Program Name
SENIOR & SURVIVOR SERVICES
SURVIVOR SERVICES
The Community Against Domestic Violence (CADV) Program provides direct services, including case management and legal representation (uncontested divorces and protection orders), to immigrant victims of domestic violence. The CADV team also conducts outreach and education to the community and local service providers.
The Victims of Exploitation and Trafficking Assistance (VETA) Program provides direct services including legal representation to immigrant victims of human trafficking. The VETA team also conducts outreach to the community, service providers and law enforcement to increase awareness of human trafficking and victim identification.
SENIOR SERVICES
BPSOS is committed to providing a full range of services to Vietnamese elders and their families who currently face numerous barriers to information and services through case management, information & referral services, and supporting and organizing senior groups.
Most Vietnamese seniors are also “re-education camp” survivors who have become residents under the US Humanitarian Operation program. BPSOS uses an evidence-based, peer support model developed for the past five years, Senior and Trauma survivors Empowerment program (STEP), to organize self-help groups and to provide assistance in obtaining culturally sensitive counseling, as well as U.S. citizenship.
The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) program partners with the different host agencies in order to hire Vietnamese senior volunteers to help with BPSOS office activities. Seniors learn job skills and participate in BPSOS' daily activities. The host agencies provide all administrative support to maintain payroll records for the volunteers so they can receive a stipend.
A WOMAN RESCUED BY BOAT PEOPLE SOS SAILS BACK TO SAVE OTHERS: VU THANH THUY
Vu Thanh Thuy , her family and their fellow boat persons were rescued by a UN ship after weeks of repeated assaults by pirates in the Gulf of Thailand. Ever since, she was inspired to empower other Vietnamese refugees by returning to the South China Sea.
Vu Thanh Thuy and her husband Duong Phuc, who also was a boat person, worked actively with Boat People S.O.S. to organize mercy missions that rescued over 3,000 boat persons.
Vu Thanh Thuy and Duong Phuc have become internationally recognized and have won many awards for their accomplishments as journalists, activists, and leaders. Vu Thanh Thuy’s life story and activism have been featured in national media such as Time, USA Today, The New York Times, ABC, and CNN.
In 2011, Vu Thanh Thuy, along with 19 other founders of BPSOS, were awarded with the Community Legacy Award for their outstanding services and contributions toward the organization's mission at the 30 year anniversary gala dinner in Washington, D.C. Without Thuy's personal sacrifice, solid determination, long term dedication an commitment, the organization would not be where it is today.
