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James Mai Children’s Foundation

@jamesmaifoundation

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💛 Empowering women, children & families in need
🤝 501(c)(3) nonprofit | Partnering with the Bristol & Bates Foundation

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I made a promise as a young, hungry child, I’m grateful to be able to deliver on it now.

Bristol & Bates/James Mai Foundation OC Food Box Program
2025 Program Statistics 📈

Guided by a mission to uplift, serve, and strengthen our community, this program delivered more than food we delivered care, stability, and dignity. No spotlight, no fanfare, just service.

🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 15,000+ families served across 30+ Orange County cities.
From Irvine to Santa Ana, Anaheim to San Clemente, and beyond, we delivered directly to homes, workplaces, schools, community hubs, and trusted partners.

That’s 290 families every week, 1,250 every month, equal to feeding an entire neighborhood, week after week, all year long.

What moves me most is remembering who we served: restaurant and service workers stretched to their limits, educators giving more than they ever received, families quietly trying to hold it together, seniors struggling in isolation, veterans, students juggling far too much, and neighbors facing homelessness. Many we reached would never ask for help, yet quietly carry the weight of rising costs, health issues, or hardship. Through community leaders, food banks, schools, churches, and neighborhood partners, support was delivered with privacy, dignity, and care, to the unseen, the hardworking, and the resilient 👍🏼

This was 100% community-powered 💪🏼 3,500+ volunteer hours, in many cases, carried forward by the very people we once served… who then turned around, joined us, and began serving others.

To every volunteer, partner, food bank, farm, manufacturer, restaurant, church, and community connector, thank you. This was love in motion, without agenda or recognition.

One food box feeds a family, a community feeding each other changes generations. In 2025, we delivered more than meals, we delivered hope, dignity, and the message that no one stands alone.

#OCFoodBox #CommunityFirst #Volunteer #OrangeCounty #FeedFamilies #ServiceOverSelf #BristolAndBatesFoundation #JamesMaiFoundation #irvine #santaana #tustin #gardengrove #jamesmai #foodismedicine #NeighborsHelpingNeighbors #CommunityImpact #PeopleOverPolitics #missiondriven #livingwithpurpose @bristolbates by @jamesmaifoundation

HOPE, COURAGE & RESILIENCE! Celebrating Breast Cancer Survivors at City of Hope Irvine 🎀

It was an honor to join and stand with my friend Annette Radaich Walker President of City of Hope Orange County, and Dr. Edward Kim, Physician-in-Chief, for a special, emotional event right here in Irvine, celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month and honoring 24 incredible women whose courage and resilience continue to inspire others.

As part of City of Hope’s “Be a Voice of Hope” initiative, we honored these 24 breast cancer survivors and gave them a heartwarming SURPRISE! 💕 For the past four years, City of Hope physicians have worn pink jackets during October to raise awareness. This year, they surprised these remarkable women with their very own pink bomber jackets, symbolizing courage, strength, resilience, and HOPE! 🎀

It was a beautiful moment recognizing these women not just for surviving cancer, but for the hope they represent to others beginning their own journeys.

**Some important facts worth sharing:**

🎀 1 in 7 women in Orange County will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime.
💗 Over 34,000 women in California are estimated to be diagnosed this year.
🏥 Advances in screening and treatment have helped breast cancer survival rates exceed 90%.
❤️ Early detection saves lives, and as we learned, a second opinion could save your life!

We also heard powerful personal stories from survivors, including Sade Wilson and Ashly Grafton, both diagnosed in their 30s, reminding us of the importance of early detection, self-advocacy, and having a community of support.

As an elected official here, I’m proud that Irvine is home to City of Hope Orange County, bringing world-class cancer research, innovative treatments, and compassionate care closer to our families.

To these 24 extraordinary women and every survivor, patient, and family facing cancer: Your stories matter, your courage inspires, and you are NEVER alone! 💗 Thank you, Annette, and the entire City of Hope team for this beautiful celebration and for reminding us that there is always HOPE! 🎀

For more info @cityofhopeoc

#cancerawareness #Irvine #orangecounty #Cancer #cancersurvivor by @jamesmaifoundation

Advancing education and opportunity through giving and philanthropy ⚡️ What a special evening celebrating leadership, community, and the power of giving back.

