Bay Area Resource for Newcomers (BRFN)

Bay Area Resource for Newcomers (BRFN), formerly Burma Refugee Families and Newcomers, is a 501c3 Ethnic Community-Based Organization (ECBO) that works to empower all refugees, immigrants, asylees, and asylum seekers. Founded in 2010 by newcomers from Burma, BRFN has since burgeoned to a community organization that serves all newcomers in need, In recent years, BRFN has prioritized supporting Afghan, Eritrean, and Ethiopian communities, due to increased arrivals and acute needs. Since 2021, BRFN staff have been able to serve over 1,500 newcomers, including +700 Afghans and +350 Eritreans and Ethiopians in the East Bay. BRFN also serves clients from many other countries, including Guatemala, Burma, Haiti, Iraq, Iran, Ukraine, and more.

BRFN provides culturally and linguistically appropriate social support services, such as: case management, language training, social welfare, education, physical and mental healthcare, employment referrals, housing referrals, and cultural bridging and preservation. BRFN also runs native language educational workshops on topics such as: managing finances, understanding the educational system, intimate partner violence prevention, raising children in the US, women’s reproductive issues, and much more. Our highly trained, compassionate, and trauma-informed staff come from lived experience and speak the languages of the Afghan, Eritrean, and Ethiopian communities we mainly serve. Our staff speak Dari, Pashto, Farsi, Urdu, Hindi, Tigrinya, and Amharic.

BRFN works in partnership with the Alameda County Social Services Administration and the State of California’s Department of Social Services, as well as local community organizations with the goal of helping newcomers achieve self-sufficiency and civic engagement in the community. Many new arrivals have been resettled by local official refugee resettlement agencies. Those agencies mainly serve refugees during the first 90 days after arrival and then are no longer able to serve. At BRFN, we are considered a post-resettlement agency, and we therefore work without this time limit. Many newcomers rely on BRFN staff for support long after arrival. Recognized for its impact with awards like the Community Impact Award and Ernest M. Pon Memorial Award, BRFN continues to empower refugees and immigrants through culturally tailored services and a dedicated team committed to fostering inclusion and resilience.