Who We Are
Since 1917, Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area (LSSNCA), a human services and immigration relief and refugee welcome agency, has accompanied those in need throughout Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. to foster resiliency, self-sufficiency, and access to opportunities. We provide services that last beyond the initial arrival for families, youth, children, and individuals rebuilding their lives in the D.C. metro area.
Motivated daily by our belief in the inherent dignity of all, LSSNCA’s innovative participant-informed programs serve refugees, forced migrants, immigrants, children and youth, and underserved communities by filling in the gaps. Piloting initiatives like the area’s first camp for kids impacted by the HIV/AIDS crisis, originating local pro se asylum workshops for Afghan Allies, launching a Resource Center to serve as a community hub for all recently arrived program participants, and offering myriad trauma-informed mental health support services, LSSNCA strives to create thriving communities.
Our Impact (Fiscal Year 2023)
From the Newsroom
Lord, a firefighter and longtime LSSNCA volunteer, faced resettlement struggles firsthand when he arrived with his family at age 14. Today, he channels his experience into helping newly arrived families through LSSNCA’s Resource Center, ensuring others do not have to face the same obstacles alone. We hope you enjoy his story.
Throughout the decades, [these] faith-based groups worked hand in hand with the federal government. Agencies like the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of Health and Human Services eventually funded them with hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Many of these groups believed helping the poor and vulnerable expressed their values not only as Christians, but also as Americans. Now, that legacy — and the very survival of these organizations and the values they represent — is in existential crisis.
Law360 (February 14, 2025, 8:07 PM EST) -- With a one-two punch suspending refugee admissions
and halting federal grants for nonprofits that have worked in tandem with the U.S. Department of
State for decades, the Trump administration has effectively crippled the U.S. refugee program,
according to groups providing resettlement services.
