In spring 1975 when the fight between the Iraqi Kurds and the central government intensified in the Northern region of Iraq, a great numbers of refugees fled to the surrounding countries, among them some 90 thousands Assyrians who found refuge in Iran.

Iran was not a country to accept refugees for a long sojourns, this is why the Assyrian Universal Alliance (AUA) which is a global organization to oversee the Assyrians human rights all over the world, moved in to find a safe haven for these unfortunate displaced refugees. Utilizing the effort of the UNHCR, a large number of these refugees were accepted in the USA.

They started coming to this blessed country through an organized airlift program in 1976. Most of them stayed in Chicago where a large Assyrian Community resided and there were more job opportunities.

These refugees, who did not know English, had a hard time to adjust in the community or find jobs, rent a house for living or register their children in the schools. To tackle this problem with the help of the US government, in 1978, a charitable service organization was founded and established in Chicago under the name of the Assyrian Universal Alliance Foundation, Inc.

For so many years, this humanitarian organization has taken care of the new refugees; processed their papers, taught them basic English, run job placement programs for them, and filled out all necessary forms for adjustment of status, helped them to get social security and alien registration cards.

After a while, when most of the new refugees were settled down and taken care of , and after the number of new refugees subsided, the AUA Foundation stopped receiving help from the government and was left alone to be taken care of by the Assyrian community itself.

The Board of Directors started to solicit help from the Assyrian community. Two strong supporters, Helen Schwarten, a financially successful benevolent and her brother, Senator John J. Nimrod, a state senator from Chicago, joined the Board.

 Beside the social services offered indiscriminately by the organization to the Assyrian and other residents of Chicago, Helen established a scholarship program in the AUA Foundation, helping Assyrian students to pursue higher education.

Both Helen and John have passed away, leaving the organization to a hard working Board look for any kind of help to perpetuate the valuable services this organization offers. The AUA supports the Assyrian needy groups in the Middle East and those living in Armenia, Georgia and elsewhere.