Three years on, the [Afghan] arrivals have slowed dramatically but they’re still trickling in. And LSSNCA said the needs are persistent, albeit different. Volunteer drivers are particularly in demand asmigrants need to be taken tojob interviewsorother important appointments. ... Also needed are tutors for kids settling into American schools, and mentors for adults trying to find their way in a new culture and a new job. Doctors, lawyers and even military-trained jet pilots in Afghanistan find themselves struggling to match their skills with jobs here.
When the teenager fled Afghanistan and arrived in the U.S., he was alone. He has since seen a community come together to help him and his four brothers. ... How the five brothers, who range in age from 8 to 21, all ended up living in Loudoun County is a story that starts with them getting separated at an airport in Afghanistan. Their family was one of the many that crowded the grounds around the international airport in Kabul in 2021 in hopes of evacuating as the United States withdrew its troops.
Photo credit: Theresa Vargas/The Washington Post
“We began interviewing refugee doctors in late 2022, learning about their passion for medicine and some of the barriers they face in returning to medical practice,” said Brandi Kilmer, Co-Founder of the Refugee Physicians Advocacy (RPA) Coalition and Community Programs Coordinator - Washington D.C. at TSOS. “It’s been incredibly rewarding to be part of a growing coalition of partners working to remove those barriers. We thank chief-patron Delegate Kathy Tran and our partners at Lutheran Social Services National Capital Area, World Education Services, and NOVA Friends of Refugees for their leadership, and all those who endorsed helping to remove a significant barrier with this bill. It has restored hope to many doctors in our network.”
Our Transitional Foster Care (TFC) program offers crucial support during the transition to a stable, loving home for children who arrive in the United States without parents or guardians. The Baltimore area is in desperate need of foster families.
If you need a last-minute holiday gift this weekend and through the end of the year, you have lots of options along the Route 1 corridor that don’t involve online rush ordering, circling parking lots, or standing in long lines. Even better, you can support the local artists, craftsmen, and other small business owners that put this area on the map. ... Donate to help support the following local nonprofits doing notable work for the community in the area and beyond.
The CMPP National Board today announced the selection of four subgrantees to implement the Case Management Pilot Program, delivering voluntary case management and associated services to individuals enrolled in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Alternatives to Detention programs.
A group of 188 immigrant rights organizations, including the ACLU and United We Dream, are urging Congress not to make changes to the asylum system and humanitarian parole authority in negotiations over the foreign aid supplemental funding bill.
A group of 131 faith-based organizations from around the country are calling on the Biden administration to grant deportation protections to about 2,000 nationals of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) amid widespread violence and disease there.
Nadya Andrusik, LSSNCA executive director, children, youth, and family services, joins Tiffany at WFLS Fredesricksburg to talk about the importance of being a foster parent - and how to become one with LSSNCA's foster care programs!
Pursuing higher education is often a pathway to higher income and overall better well-being. College graduates are less likely to rely on public benefits. Therefore, it’s beneficial for education leaders and policymakers to help newcomers – including asylum-seekers and refugees – to access higher education in the U.S., whether it be community college, taking advanced English courses, obtaining a certificate through training programs or going to a four-year university.
Hasib Satary, LSSNCA's director, employment services - Virginia, shares his story - one that reflects the journey of thousands of Afghans evacuated to the U.S. "For many Afghan veterans like him, the stresses of refugee life continue to suppress and exacerbate the traumas of combat two years after arriving stateside..."
Immigrant-rights advocates are calling on the Biden administration to immediately suspend all deportation flights to Haiti...
RISE will equip aspiring entrepreneurs from refugee and immigrant backgrounds with the knowledge and support they need to change the trajectory of their lives and those of their families, through entrepreneurship training and mentorship with an entrepreneur. This program was made possible through the generous support of Sumeet Shrivastava (MBA ‘94) and in partnership with the Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area.
Buoyed by a $1.5 million donation from a local tech executive, George Mason University is launching a training program for aspiring entrepreneurs from refugee and immigrant backgrounds, the first phase of its inclusive entrepreneurship training initiative.
We all are familiar with foster care. The system for children of all ages who may be orphaned or need to be removed from unsafe homes. What you may not know is that some of the children in need of foster care were not born here. A significant and growing number of children in foster care are immigrants or refugees. We discuss more about who these children are, where they come from and some of the challenges they face.
Taqwa Kandahary, once a doctor in the Afghan military, said she recently learned to drive. Her journey two years ago took her from the chaos of the Kabul airport to Qatar, Germany and finally Virginia. ... The happiest day of her life was the day she arrived in America, Kandahary said.
Washington, DC, has been welcoming to Afghans who were forced to flee their homes two years ago as U.S. troops abruptly departed from their home country. Those who escaped found support in communities across the country, but especially in the Washington metropolitan area ... There is still a great humanitarian need to finish the resettlement that’s underway.
Two years after the chaotic fall of Kabul, stateside evacuees want lawmakers to step up to help allies who’ve made a new home here as well as those left behind. LSSNCA's director, resettlement and integration programs - Frederick and Arbutus, shares his story.
On Sunday, June 11, The Arlington Chorale performed their "We Stand Together" program, highlighting the refugee experience, at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington in collaboration with LSSNCA to welcome new Afghan neighbors.
Chamber ALX’s Community Valor Award will be given to Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area. Born during the pandemic, the award recognizes businesses and individuals making considerable contributions to the wellbeing of Alexandrians.
LSSNCA CFO, Ray Rawlins, was asked to participate in DCM Associate's webinar reflecting on the changing landscape for nonprofit CFOs.
During spring break week, when many students gave themselves permission to take a breather and recoup, students from Lafayette Colleger (PA) involved in Alternative School Break (ASB) spent their “time off” working with LSSNCA and refugees looking to resettle in welcoming communities in the U.S.
Our Chief Operating Officer, Mamadou Sy was featured in Engage magazine where he shared his resettlement story and how his experience is directly related to his work at LSSNCA.
Faheem Ahmad moved to the City of Alexandria several years ago as an Afghan refugee. The process was grueling, extensive and often left him experiencing a sense of unbidden otherness, but it’s a feeling with which he’s familiar because it marked his second stint as a refugee. Ahmad has drawn on those experiences and, with help from Alexandria’s Workforce Development Center, plans to devote the rest of his life to helping other refugees.
Our CEO Kristyn Peck was on the In the Ring Podcast discussing challenges LSSNCA overcame this past year and what it means to be Lutheran Social Services of America’s Michah Leadership Award recipient. Be sure to listen to this impactful discussion on uplifting communities.