A heartfelt thank you to Mario Rodriguez, Chairman of the Hispanic 100 Foundation, and my friends from UCI, Sherry, Alberto, and Kristin, for inviting me to be part of this special evening. We celebrated WWE legend Rey Mysterio with the Lifetime Achievement Award and honored the memory and legacy of Bojana Wilkinson.

More than $300,000 in scholarships were awarded to 30 students, many of them the first in their families to attend college. And the generosity didn’t stop there, with more than $100,000 additional raised that evening to continue opening doors for the next generation.

That is real impact.

Education can change the trajectory of a life, but opportunity often begins when someone believes in your potential and is willing to invest in it. These scholarships represent more than financial support. They represent encouragement, opportunity, and a community standing behind these young leaders as they pursue their dreams.

It was also a special night spent reconnecting with friends and colleagues from across Orange County and Los Angeles at one of my favorite coastal resorts, the Waterfront in Huntington Beach.

Congratulations to Mario, Manny Ramirez, the Hispanic 100 Foundation, the UCI team, Philip and Margarita Wilkinson, and everyone who helped make this special evening possible.

Most importantly, Bojana’s memory and legacy will live on through the students whose lives and futures are changed by the opportunities created in her name.

Here’s to investing in the next generation and creating opportunities that last far beyond one evening. 🎓❤️

#Hispanic #hispanicheritagemonth #Irvine #OrangeCounty #scholarships @h100foundation by @jamesmaifoundation

There’s something special about these gatherings.

For years, my foundation has been supporting a group of former soldiers, veterans of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), who are now in their 80s.

These men served during the Vietnam War, rebuilt their lives here in America, and still gather regularly in Westminster, California. As the years pass, their numbers are sadly dwindling, which makes these visits and the stories they share even more meaningful.

I originally found this group through word of mouth. Over the years, many of them have known me simply as a guy who shows up with food on Fridays.

They didn’t know my title. They didn’t know I served in office. They didn’t know I was Vice Mayor of Irvine. And I never felt the need to tell them.

Then one day, after years of knowing each other, some of them saw me in the local Tết Parade. The next time I came around, one of them looked at me and said, “Hey! That’s the guy from the Tết Parade!” 😂

There’s something meaningful about that. Long before they knew anything about my public service, we knew each other simply through community service.

No titles. No politics. No expectations. Just showing up.

One of our foundation’s sayings is “Kindness is Contagious.” I’ve always believed that service is less about who you are and more about what you are willing to do for someone else.

And I’ve been fortunate enough to see that kindness come full circle. Some of the people pictured here, who we originally came to serve, have since joined our volunteer team themselves. Today, they help us serve veterans, seniors, and families in their own communities throughout Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Costa Mesa, Tustin, and beyond.

They were never just recipients. They became part of the team, helping us reach people we never could have reached on our own.

And while these gatherings may be outside of Irvine, kindness has no city limits.

Sometimes the best relationships are built when nobody knows your title.

They just know you keep showing up.

@jamesmaifoundation #veterans #vietnamese #senior #giving #communityfirst by @jamesmaifoundation

It was a pleasure welcoming the 9th Annual TRAILBLAZERS: Women Innovators Pitch Competition back to Irvine at UCI Beall Applied Innovation (The Cove) ⚡️

One of the highlights for me was spending a few moments with the finalists before they took the stage. As an entrepreneur myself, it was personally meaningful to hear about their ideas, their journeys, and the problems they are working to solve.

I was also proud to welcome the many entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, and supporters who joined us, especially the women entrepreneurs helping drive the next generation of technology and innovation.

TRAILBLAZERS is more than a pitch competition. It celebrates women who are pushing boundaries, solving problems, and turning ideas into businesses with real impact.

At a time when women in many parts of the world still face significant barriers to opportunity and economic independence, I am especially proud that here in America we celebrate women as entrepreneurs, innovators, business owners, and leaders. Events like TRAILBLAZERS remind us that when women have the opportunity to build, innovate, and lead, our entire community and economy are stronger 🇺🇸

When we invest in women entrepreneurs, we create jobs, expand opportunity, and inspire the next generation of women to build and lead.

Congratulations to the finalists:

Maya Gosztyla - BrainStorm Therapeutics
Alexandria Massey - CrossCare Tech
Dr. Huma Pierce - LuckyandLoyal.com
Lara Solomon - Hoopsy
Xiaoqing Zie - A+ Berry

I also enjoyed spending time with Chiling Tong, Pat Fong Kushida, and Garrett Gin and learning more about the important missions of the California Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce and National ACE and their work supporting entrepreneurs and expanding economic opportunity.

