Saving Boyle Heights Residents Over $6,000! Free Tax Prep at Proyecto Pastoral, By Marco Ramirez, Tax Preparation Consultant

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April 15th turned out to be anything but an ordinary day at Proyecto Pastoral---it marked the end of the tax season, and this year, staff and residents came together in the final weeks before the tax deadline to offer the community a service that is often overlooked---free tax preparation.
It’s a well-known fact that Boyle Heights has one of the largest concentrations of Latinos in Los Angeles County. Equally important is the fact that the area is also known for the lack of access to certain financial services. Instead of banks, many residents frequent check cashers and payday lenders, with over $2 million in fees being drained out of Boyle Heights on payday lending fees alone. At this time of the year, many residents patronize expensive tax prepares who charge hundreds of dollars for simple returns. Proyecto Pastoral wanted to get involved this year... Read More

Holy Thursday Vigil By Fatima Djelmane, Development Director

I got home this morning around 8:00am from my very first overnight vigil. I lay in bed exhausted but happy and reflecting on an amazing night. As Lucio rushed to get off to work he asked, “so, how was it?” I paused for a moment trying to capture everything that went through my mind and heart last night. Like a kid who had just come back from her first trip to Disneyland, I went into an “and then” speech about all of the beautiful things I had experienced. After my little speech, Lucio replied, “that’s awesome…you should write about it.” So here it goes… Read More

Is money tight this year? You can still support Proyecto Pastoral by participating in our "Spring Cleaning for Good" Campaign!

Proyecto Pastoral is launching our first annual “Spring Cleaning for Good” Campaign. All of our programs are in direr need of some very basic items. You can do what you can this year by gathering much needed items off our wish list. Read More...