Bill Text: VA HR215 | 2022 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Northern Virginia Resettling Afghan Families Together.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-03-11 - Bill text as passed House (HR215ER) [HR215 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2022-HR215-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Northern Virginia Resettling Afghan Families Together, a grassroots coalition of community-focused volunteers, has helped families from Afghanistan build a new home in the United States; and
WHEREAS, tens of thousands of Afghan allies have arrived in the United States after the Taliban resumed control of Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, and many individuals and their families have settled in the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, Northern Virginia Resettling Afghan Families Together (NOVA RAFT) is composed of hundreds of volunteers, representatives from community groups and faith-based organizations, and Afghan Americans who raise awareness, liaise with refugee resettlement agencies, and provide direct donations and support services to newly arrived Afghan families; and
WHEREAS, NOVA RAFT was established by Springfield residents Dan Altman and Natalie Perdue with a goal to provide clothing and other necessities, help furnish homes, and offer assistance with tasks like registering children for school and finding medical care; and
WHEREAS, since August 2021, the NOVA RAFT team helped at least 200 families settle in new homes in throughout the region, and groups supported by NOVA RAFT adopted more than a dozen families to provide ongoing support, such as assistance with job searches and connections to social services; and
WHEREAS, the members of the NOVA RAFT team have touched many lives through their kindness and generosity and have contributed to a strong sense of community spirit in Northern Virginia and throughout the Commonwealth; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That Northern Virginia Resettling Afghan Families Together hereby be commended for its work to help families from Afghanistan acclimate to new homes in the United States; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Northern Virginia Resettling Afghan Families Together as an expression of the House of Delegates' admiration for the organization's achievements in service to people in need.
