582. Empowering Immigrant Communities: The Story + Impact of the South Asian Council for Social Services - Sudha Acharya

Meet Sudha. She’s the Executive Director of the South Asian Council for Social Services (SACSS), an org that’s been a lifeline for immigrant and underserved communities in New York for nearly 25 years. SACSS offers free, wrap-around services (in 20 languages!) covering housing, food security, healthcare, job skills, and more, all evolving to meet the changing needs of the community. Tune in for a story of resilience, hope, and community strength 💪

💙 After you listen, please consider a gift to support this mission. $100 can feed a family of four for two weeks. Join us in supporting SACSS at sacssny.org.

💡 Learn

• Mission + history of the South Asian Council for Social Services
• Advice for nonprofit leaders looking to create lasting change
• How you can support the work of SACSS 

Today’s Guest
Sudha Acharya, Executive Director, South Asian Council for Social Services

Episode Highlights

• Sudha’s story and journey to where she is today (4:50)
• The early days of the South Asian Council for Social Services (SACSS) (9:45)
• Programs of SACSS (12:40)
• Advice for other nonprofits determining programs (20:50)
• A story of SACSS’s mission in action (23:00)
• Sudha’s One Good Thing: People need support and compassion. People need to be treated with respect and dignity. (28:30)
• How to support SACSS (29:20)

For more information + episode details visit: weareforgood.com/episode/582.

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Chapters

• 0:53 Community Impact and Inspiration
• 14:48 Community Outreach and Empowerment
• 31:26 Impactful Monthly Giving Club Support

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:53

Hey, I'm John.

Speaker 2: 0:54

And I'm Becky.

Speaker 1: 0:55

And this is the we Are For Good podcast.

Speaker 2: 0:58

Nonprofits are faced with more challenges to accomplish their missions and the growing pressure to do more, raise more and be more for the causes that improve our world.

Speaker 1: 1:07

We're here to learn with you from some of the best in the industry, bringing the most innovative ideas, inspirational stories, all to create an impact uprising.

Speaker 2: 1:16

So welcome to the good community. We're nonprofit professionals, philanthropists, world changers and rabid fans who are striving to bring a little more goodness into the world.

Speaker 1: 1:26

So let's get started. Hey Becky, what's happening?

Speaker 2: 1:30

I'll tell you what's happening. Y'all, community is everything. If you have hung around our podcast for any length of time, you know our eighth core value is that we believe community is everything. If you have hung around our podcast for any length of time, you know our eighth core value is that we believe community is everything. And today, john, we're talking with just an extraordinary founder and executive director, and I just want to say, before I introduce our guests, like what a profound privilege it is for us to be able to share stories like the one you're going to hear today. This is a powerful mission story, coming at a time when we really need each other and we underscore that we need to rise up, be a neighbor and help everyone around us. And it's just a real honor to introduce you to Sudha Acharya. She's the Executive Director of the South Asian Council for Social Services and if you've never heard of this organization, just buckle up, because not only are we learning about the amazing work that they do, but our unicorn, julie, our producer, went and toured this incredible nonprofit and when she came back, she was like y'all, it is so important that nonprofits like this exist. I walk up and the line for the food to get into the food bank is around the block. There is a massive mental health conversation going on in one section and community is awake in New York City, and it's just an honor to be able to bring this one to you. So I want to tell you a little bit about Sudha. She's currently the executive director, after serving as the founder and the president for the first two years, and she has been active in this community for more than 35 years. She is one of these mission angels, and not only that. She's just held various responsibilities and leadership positions in several Indian American community based organizations. She's also represented the All India Women's Conference at the United Nations.

Speaker 2: 3:28

Hello, but y'all? The South Asian Council for Social Services is the largest end-to-end social services, nonprofit or serving the needs of immigrant and underserved communities in the New York State tri-area, and I'm going to break this down for you, because the stats are going to blow your mind. Last year they served over 220,000 immigrant New Yorkers. This year they're on track to serve about 300,000. They come in and they meet the needs of this vibrant, diverse community with free services. They have staff members that speak over 20 languages and they started in 2000 as this beautiful community-based organization in Queens. They've got their 25-year anniversary this year and we are just so honored to be standing just in this space right now with an organization that empowers and enriches these communities to become self-reliant, to be more active in civic engagement and to really assimilate into the mainstream New York City ecosystem. So, suda, we are so excited to get to know you. We are so honored by the wraparound that you provide and the humanity. Welcome to the we Are For Good podcast. We're glad you're here.

