Fund Created To Support Nevada’s Immigrant Communities

In troubled times, acts of altruism and benevolence are something to celebrate. The Esperanza Fund, in public/private partnership with the Governor’s Office for New Americans, will work to raise funds and provide grants for immigrants excluded from benefiting from federal economic stimulus aid packages, according to a press release on September 1st. The initiative was announced by Nevadan Duncan Lee, a first-generation immigrant, international realtor and community philanthropist. The fund will be shared between 12 non-profit organizations to distribute among the immigrant families that they support.
The community groups and organizations that will receive the grants include:

• ACTIONN
• REACH Las Vegas
• Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada
• Mi Familia Vota
• Make the Road NV
• Immigrant Home Foundation
• Ethiopian Christian Fellowship Church
• Asian Community Development Council

The fund received an initial gift of $750,000 from the Open Society Foundations, an international philanthropic grant-making network that supports democratic freedom and advocates for human rights around the world. More than 200,000 Nevadans were deemed ineligible for Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) aid during March this year. Many undocumented migrants have battled financial hardship throughout the pandemic and the need for assistance will continue. Lee hopes that by publicizing the campaign, more individuals and companies will be prompted to make contributions to the fund, in order that community groups can provide essential financial support to people in need.