April 2 - A Weekly Check-In Amidst Crisis
GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND
We would like to give a special shout out to our Dale City Refugee Resettlement Site Director, Hameed Girowal. Over the past few weeks, our staff has noticed his efforts to go above and beyond to serve our clients in Northern Virginia. Hameed has been working in the field daily to respond to newly-arrived clients' needs, help set up apartments for new arrivals, and distribute emergency assistance and benefits to clients in Northern Virginia.

Yesterday, with the help of our Virginia State Director, David Mutombo, Hameed helped deliver 200 bags of groceries to families in need of assistance. Funds from the Church of Latter Day Saints were distributed to us by our national agency, LIRS. We purchased $3,550 worth of groceries, hygiene and cleaning supplies, and baby and laundry products, which were delivered to our newly-arrived families identified as impacted by the health crisis.
WEATHERING THE STORM TOGETHER
Our staff is working daily to connect with our clients, donors, and community partners to share resources and record impacts due to COVID-19.

As we stated last week, refugee travel to the U.S. has been temporarily halted by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). This measure has been extended to the travel of Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders from Afghanistan - this population makes up the majority of LSSNCA clients.

Though refugee and SIV families will not be able to travel into the U.S. during this period, we are able to serve asylees and SIV holders who are already in the DMV. These individuals can be referred to or enroll directly into our Matching Grant (MG) program that will provide case management and financial self-sufficiency services. MG program participants must meet certain employment requirements and must enroll within 31 days after their date of arrival or eligibility. Those eligible should fill out an inquiry form on our website.

Interested in sponsoring one of these newly-arrived families? You can sign up to become a Good Neighbor Partner online!
TAKE ACTION NOW
You may be wondering how you can continue to support LSSNCA families and clients, many of whom are newly arrived refugees and immigrants, during the COVID-19 health emergency. Being limited in staff and practicing social distancing as best as we can, we thank you for your continued support and generosity!


Our newly arrived families are striving for financial self-sufficiency, but are now facing layoffs and reduced work hours. Additionally, many of our families served might not have the resources to cover childcare and are therefore impacted by the closing of public schools and childcare facilities. These closures impact our clients' ability to provide breakfast and lunch meals for their children and educational activities that require technology (i.e. laptops or WI-FI) or parental instruction in English. 

Emergency funding is not only critical to our families and individuals served, but also to the agency as a non-profit. We are seeking emergency funding streams that will allow us to keep all of our staff both paid and employed during this time.  Invest in us today !


It is important that our clients and their families, many of whom are on SNAP and WIC benefits, are able to get the groceries and supplies they need during this crisis and while many Americans are bulk stocking up on items. Our clients having limited access to transportation, varying levels of English, and being newly arrived in their communities thank you for your generosity and support. Discover ways to support our families and sign up for opportunities on our google form.

Some immediate needs of our clients include:
  • Muscle Movers - seeking individuals willing to drive a U-Haul or use their own truck to pick-up donated furnishings and take to families' apartments;
  • Tech item donations - including iPads, talets, laptops, and smart phones;
  • Gift cards for grocery stores;
  • Sewing machine donations - some talented and generous clients are interested in sewing face masks.


Help us spread messages of love and hope to our clients while you stay at home helping the DMV flatten the infection curve. Using WeTransfer you can submit a poem, video, photo, or other creative message of love and hope to share with our community of clients, staff members, and supporters. Make self-isolation a little less lonely and Serve Boldly! See instructions for submitting a message of hope today!
TAKE ACTION!
LSSNCA, Others Urge Federal Government to Extend Deadlines for Refugee Admissions Delayed by COVID – 19

This week LSSNCA joined other advocates in urging the federal government to extend deadlines that apply to refugee admissions that are delayed because of COVID-19. In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Eric Wolf, the groups urged the two departments to ensure that refugees and immigrants applying to travel to the United States have spent not unjustly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Church World Service (CWS), "Tens of thousands of would-be travelers have spent years or decades seeking status in the United States for employment, family or humanitarian-based reasons. Many will be unable to travel during the validity period of their travel documents, to submit applications, attend interviews or respond to Requests for Evidence." The letter asks State and DHS to extend deadlines and exercise positive discretion wherever possible.

The letter also urges the departments to resume refugee admissions as soon as can be safely done and to take steps to ensure that the FY 2020 refugee admissions goal will be met.

You can read the full partner letter here and read more about the impacts of the temporary hold on refugee resettlement here .
AMERICAN RED CROSS - Urgent Need for Blood Donations

Donating blood products is essential to community health and the need for blood products is constant. As part of our nation’s critical infrastructure, healthy individuals can still donate in areas that have issued shelter in place declarations. The Red Cross follows the highest standards of safety and infection control, and volunteer donors are the only source of blood for those in need.

There is no known end date in this fight against coronavirus and the Red Cross needs the help of blood and platelet donors and blood drive hosts to maintain a sufficient blood supply for weeks to come. In times of crisis, the Red Cross is fortunate to witness the best of humanity as people roll up a sleeve to help those in need. FIND A BLOOD DRIVE NEAR YOU TODAY!
YOU COUNT! Don't forget to fill out the 2020 U.S. Census for your household! Start HERE !
*Follow our updated COVID-19 Response on LSSNCA.org where immigrants and refugees can find multilingual guides, community resources, and contact information. Please also consider making a contribution to our emergency assistance fund for the most critical needs of clients and the organization during this time. Thank you!