Speaker 3: 4:42

Thank you so much Greetings, and it's so wonderful to be with you all. And thank you so much for all those kind words. We need encouragement. We definitely do Right. And South Asian Council for Social Services, or SACS as we call it right, it was started in 2000,. As you know, we started to, you know, address the basic critical needs of the community. So then it's been 24 years now.

Speaker 2: 5:14

Well, happy anniversary. We just want to get to know you before we dive into this mission, because there is such a tenderness and a caring to you. We felt at the instant that you came on screen and came into our house and so, like, take us back. Take us back to little Suda. Talk about how she grew this big heart. Tell us about growing up and what led you to where you are today.

Speaker 3: 5:40

About me. Okay, I grew up in Bangalore, in South India, and my parents, of course, were very, very encouraged us to do anything that we wanted. My mother was a community worker, so community activist and volunteer. So I went around with her when we were little to villages and where they were teaching literacy and health, all those things, health care, those things. So it sort of grew up like that literacy and health, all those things you know, health care, those things, so it sort of, you know, grew up like that. And so I was, of course, part of the All Endeavours Conference as well when I was in India and other community-based organizations did some work as a young woman.

Speaker 3: 6:39

And when I came here, like so it became sort of you know, for the people who are not doing that, well, you see, what happens is everybody thinks that when they think of South Asians, that they're doctors and engineers and scientists, and we know that that's the impression that people have. But we realized that it was not really true. That was a modern minority myth, right? So there were so many people suffering and who didn't know English, who didn't know, when you don't know English, your life is miserable, you can't get a job, you're not understood we can't even speak to your neighbors, that you can't ask for directions. Even you can't speak for directions, even, you know, can't speak on the telephone.

Speaker 3: 7:19

So naturally we said okay when we started the organization. We said okay, we will focus on the basic critical needs of the community. And so what do people need? After all, you know, they need a roof over their heads, they need food to eat, they need health care, they need skills so that they can get a job and get out of poverty. So those are the things we thought and what happened in 2000,. You know what happened after that? We were just doing our bylaws and registering, you know, registering our organization, and disaster struck. It was 9-11. Okay, so we had to jump into action. There was no other organization South Asian organizations for the families of direct victims, for those people who were being persecuted, those people who had lost jobs and were miserable, their mental health needs, so many other needs.

Speaker 1: 8:21

So we started working and you could say that that made us like who we are now not only is your family's legacy just such a part of your story and I think of your parents planting those seeds in your life of community service but now, like looking back at this journey that y'all y'all been on um marked by such a tragedy, like right at the beginning, like that you're here 25 years later, resilient and still with the same caring heart showing up. And to see your eyes.

Speaker 3: 8:53

You know talk about these stories like just feel, so connected to the community that you are pouring into you know, we we worked with 46 families of direct victims there were so many who were who were actually persecuted and hit right Like actually attacked, and all that. So we did and we had we were lucky we had a whole team of volunteer social workers and psychologists and psychiatrists. We did group therapy, individual therapy, trying to get them resources, because in the beginning they didn't have any resources, no Red Cross had come up, all those things had not happened. So it sort of trained us. We can't say, okay, this is what we will do, this is the service we'll give. We'll have to pivot, we have to see what the needs are at that moment. Needs change right and so, for instance, during the recession 2008, 2009, skills became very important. To train them to get a job became very important. So then of COVID, it is something very different again. So we had to sort of change. So that's how we've been working.

Speaker 1: 10:09

Yeah, I mean we relate as fellow entrepreneurs and starting something from scratch and trying to bring it into the world, and starting something from scratch and trying to bring it into the world that your vision is probably similar, but the way that you have manifested it and how you carry it out day to day has grown and changed over the years. Take us back. You wanted to bring these services. What did it look like really starting an organization? We have a lot of people in this community that are change makers, that want to do something, maybe like what you're describing. What were some of the things that went through your mind and what were some of the first steps you took?

Speaker 3: 10:40

There was this organization, Global Organization of People of Indian Origin.

Speaker 2: 10:45

I was part of that.

Speaker 3: 10:46

I was the secretary of the organization, and so we had a day-long conference in Elmert, right? So Queensborough president's chief of staff was the keynote speaker. So Queensborough President's Chief of Staff was the keynote speaker. And we had not only there were one or two other South Asian organizations, and we also asked Met Council, asian Americans for Equality organizations, which already were, you know, not South Asian, but other organizations as well, and so we asked for their input and we had a day-long conversation about what the families needed, what the seniors needed, what the youth needed, so, at the end of which the South Asian Council for Social Services was formed. Yeah, so that's how we started out with a needs assessment survey. We said, okay, we'll base it on what people say that they need, and we had actually interviewed 629 people Actually, I don't think we needed that many, but you know we're very enthusiastic so went ahead and did that, and so, by the time we could come up with a report, 9-11 happened. So the whole world changed, right? So not just us, everybody's life changed.

