International Rescue Committee

Amazing place to volunteer; great staff and meaningful work!
The volunteer process can seem tedious but stick with it because it’ll be worth it (it’s set that way to protect their clients and to weed out the less committed). The volunteer coordinator (shout out to Alondra) was friendly, professional, punctual with responses, maintained constant communication and stayed engaged throughout the whole process.
The entire staff (special shout out to Christian and Taylor) are absolutely welcoming, friendly, knowledgable and great at mentoring the newbies.
In response to one of the concerns about IRC requiring refugees to have a sponsor, I would say that it is essential to have support to survive in the US, especially in Los Angeles where cost of living is high. It’s hard alone as a native Angeleno to be financially independent, but try when you’re new to a country and haven’t mastered English. Having a sponsor would increase the chances of successfully resettling here. But anyways, The organization itself is quite amazing; their high appraisal ratings from independent philanthropy watchdogs speak for themselves.
IRC could always use more volunteers so I highly recommend giving your time and service here.

If you ever wanted to volunteer or get involved with this organization, DON’T. They are so disorganized and it is impossible to get a hold of anyone there. I drove all the way to Glendale for a volunteer orientation, obtained letters of reference, filled out all the paperwork, then never got a response. The whole process was a total waste of time.
PLUS I learned that they only take «refugees» who have a sponsor in Los Angeles. Someone in a refugee camp who has lost all their family will be completely denied by the IRC.