Felicidades to NAHREP Temecula Valley! NAHREP’s Advocacy Chapter of the Year

Celebrating NAHREP familia, cultura, politics, and grassroots action

March, 2023

Familia, tenemos buenas noticias: the Temecula Valley chapter has been awarded Advocacy Chapter of the Year! We are amazed by Temecula Valley’s commitment and passion for advancing NAHREP’s mission. This chapter has truly demonstrated passion, commitment, and expertise when advocating for Latino homeownership.

The Advocacy Chapter of the Year Award recognizes the chapter that stood out amongst its peers, going above and beyond the call to action, and creating real change within their communities. The NAHREP Temecula Valley chapter has done just that. Not only did Temecula Valley meet and surpass all of its advocacy goals for 2022, but they did so with true passion.

Some highlights from NAHREP Temecula Valley’s 2022 year:

• NAC Sign Ups and Campaign Participation: When it comes to getting their members engaged, NAHREP Temecula Valley takes the cake. The chapter has spread the word about the NAC at all of their chapter events and made dozens of phone calls for personalized outreach. To date, Temecula Valley has signed up 240 people to join the NAC, and last year alone, encouraged 174 people to take action on our campaigns. That’s huge!
• Attending City Council Meetings: In 2022, the Temecula Valley chapter attended more than two dozen city council meetings, many planning commission meetings, and other public hearings within their local community. Not only did they attend these meetings but they spoke at them, shared NAHREP’s mission and positioned themselves as housing leaders within their community.
• Building Relationships with Elected Officials: The chapter has excelled at building relationships with local elected officials, including their Mayor, City Council Members, State Assembly Members, and other elected and appointed officials. By reaching out to coordinate meetings at their office, joining them for coffee or lunch, and inviting them to speak at chapter events, the chapter has developed deep and lasting relationships with these leaders.
• Joining Housing Task Forces and Coalitions: Because of their leadership within the community, the Temecula Valley chapter was invited by their Mayor to form an affordable housing coalition along with other top housing organizations in their city to brainstorm obstacles to housing opportunities and identify possible solutions at the state and local level.

The accomplishments of the Temecula Valley chapter are too many to list. Beyond the above, they attended and hosted meet and greets, created educational videos on social media, incorporated public policy into each of their chapter events, and so much more. They never turned down an invitation to engage with NAHREP national, whether that be on a virtual meeting or call, attending in-person events and conferences, leading Capitol Hill Visits, and reading and sharing NAHREP blogs and newsletters.

Pero wait, hay mas! NAHREP would be remiss if we didn’t give a special congratulations to Clara Asimakopoulous, NAHREP Temecula Valley’s Government Affairs Director. As a leader within her community, Clara has been encouraged to run for office herself. Isn’t that amazing? But as we all know, effective policy work can’t be done alone. The entire NAHREP Temecula Valley board and Government Affairs Committee have embodied our NAHREP 10 principles, especially to be politically savvy, and have done an amazing job spreading the message about why public policy matters. Temecula Valley trailblazed advocacy last year and their commitment to advocacy does not go unnoticed. Congratulations NAHREP Temecula Valley!