Speaker 2: 12:08

Yeah, I think what I want to just sit on for a second is all of our missions are important. Everything that each of us do, that we pour into, are important. Everything that each of us do, that we pour into are important. But I just want to say one thank you to you, suda, and to everyone out there who's listening right now who works for one of these nonprofits, because it is a lot to manage.

Speaker 2: 12:31

I think I've shared this on the podcast before, but my great-grandparents came in from Italy in the early 1900s through Ellis Island as immigrants. They spoke no English, they had no idea what they were going to do. They did not know where to go. When they got off the boat, it was literally wandering until they found the Italian borough. And I think about that all the time and they had two small children and I just think about, and I want everyone else to think about, how would you internalize that? And, suda, you are meeting 300,000 of these friends right there at the shores taking their hands, and that is just an amazing thing. And I would love for you to kind of walk through the programs of SACS and tell us about. You know, and I'm sure there's way too many to go into, but give us a high level overview of how you're meeting these needs and what programs you're using to kind of meet these individuals.

Speaker 3: 13:34

You know, thank you. The first thing is health right, Like we focus on physical health as well as mental health, and we do counseling in a non-clinical setting because that's where people are very comfortable. It's not like they need the clinical. There may be some who need it, but most of the time they need a friendly face and a helping hand and somebody who speaks their language to sit and share their issues, so that we not only help them connect to we are navigators for ACA, right when I connect to health care, right, health insurance but also it's very difficult to navigate the system. Even for people who know English, it is hard. So we do help them navigate the system and any problems they may have afterwards we do help them with that. And even long-term care, all those insurance stuff, those insurance stuff and then the counseling right, so we do that. We have four social workers, with the two to a licensed ones, and so on. Then comes, uh, you know, food security. That's very, very important and I I'll tell you how we started. Like, uh, in 2016, a cancer patient came to us.

Speaker 3: 15:00

In 2016, a cancer patient came to us. She was undocumented and had no resources at all and she'd been treated by Memorial Sloan Kettering, and they were the ones who had referred her to us and she spoke only Telugu, one of the South Indian languages, and fortunately for us we had a staff member who spoke the language. So we took her to the food pantry food bank actually and there was nothing she could eat, Right. So she said all I want is some rice and some dal I don't know if you know dal, it's a lentil, Right. So then some vegetables or fruit and some milk or something I can cook myself. We were shocked. She was skin and bones, you know, like, yeah, we didn't have a pantry at the time, so we gave her. We got her some food, we got her, you know, groceries and some money and blankets and stuff and all that. But then it made us think if people get food that they cannot eat, what's the the point? Yeah, so you have to give them something that they can eat, right. So we started in a small way, just for 50 families, giving them the spices that they're used to the wheat flour to make the Indian roti, the bread that they make, that sort of thing. Only 50 families. And then it grew and once people knew we are in Flushing, which is a very diverse neighborhood. So other people came also, the Chinese-Americans came and Hispanics came and everybody started coming and before COVID it had become 350 families.

Speaker 3: 16:40

So now, after COVID, now that it is open, but during COVID we delivered food to families which just could not cope, people who were discharged from hospitals, and you know who had no food and you know if I had no food. So we managed to. You know about nearly 120, 150 we started off with, but you know that delivery has not stopped. But now the numbers have become 1,800 families every week. Okay, Wednesdays and Thursdays, that's what Julie saw the line like going around the thing. So we give them fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, rice. You know, like we have a daisy bag for South Asians. It's a different bag, for non-South Asians that's a different bag. And so we give, you know, protein, pinta beans, red kidney beans, all those things, and oatmeal, right milk and fresh vegetables and fruit and those things, bread sometimes, yeah. So that's what we do, that's food security and it's very, very what can you do? Numbers are increasing Every week. Numbers are increasing. So that's happening and so far, like Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs refers people to us 311, if they call, they refer people to us to come to our food pantry, and hospitals refer people to us. Council members refer people to us. Other organizations refer people to us to come to our food pantry, and hospitals refer people to us. Council members refer people to us. Other organizations refer people to us. So that is continuing. And delivery of groceries, that's not going to count down. If one person says, okay, I no longer need it, we feel happy that they're okay. But somebody else comes and so that's, you know it's remained at 120, 125 families. Yeah, that is food security.