Thank you to CalAsian Chambe, National ACE, Ace NextGen for bringing TRAILBLAZERS back to Irvine. We are proud to be a city where innovation, entrepreneurship, and opportunity thrive, and especially proud to welcome women entrepreneurs helping shape what comes next.

Congrats to all of the finalists and everyone who made this event possible!

#women #entrepreneur #startup #uci #irvine by @jamesmaifoundation

What an incredible Day of Celebration at BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Chino Hills! 🙏🏼

My sincere thanks to the entire BAPS LA community for inviting me and for the tremendous honor and incredibly warm welcome. I was humbled to be garlanded, recognized before the community, and especially honored to be invited to participate in Arti, the sacred Hindu ceremony of light, alongside the Swamis and congregation.

This was my second visit to this 20 acre Mandir, and I remain in awe of its sheer size, beauty, and extraordinary craftsmanship. It was particularly special to spend time with a Swami, learning about the history of the Mandir, how it came to be, and the years of faith, sacrifice, craftsmanship, and community commitment that went into building what stands here today.

What struck me most was the power of unity and what can happen when a community comes together around a shared purpose. A strong community supports those within it while extending that same spirit of service outward, benefiting its neighbors and positively impacting the entire region.

From San Diego to Los Angeles and throughout Southern California, our communities are stronger when we build relationships, serve others, celebrate our different traditions, and recognize that our futures are interconnected. It was also wonderful to meet members of the congregation from Irvine and spend time together so many miles from home.

Over the years, I’ve been grateful to build friendships throughout the Hindu and broader South Asian communities, grounded in unity, mutual respect, service, and standing together. Whether we are celebrating together on days like this or standing shoulder-to-shoulder against discrimination, hatred, and intolerance, that commitment will continue.

Thank you again to BAPS for this wonderful honor, for welcoming me so warmly, and for giving me the opportunity to listen, learn, participate, and celebrate alongside your community. I look forward to continuing our friendship and working together to make a positive difference throughout Southern California. 🙏🏼

#Hindu #SouthAsian #indian #orangecounty #losangeles @bapslosangeles @baps @bapscharities by @jamesmaifoundation

Happy Thursday!

A huge shoutout and thank you to our partners at Community Action Partnership of Orange County (OC Food Bank) 🙏🏼

Because of their support, what started years ago as a simple idea I had to provide food from the trunk of my car has grown into a program that now serves more than 1,000 individuals, families, seniors, veterans, and displaced workers every month throughout Orange County. ❤️

Our nonprofit may be small, but we’re proudly self-funded, volunteer-driven, and built on the belief that no one in our community should go hungry. I’m incredibly grateful to CAP OC, which has stood beside us since the very beginning, as well as every donor, volunteer, and supporter who has helped make this mission possible.

Together, we’re proving that even the smallest idea can grow into something that changes lives

#giving #community #orangecounty #hunger #nonprofit @cap_oc @jamesmaifoundation by @jamesmaifoundation

On behalf of my team and organization, I want to extend my sincere gratitude to Orange County Food Bank, Driscoll’s (Driscoll Farms), and Tyson Foods for their generosity and support of last week’s food distribution.

Because of partners like you, alongside so many individuals, volunteers, and food manufacturing partners, we are able to show up for families across Orange County in a real, tangible way.

What started as an effort to help just 5 families has grown into supporting over 1,000 families every single month. That kind of impact does not happen alone. It takes a community. It takes commitment. And it takes partners who believe in lifting others up.

We are deeply grateful. Thank you for being part of this mission and for helping us continue to serve those who need it most.

#orangecounty #philanthropy #peolpleoverpolitics #foodinspiration #communityfirst @driscollsberry @tysonfoods @cap_oc by @jamesmaifoundation

Behind the scenes this morning with James as we pack for the fay deliveries 💯

Shout out to @driscollsberry and the crew at @cap_oc and @aapiofficial we are grateful to be part of the team that makes a real, tangible difference in lives every day 🙏🏼

#purpose #giving #orangecounty #mission #nonprofit by @jamesmaifoundation

It was an honor to join more than 200 community leaders, partners, and elected officials in Anaheim last month to celebrate the grand opening of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California’s new Orange County Headquarters and Community Space.

