SIPA’s services essential to thriving community with new wellness center opening this Spring

PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELLNESS INITIATIVES SERVE OVER 400 COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN HISTORIC FILIPINOTOWN

Los Angeles, CA - February 7, 2024 - Filipino American nonprofit organization Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) supported over 2400 community members in Historic Filipinotown (HiFi) through their youth, wellness, and mental health services in 2023 — serving over 400 individuals through their health and wellness services alone. SIPA will unveil a new wellness center in the spring and expand their programming in LA County throughout 2024.  

“The health and well-being of residents of Historic Filipinotown will always be important to SIPA. Our ability to support our community in improving health outcomes increases greatly with the opening of our second center—the HiFi Well-Being Center. Having a presence at both ends of Historic Filipinotown signals to residents that we are here for them and that we’re prepared to support them however we can.” — DR. CHRISTIAN LISING, SIPA BOARD PRESIDENT

2024: Growing Community Impact

SIPA’s mission is intergenerational and inclusive, enriching and empowering Pilipino Americans and others by providing health and human services, community economic development, arts and culture, and a place where people of all backgrounds come together to strengthen the community.

Expanding upon their mission in Historic Filipinotown and LA County, SIPA is opening a new wellness center in the spring. SIPA's HiFi Well-Being Center will open as part of Lucena on Court, a 45-unit family affordable housing development by Meta Housing and Foundation for Affordable Housing, located at 1921 W Court St. in Historic Filipinotown. SIPA will provide resident services and will offer services to the greater community through the HiFi Well-Being Center. These include mental health programs, wellness offerings, a community clinic, food distribution and referrals for other health and basic needs.

Further amplifying their impact, SIPA will expand their activations with community partners including:

2023: Resourcing Our Communities 

In 2023, SIPA’s programming reached several different groups within HiFi:

Youth programming

  • After School Program and Filipino Summer Program

  • Hockey clinics with the LA Kings and other sports

  • Cultural programming including modern and traditional filipino dance, and Eskwela Kultura in partnership with FilAm Arts, made possible in part by the California Arts Council.

  • Youth Leadership Internship and AAPI Solidarity Conference to address anti-Asian violence

  • Mental health programs Walang Hiya: Without Shame

  • Number of youth served: 1703 individuals 

“Public health is so important because it is the basis for helping community members, ensuring that they’re healthy and have the resources that they need. Public health ensures quality of life and helps bring together community members to break down health disparities.” — JAMIE MICHELLE PRUDENCIO, SIPA’S HEALTH AND WELLNESS PROGRAM MANAGER.

Health and Wellness Department debuts

  • Offered life skills workshops and food distribution events to address community needs in realm of public health 

  • Number of clients served 

    • Food distribution: 315 families

    • Case navigation and referrals: 460 individuals

    • Health education: 14 workshops

    • Outreach: 1,335 individuals 

Mental Health Department 

  • Provided free counseling to youth families LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC community members all year 

  • Team of licensed therapists provided specialized sessions to dismantle cultural stigmas surrounding mental health

  • Provided in-language services for Tagalog, Spanish, and Chinese speakers

  • Number of clients served: 295 individuals

Follow SIPA on Instagram and Facebook for more information on the HiFi Well-Being Center’s grand opening and other events. Learn more about SIPA at sipacares.org.

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About Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA): SIPA enriches and empowers generations of Pilipino Americans and others by providing health and human services, community economic development, arts and culture, and a place where people of all backgrounds come together to strengthen the community.

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HiFi Parol Parade and Holiday Traditions at SIPA