Speaker 3: 18:45

The next thing is senior center. We run a senior center. Seniors are very isolated here, you know, like sometimes they're alone and they need peer engagement and it's become, because we speak the language also, it's become very comfortable for them. They come here and Tuesdays and Thursdays we have a senior center and they have yoga classes, they have salsa. They even do whatever they can Bollywood dancing they do and of course there are discussions and you know people come and speak to them about health and nutrition and safety and those things.

Speaker 3: 19:26

And the fourth one that was very important to us is workforce development. Ok, so I think we need to give them the skills so that they can find a job. English classes have always been there that's the most important thing, right for them to speak the language. And computer classes are there. Last year we started Stitch with Sacks, right, a tailoring class for women who cannot work outside right like for some reason or the other, and this is only for women and cannot work outside right Like for some reason or the other. And this is only for women and underserved women. So we teach tailoring at you know, 10 at a time, 10 weeks course, right. So when they learn all the you know alterations, pants and the sari blouses and salwar kameezes and things like that, the little dresses for children and all that. And when they graduate, we give them the, present them with the sewing machine that they were working with so they can start. They can start business from home. Now we're sending business their way, Right, Like, so they can start business from home. Now we're sending business their way so they can earn. So that's the workforce development.

Speaker 3: 20:47

There are other things, Of course. We do civic engagement, making sure that people vote and people register and vote, and all that. And then we have a legal clinic on Tuesdays for people. All our services are free, of course. And during the summer we have a youth leadership program. So those are all.

Speaker 1: 21:12

Goodness, it's beautiful and just the joy that comes through as you talk about this. It's your care for this community is so evident, and I love exploring this. Because something I want to ask you is what advice you know, do you really have for nonprofit leaders who are like you that love this community, want to serve this community, but those needs continue to change. Like how do you not just say yes to everything but find the right yeses to say, oh, there is something here. We should put together this food program? What were some of those decision-making steps look like for you?

Speaker 3: 21:45

One thing that's very important is give you know as many services as possible under one roof, right, because you know even MetroCards are very, very expensive. Now these are people who are not you know, who don't have the money right. So you serve as many needs as possible under one roof, then they don't have to go. You don't have to say, okay, we do healthcare, but for something else you go to somewhere else.

Speaker 1: 22:10

Eight blocks away that way. Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 3: 22:13

I think that that is very important and languages are very important. As Vicky mentioned, we have 20 languages, 12 of them South Asians. What we saw was you have to have the language that the people who come to you speak. Right Now we have a lot of Chinese, the Chinese Americans so we hired a full-time Mandarin Cantonese speaker, so we have a full-time one, and we hired a Mexican American who speaks Spanish, so that's become easier to serve, and we have somebody who speaks Tagalog and we have someone who speaks Haitian Creole and French Creole, and so they have to trust you with very confidential details, right? So they need to trust you if you know the culture, if you know the language. I think that is the most important thing.

Speaker 2: 23:11

I just think what you're doing is so beautiful. The way that you are meeting people, you know where they're at, with a level of humanity and civility, and there's such care in it. Just the community in it is so fantastic and I just want to thank you for that. This is a 25-year legacy that you are really creating here, suda, and I want to know, when you think about the future of SACS, what kind of legacy do you hope to leave and what does that look like for the next generation of leaders that's going to come into your organization? Talk to us about that.

Speaker 3: 23:56

Now, I think it's a great thing that younger people right, when they talk about younger people in their 30s and early 40s and all who've sort of settled right, they're getting interested in, which is a wonderful thing. They are the future Okay, we want them to be part of it. I just wanted to tell you just a couple of more things on this story. When we started the senior center and then they were doing yoga and all that some of the Muslim women from the mosque nearby we're surrounded by, uh, you know, faith-based centers. We have two or three temples and mosque gurdwara that's a sick temple churches and you know like. So we have all these around us, so, which is, which is very good. You know, people come there and they come here. So they said we want to be very interested in yoga, right, but we don't want to do it in front of men. Ok, so we started Wednesdays for women. Ok, that day it is only women upstairs and they do yoga. They do that's the one that Julie was talking about. They discuss mental health, they discuss health and nutrition and all that. It's a very vibrant group. So we started that.

