Looking to welcome and help resettle refugees with your friends, congregation, and family? LSSNCA and our neighbors have welcomed and resettled refugee families in Maryland and Virginia for 81 years. For more than a decade, volunteers with LSSNCA's Good Neighbor Partners and Champions (GNP/C) Program have welcomed new families arriving in Maryland and Virginia. GNP/C's set-up homes and offer support to families as they navigate their new community.
CHAMPIONS
Champions levels are open to anyone interested in welcoming new neighbors. Congregations, groups of friends, college groups, colleagues or individuals alike are welcome to sign-up for the below support levels.
Level 1 is a three (3) to six (6) month commitment:
- Set-up a home for an arriving family and provide all of the furnishings and household supplies
- Support adjustment needs within the first 90 day, like transportation to and from appointments, and ongoing job development support
- Provide three (3) additional core areas of support
Level 2 provides a move-in ready pre-arrival set-up:
- Collect all furnishings and household items for a new home
- Set-up the home for the family’s arrival
GOOD NEIGHBOR PARTNERS
Good Neighbor Partners (GNP) are congregations who come together to welcome new neighbors for one (1) year.
Your congregation:
- Sets up a home for an arriving family and provides all the furnishings and household supplies
- Supports adjustment needs within the first 90 days, like transportation to and from appointments, and ongoing job development support
- Provides three (3) additional core areas of support
- Pays full rent for three (3) months and at least six (6) months of partial rental assistance
Good Neighbor Partners (GNP) are vetted through LSSNCA to paricipate in the program funded by the State Department/Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM). Each GNP must complete an interest form, complete a background check for its coordination team, and attend an orientation before being matched with a program participant. There’s also a $500 donation to cover supplemental costs and paperwork filing.
We work to vet and best-match GNPs and Champions with new neighbors, so turnaround time may vary. We're always on the lookout for new landlord partners. If you know someone who would like to rent to a refugee family, let us know.
