SEATTLE — From a distance, it looks like an office building. But for thousands of local residents, the headquarters of ACRS is a second home.
"ACRS stands for Asian Counseling and Referral Service. And although it says counseling and referral service, it's a lot more than that," said Michael Byun, Executive Director of ACRS. "Our services, as much as we were rooted and founded by the Asian community, are welcoming all parts of our community to our organization."
And that welcoming feeling begins as soon as you walk in.
"We've become a movement, serving in 40 different languages, providing services and 30,000 people reached each year," said Byun. "We want to create this environment for them where they're supported. They're welcome. And then they're also connected back to their culture and see the value of being connected back to their culture, not only to not only being American, but also back to their native roots. If you walk down the hallway, you'll see activities and various rooms, and classes going, you go to our gymnasium and you see our older adults dancing to music. It's just a really wonderful and warm."
ACRS continues to adapt to the community’s needs.
"One of the things that we are realizing is our community as Asians are really diverse," Byun said. "They're not just immigrants and refugees, but we also have to recognize and understand that those who are LGBTQ+ and Asian, those who are transracial adoptees and Asian, those who are a mixed background, not only Asian but of other backgrounds, have a unique set of needs that we are also welcoming to support."
Support is also what ACRS gets from their long-time partner, Providence Swedish.
"Swedish Provenance is an amazing partner. Not only have they been so generous financially, but their people are so deeply engaged in the work of our organization," Byun said.
"We're really very intentional about our goals of promoting equity, improving access to care and building healthy connections and relationships,” said Pinky Herrera, Swedish's Program Manager. "So partnerships with organizations like ACRS is very important ensuring that we keep our community and people healthy."
They've been supporting the community for 50 years. But as long as there's a need, ACRS will continue to serve.
"We're empowering communities to take ownership and control of their lives," Byun said.
This Story is Sponsored by Providence Swedish