Speaker 3: 25:28

You know referred a client to us. This is a young man right from Bangladesh, 28 years old, and his wife was. They both are undocumented and his wife was going to have a baby. They went to the hospital and he doesn't speak a single word of English and there was a lot of back and forth when she was in the delivery room and suddenly they came and told him that she passed away and there is a baby girl. Okay, so he had no idea what had happened, like how he couldn't get answers even because he could not speak the language. And then when, uh, what? What does he do with the baby? You know, like, in a sense, like she worked in a grocery store on Hillside Avenue and her friend who worked there left her job and started taking care of the baby. So what we, you know.

Speaker 3: 26:30

So they came and by that time the baby was a few weeks old. So what we could do is to get them. Of course, get all the stuff like diapers, baby formula, all those things. We could get them. And then, through another anonymous donor, we could get them. His rent, half the rent is being taken care of for the year. Through another anonymous donor, we could get them. His rent, half the rent is being taken care of for the year and we could get him groceries.

Speaker 3: 27:02

And then you know, because once you know the system, now we've made sure that the child care is. You know, we got child care grant from the city, so the woman who is taking care of the child, right, she gets paid because she left her job and she's taking care of the baby. So now they came just two weeks ago. The baby is about three months old now. She brought the baby, the woman who takes care of it. The friend is about three months old Now. She brought the baby, the woman who takes care of it. The friend also came, her husband and their little boy and all that. It's nice to see. Of course it's a big tragedy, but at least we could do something. He's working because baby's taken care of. These are some of the people. That's only one story.

Speaker 3: 27:53

I was like that's one out of 300,000, one story.

Speaker 1: 27:59

And to me it's like that is you were describing what community is. Like, you know, everybody doing what they can to help out. You know like it's a village pulling together, giving our best, giving what we can and making it work for everybody. So what a beautiful, beautiful mission that you have. Thank you so much for kind of giving us lens into it.

Speaker 2: 28:20

I just think y'all, we need each other and we need each other to help each other. And if you're feeling down, go do something for somebody. Go buy some diapers for a nonprofit organization that is doing the hard work on the front lines, drop some rice and some food off at a food bank, like. I just think that there is something that we can all do, every single one of us, to be a neighbor to somebody else, to have community, and I just think this story has been such a beautiful reminder of that to us, suda. And as we're winding down, we like to ask all of our guests for a one good thing. It's our way to give you the mic to say what's a piece of advice or a quote or a mantra that you live by, that you'd like to share with our listening community. That's really resonated with you in your life never one good thing.

Speaker 3: 29:22

I think people need support and, you know, compassion, and more, more than that. They need to be treated with respect and dignity. So anyone can be in that position. So, unfortunately, they are in that position of asking for help. I think we need to realize that and treat them with dignity. That's what I would say and, of course, support. Support anyone who is in need, definitely, and support us right. Support SACS.

Speaker 1: 30:00

I mean, what a beautiful way to wrap up this conversation and we wanted to ask you specifically you know, what are some of the needs of SACS, like how can listeners connect with your organization, and what are some specific needs that you are looking for you know, as the year closes out, of course, financial support is very, very important, and it's very important for an organization to be sustainable, right and looking forward, especially as we are reaching our 25th anniversary on 21st of May 2025, right, 25 and 25, okay.

Speaker 3: 30:37

So I think we need to look ahead and make sure that the organization is there to support people and be there for people, and not that these needs will go away, unfortunately. So we can see that, and there are. For instance, new Jersey wants us to start a branch. Wow, there you go, and so at some point it will become a tri-state one, I think, and this is the way we are looking ahead. But let's make the organization sustainable, like fund us right, like support us and say you know, wish us well, okay, like, so that we can go ahead and do that and yeah, so, beautiful.

Speaker 2: 31:27

I'm going to be direct and I'm going to say if you are looking for a sustainable way to join a monthly giving club, please join this incredible organization. You can go to their website it's S-A-C-S-S-N-Yorg, and you can give monthly. And let me give you some reasons why Because this incredible organization has served more than a million immigrants in their lifetime. They have served over 250,000 community members in 2023. They have distributed 4 million pounds of groceries and home delivered almost 7,000 grocery bags to chronically ill or disabled homebound individuals. So we could go on and on with these stories. But the point is please help in any way you can. And if you don't help this one, help one in your community, because this is a ripple, y'all. When we start to pour into each other, the ripple will never see it, and it's okay and it's wonderful. Let's all do something kind today, inspired by our good friend Suda. Suda, thank you for coming.

Speaker 3: 32:38

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2: 32:39

Thank you for this beautiful mission. Keep going, take care of yourself and, yeah, everybody, let's go do something good.

Speaker 1: 32:47

So grateful, my friend. Thank you.