When Mohammad and his family fled to the United States, they thought their struggles were in the past. Due to the rapid spread of COVID-19, Mohammad fears he won’t be able to provide the basic necessities for his family. To support Mohammad and other families affected by COVID-19, the IRC in Silver Spring created Wish Lists on Amazon where individuals can donate items that families requested.

Three ways YOU can show support to newly arrived families this holiday season.

Fundraiser events to look forward to in the coming months in support of the IRC Silver Spring's office.

Due to the lack of available, affordable housing, the IRC is working with the community to identify temporary housing alternatives for newly-arriving Afghan refugees and their families.

The IRC's Welcome to Maryland Fund supports humanitarian immigrants arriving to the U.S. and resettled in Maryland.

Drawing on the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) experience supporting asylum seekers and refugees, we find that the reception approaches that work for people seeking protection, host communities, and asylum systems, embrace five key principles: dignity, sustainability, coordination and responsibility sharing, fairness, and benefit for all.

As the coronavirus continues to impact our communities, the IRC in Baltimore remains committed to supporting our clients with high quality resettlement and immigration legal services. Now more than ever, IRC staff and clients rely on a network of public and private partners for support.

In mid-August 2021, when many at-risk Afghans evacuated to the United States, local organizations rallied to provide support.