Time of Growth and Transitions – Message from our Executive Director

  I look back and remember that for years we did not have a consistent space to meet at or a space of our own. Thanks to everyone’s hard work and support we now have our own office. We quickly worked to make the office feel like a second home. I still remember the meetings and conversations we had at the office after the 2016 elections. Throughout the year, we have navigated through several challenges including the 2016 elections and the temporary termination of DACA, we have also celebrated many victories, held healing circles, had meetings, and shared meals as a team in our new home. As Resilience O.C., we have continued to operate from a place of love for our communities with an understanding that victory is never guaranteed and that we have always faced incredible odds, odds that at times have paralyzed loved ones around us. That is why we continuously remind each other that we are the answer to the prayers of our ancestors, and that those prayers are with us, because those prayers are eternal. As such, we understand that our mission is to wholeheartedly and consistently generate positive possibilities from a place of love and not from a place of fear, in the face of a seemingly chaotic system in which the odds have always been against us. Through this mindset and heartset, collectively, we have accomplished things that many people told us were not possible. And we will continue to… We continue to encourage the newer generations, which will one day transition into our positions, not to forget what was passed down by those who came together and dared to effectively challenge the school-to-prison-to-deportation pipeline in Orange County and in the process became a strong local organization with statewide influence and national impact. In the face of all of the violence around us, we dare to envision a transformative movement and are committed to continue striving to address and transform cycles of violence within ourselves, within our communities, and within systems, while nurturing resiliency among young people and combating the local and national systems of oppression in the Age of Trump. Throughout the years, I have had the distinct pleasure to serve as Director of RAIZ, as Director of Santa Ana Boys and Men of Color (SABMoC), and as Executive Director of Resilience O.C. I am currently finishing up my Master of Legal and Forensic Psychology program at UCI and applying to a certification program in school psychology at Cal State Long Beach. The time has come for me to pass on the torch to the next generation and in this new phase in my life and journey, serve as a support system for those that come after me. That is why I want to personally thank all of the youth, all of the community members, supporters and funders for your continued support. Sincerely,

Abraham Medina

Executive Director of Resilience OC

  About the Author Abraham Medina serves as the Executive Director of Resilience Orange County and is the founding Executive Director of the organizations. He has previously served as the Director of RAIZ and Santa Ana Boys and Men of Color and began his organizing journey in high school when he helped to organize the 2006 school walkouts that happened in opposition of anti-immigrant legislation that had been gaining traction nationally.