and their respective families. Sahara also provides individuals with shelter, legal services, and counseling. Everyone who wants help will be able to attain it and no one is turned away.
The organization additionally helps seniors in the community. “Services entail specialized care management, assistance with navigating the health and public benefits systems as well as essential mental health support, and community linkages,” said Jacildo.
Not only does Sahara assist seniors, it also helps the youth. Sahara hopes to inspire tomorrow’s generation to be individuals of change. The youth are able to socialize with their peers and families to take action on important issues. Sahara is a resource to individuals in the community as well. They provide unique support to every individual and refer every concern a person seeking assistance may have. Additionally, Sahara helps individuals understand the various changes in government and other programs that may affect them. “Sahara is a Certified Enrollment Entity with expertise in enrolling and navigating the Covered California exchange as well as screening individuals for eligibility for other health and public benefit programs,” said Jacildo. In an attempt to have every opportunity available to the South Asian community, Sahara assists individuals in attaining their citizenship to the United States of America. “Sahara provides citizenship information, application assistance, and guidance about fee waivers for individuals who cannot afford the filing fee,” said Jacildo. Wanting to help in any way possible, Sahara grows as the community grows. Therefore services increase to include every need of all of the members of the South Asian community. If anyone wants assistance Sahara will do everything to help and support. Sahara is located at: 17100 Pioneer Blvd #260, Artesia, CA 90701. Phone (562) 402-4132.
In 1991 Sahara was born, an organization to help and provide services to people from the South Asian community. Sahara stands for South Asian Helpline and Referral Agency.
Sahara was formed by five clinical social workers – Chandrabala Alamshaw, Rusi Alamshaw, Sheela Mehta, Charu Mody, Smita Patel and two physicians Pratibha Patel and Sulochana Trivedi. This group of seven mutually understood the need of the underserved individuals from the South Asian community in Southern California. ‘Sahara’ is a Hindi term which translates to “support” in English. The organization consists of board members, staff, volunteers, and supporters who all work together to help individuals from the South Asian community have access to a large number of available programs.
“A social worker by profession, we had people come up to us at social gatherings with situations and ask us to help them,” said Rusi Alamshaw, explaining why the need for such an organization became evident. One of the many goals of Sahara is to create an environment in which individuals feel safe and can come to when they need assistance. “Sahara was founded on the belief that services should be offered in a culturally sensitive environment where individuals feel a sense of safety, connectedness, respect, and dignity,” said Dora Jacildo, Executive Director of Sahara.
Sahara additionally strives to help all individuals who require their support in any way possible.
“Our aim is to serve the growing South Asian community in Southern California by providing information, referrals, skills development, and other culturally-sensitive support services needed to meet the unique challenges they face, and to deal with the personal crises of South Asian survivors of domestic abuse,” said Jacildo.
An example of this was when Chandrabala Alamshaw, would wake up early in the morning to go to the home of one of the women who had come to the organization for help, pick her up, and drive her to work every morning. Not only that, but they also taught this survivor how to drive. Understanding that every relationship is unique in its own way, Sahara arranges tailored support to the individuals and their respective families. Sahara also provides individuals with shelter, legal services, and counseling. Everyone who wants help will be able to attain it and no one is turned away.
The organization additionally helps seniors in the community. “Services entail specialized care management, assistance with navigating the health and public benefits systems as well as essential mental health support, and community linkages,” said Jacildo.
Not only does Sahara assist seniors, it also helps the youth. Sahara hopes to inspire tomorrow’s generation to be individuals of change. The youth are able to socialize with their peers and families to take action on important issues. Sahara is a resource to individuals in the community as well. They provide unique support to every individual and refer every concern a person seeking assistance may have. Additionally, Sahara helps individuals understand the various changes in government and other programs that may affect them. “Sahara is a Certified Enrollment Entity with expertise in enrolling and navigating the Covered California exchange as well as screening individuals for eligibility for other health and public benefit programs,” said Jacildo. In an attempt to have every opportunity available to the South Asian community, Sahara assists individuals in attaining their citizenship to the United States of America. “Sahara provides citizenship information, application assistance, and guidance about fee waivers for individuals who cannot afford the filing fee,” said Jacildo. Wanting to help in any way possible, Sahara grows as the community grows. Therefore services increase to include every need of all of the members of the South Asian community. If anyone wants assistance Sahara will do everything to help and support. Sahara is located at: 17100 Pioneer Blvd #260, Artesia, CA 90701. Phone (562) 402-4132.
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