Long before I held public office, my nonprofit work focused on advocating for victims and families across Los Angeles and Orange County, often during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Throughout those years, AJSOCAL has been a trusted partner. Time and again, we referred individuals and families to their team, knowing they would receive not only sound legal guidance but real options during moments of crisis. Their impact is tangible, and their advice has helped countless people navigate complex legal, housing, and safety challenges.

After years of working alongside one another in the same space, it is especially meaningful to now celebrate this major expansion as an elected official. This new OC headquarters represents more than a physical building; it is a promise to the community that help is accessible, that language should never be a barrier, and that justice must be within reach for everyone.

Orange County is home to the third-largest Asian American population in the country, and this new facility will serve as a hub for immigration support, housing assistance, domestic violence resources, legal services, and multilingual hotlines. Leaders and many colleagues from across the region highlighted the vital role AJSOCAL continues to play in protecting civil rights and strengthening community trust.

I am grateful to AJSOCAL for its unwavering leadership, to Vice President Ash Alvandi and the entire team, and to their continued commitment to serving those who need it most. Congratulations on this important milestone, Orange County is stronger because of your work, and I look forward to continuing our partnership in service of our community.

#aapi #asianamerican #peopleoverpolitics #justice #community @aapiofficial @advancingjusticesocal @ocapica97 @vicemayormai @senator_umberg by @jamesmaifoundation

Honored to join in officially opening Orange County’s newest hospital, a $1.5 billion dollar investment exclusively focused on fighting cancer, right here in Irvine, City of Hope Orange County.

There isn’t a single person in this world who hasn’t felt the weight of cancer, that faceless disease that strikes without warning and takes far too much from all of us, myself included. Earlier this month, I experienced a full-circle moment as we celebrated the official opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony.

City of Hope, one of the nation’s most advanced cancer research and treatment organizations, has invested $1+ billion to bring Orange County its only cancer-specialty hospital. This 72-acre academic research campus now gives patients access to the full continuum of cancer care right here in our community. Before City of Hope arrived, nearly 20% of local cancer patients had to leave this region to seek specialized physicians and clinical trials, creating an overwhelming burden for families already fighting so much.

Since 2020, more than 40,000 patients have received care at a City of Hope Orange County facility, during construction and development. Watching this project grow from an early concept, to supporting the first clinical trial patients years ago (including delivering blankets with fellow Rotary member) to celebrating milestone after milestone has been incredibly meaningful. From groundbreaking to the creation of the Interfaith Center, from last year’s Key Ceremony to this week’s grand opening, every step has reflected hope, compassion, and resilience.

This mission against cancer is deeply personal, years ago as it defeated and took from my own family, it changed my perception, shaped the direction of my life, and it fuels the work I do every day. My promise and commitment to fighting this disease, and my belief that we will find a cure within my lifetime, is as strong as ever.

Together, we continue the fight 💯

#cityofhope #cityofhopeoc #Irvine #OrangeCounty #CancerAwareness #FightCancer #HopeLivesHere #CancerResearch #StrongerTogether #WeFightAsOne #cancer #cancersurvivor #cancer #cancerfighter #cancertreatment #IrvineUnited #IrvineStrong #IrvineProud by @jamesmaifoundation

WE ARE FOUR DAYS AWAY!!

In recognition of Anti-Bullying Month, join me for Irvine’s first-ever Anti-Bullying Expo! It will be a free community event dedicated to promoting kindness, respect, and safety for all.

📅 Saturday, October 25, 2025
⏰ 10 AM – 12 PM
📍 Great Park Hangar 244 – 8000 Great Park Blvd, Irvine, CA
🎟️ Free for all ages

Did you know:
👉 1 in 5 students nationwide reports being bullied.
👉 Over 70% of youth say they’ve witnessed bullying in their schools.
👉 Children who experience bullying are more likely to struggle with anxiety, depression, and school performance.

Together, we can change that.

Come experience interactive demonstrations, educational booths, and community resources that highlight effective ways to prevent and address bullying. Local nonprofits will be onsite with activities, information, and food!

Together, we can make a difference and create safer spaces for our children, our schools, and our community.

#AntiBullyingMonth #StopBullying #KindnessInAction #CityOfIrvine #TeamMai #IrvineEvents #CommunityFirst #AntiBullyingExpo by @jamesmaifoundation