Healing, Hope & Resilience: Support PACS

Healing, Hope and Resilience: Supporting PACS and Our Cambodian Community

For many Cambodian families, the effects of war, genocide, displacement, and trauma do not end when the violence ends. The experiences of one generation can continue to affect families for decades. Healing requires more than access to mental health services. It requires trust, cultural understanding, language access, and a community that understands where people have come from.

Pacific Asian Counseling Services (PACS) has been serving underserved Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in Los Angeles County for more than four decades. Our mission is to provide culturally responsive and linguistically appropriate mental health and social services to individuals and families who too often face barriers to care.

One of the most powerful examples of this work is Mrs. “Nut” Sar.

Nut Sar is a survivor of the Cambodian genocide whose journey reflects the extraordinary resilience of so many Cambodian Americans. Like many survivors, she carried experiences of loss and trauma while building a new life in the United States. Through her connection with PACS and our Integrated Network for Cambodians (INC) program, she found a place where her experiences, culture, language, and traditions were understood and respected.

Nut Sar’s story is not simply a story about surviving the past. It is a story about healing, community, and finding hope.

Her experience was recognized through the ACHSA Inspiration Award, honoring the impact of her story and her connection to culturally responsive community-based care. Her voice reminds us why programs like INC matter.

At PACS, we believe that mental health care should meet people where they are. For Cambodian community members, that can mean receiving services in their own language, working with staff who understand Cambodian culture and history, and having access to approaches that recognize the importance of family, spirituality, community, and cultural traditions.

The INC program takes a holistic approach to supporting Cambodian individuals and families. Alongside professional mental health services, the program incorporates culturally meaningful activities and traditional practices that can help strengthen connections to community and culture.

This work is especially important for people who may never have felt comfortable seeking traditional mental health services. A person who has spent decades carrying trauma may be much more willing to seek help when that help comes from people who understand their language, culture, history, and lived experience.

Your donation helps make that possible.

A gift to PACS can help us continue providing culturally responsive mental health care and supportive services to Cambodian families and other underserved communities throughout Long Beach and Los Angeles County.