UPLIFT Charity - Anaheim, California

Jessica R.

This organization changed my life and truly helped me. I was homeless with my kids and this organization helped me with becoming stable again.

Maria S.

My respects to the staff members of Uplift , I'm thankful to this organization for helping me become self sufficient. They were very honest and straight forward with me from day one. I was explained why it's important to find a job and not rely on Gov assistance as that money is only for emergency help. My case manager was caring and housing lady found me a home within a week upon my arrival. They helped me with English classes and now I am working. Thank you to this uplift organization.

mohamed A. K.

Thank you Uplift and big thank you Mr Ouwais.
It was 10 years ago when I needed help and needed help was fast and prompt by Uplift

Sara A.

This was a concerning incident that occurred during my visit to the Uplift office in Tustin on December 4, accompanied by an individual I am assisting.

Upon meeting with Mr. Hassan Sadeq, our primary objective was to request the remaining funds for a family in need, specifically so they could pay the remainder of their rent payment. Unfortunately, our encounter with Mr. Hassan was unprofessional and demeaning.
Mr. Hassan’s first order of service was to tell us how tired he was and therefore needed to get his coffee first prior to listening to our concerns. He wasted our time while getting coffee, and then half-heartedly listened to our request.

To our surprise, Mr. Hassan inappropriately inquired about the recipient's Cash Aid amount, a question we deemed intrusive. His subsequent comment, "…and you didn’t have $540 to pay your rent?" was both rude and disrespectful and out of line.

Furthermore, Mr. Hassan insisted on checking with the Finance Department to confirm eligibility for aid, despite the family meeting the criteria and having over $1,900 remaining funds available to be disbursed. He even remarked, "this is zakat money you're receiving," implying an expectation of gratitude, which, while appreciated, should not excuse his disrespectful behavior. What is the purpose of demeaning people for receiving aid? Isn’t that what institutions such as Uplift were created for?

I confronted Mr. Hassan about his condescending and hostile demeanor, emphasizing that Uplift should uplift rather than degrade those seeking assistance. In response, Mr. Hassan abruptly left for the day without completing our request, stating he was too upset to continue working.

Subsequently, as we were leaving, Ms. Nora Sweet approached us asking us what happened. Instead of addressing our concerns and showing empathy, which her colleague failed to show us, she threatened to call the police if I did not calm down. Again, the response was unwarranted and unprofessional, especially considering the sensitive nature of the situation.

It is disheartening to witness such behavior from individuals representing an organization that aims to assist those in need. I urge the responsible parties to evaluate the conduct of all Uplift employees and consider implementing customer service training, which is clearly absent in their dealings with others. Above all, fostering empathy and understanding should be prioritized to ensure a more compassionate approach when dealing with individuals facing challenges.

I believe addressing these issues will contribute to a more positive and supportive environment for those seeking assistance.

May D.

They try to demean people and ask them questions they should not ask. Such as< do you get cash assistance from gov. If so why dont you use it to pay your rent> that said so they dont pay the full amount that the client is entiteled to. That
That is conning innocent

Abdul M.

Very poor services, there is no response from any of the caseworkers or their supervisors.

Kindly do not donate to this organization, they are not helping out the people. There is no transparency. Noura and Zina have unprofessional attitude, they can’t do their job, and we can’t complain about them.

Geni &. R. G.

They helped me pay for my motel when I was homeless a couple years ago and also some gas money. The problem was the motel they choose for me was roach infested and very bad but Alhamdulilah they paid for me to be off the street. This was after one of the employees older man who worked there made me cry by saying I didn’t qualify for assistance because I got welfare from the government. He made me meet him only to humiliate me and make me cry. I called a couple sisters and told them my experience so they called one of the directors and it’s then that they paid for my motel and helped with gas money. I think though at the time I applied for zakat I was in a domestic violence shelter. If a single mom of 5 who lives in a domestic violence shelter doesn’t qualify in the eyes of one of their employees and makes her cry like what happen I don’t know who does . This was years ago . May Allah swt bless them for helping me with what they did, but the humiliation of being treated like that hurt. Also him always bringing up how I had welfare money to some how make it seem I shouldn’t be asking.

Somayeh A.

they dont offer any services for immigrants but in social media says we offer lots of service for immigrants.