2025 Year in Review
The challenges of 2025 were never lost on us. But that didn’t stop us at all! We’re proud of all we accomplished this year:
CITIZENSHIP PROGRAM
Supported 64 applicants across 7 Citizenship Workshops in reaching their citizenship goals (35 officially filed!)!
Integrated our Citizenship work into Seeding AFIRE
Grew the volunteer base
Saw emerging leadership among volunteers
Integrated volunteers into our tabling opportunities at local events
Developed additional security plans under the current administration
ORGANIZING PROGRAM
Base-building - Met hundreds of Filipinx/a/o folks through our base-building events and connected them to issues that impact our community
Mabuhay! Meeting Winter and Summer
Tagalog 101 Spring 2025
Baklaan 2025 Movie Night
Seeding AFIRE community education
2-Part Series: Disinformation, Media, and Palestinian Solidarity
Domestic Worker Leadership & Issues Impacting Domestic Workers
2-Part Series: Connecting Immigration, Labor, and Citizenship
Into the Weeds: Understanding Budget with Ald. Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez and Sen. Graciela Guzman
Tabled at Midwest Filipino-American Summit, Filipino Mutual Aid Concert, Hasik Film Screening, Piyesta Pinoy, Oakton Night Market, Paskuhan 3.0
Coalition-Building & Solidarity Events
ICIRR 2025 Membership Summit
PAVE 2025 Agenda Launch Event
NDWA 2025 National Assembly - a small contingent of 5 went to D.C. to connect more deeply with the domestic worker movement
Asian American Action Day 2025 - dozens of our members connected to elected officials at the capitol in Springfield
May Day Solidarity 2025 - AFIRE joined hundreds of people concerned about attacks on our neighbors and loved ones
ICIRR & PAVE Legislative Agenda Platforms
IL Divestment Network & ISBI Protests
Leadership-Building
Piloted Actualizing Community Cohort - graduated 5 leaders!
Initiated Organizing Komité - onboarded 10 leaders!
ORGANIZATIONAL
Entered the U.S. Congressional Record through IL State Representative Delia Ramirez (District 3) for our work supporting community members on their citizenship journey
Grew the volunteer base
Hosted volunteer info session in July
Streamlined volunteer welcome and onboarding processes
Created volunteer support for AFIRE database
Integrated volunteers into our tabling opportunities at local events
Built donor infrastructure for ongoing relationships
Held stakeholder conversations to support our visioning process
DEVELOPMENT
Supported our volunteer and donor engagement with streamlined practices and infrastructure
Engaged nearly twenty community stakeholders to support our visioning process
Introduced more than 2600 Instagram and 2400 Facebook followers to our work through our Spring, Blossom, Action! and YES to AFIRE! fundraising campaigns
Engaged community partners in our work:
Chi-Ibigan: A Night For the Barkada (AFIRE a beneficiary)
Piyesta Sa Pamayanan (AFIRE event)
Ushered in new funding partners: Abelard Foundation and NQAPIA
