On December 17, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich presented the inaugural Inez Zeigler McAbee and William Harvey Zeigler Humanitarian Award to Harvey Zeigler, a longtime community and civic activist, mentor, and historian. The 2021 Roscoe R. Nix Distinguished Community Leadership Awards honored Byron Johns, Bianca Kling, and Diego Uriburu for their extraordinary contributions to the quality of our community at the very highest levels of excellence. READ MORE and watch the video of the event.

The Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center is hiring a part-time Customer Service Representative (Program Associate) for its East County site. Please distribute to your networks! Applications are closing on January 5, 2022. Interested candidates must register HERE before they can apply for the position (or login if they already have an account).

Registration for Winter 2022 classes is just around the corner! All classes will be provided online. Registration for citizenship preparation classes opens on January 4, and registration for online English classes opens on January 10. English conversation classes take place all year round (no registration required). Registration for computer classes will open soon. Please visit the classes page on the Gilchrist Center website for flyers and details!

The Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center is temporarily suspending in-person services at physical offices but is continuing to provide services virtually and via phone. For information and referral services, call 240-777-4940, Monday through Friday, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Click here for more information about how the Gilchrist Center helps connect with community resources.

The entire team at the Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center wishes you a safe, happy new year!

The Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center is hiring a part-time Customer Service Representative (Program Associate) for its East County site. Please distribute to your networks! Applications are closing on January 5, 2022. Interested candidates must register HERE before they can apply for the position (or login if they already have an account).

Registration for Winter 2022 classes is just around the corner! All classes will be provided online. Registration for citizenship preparation classes opens on January 4, and registration for online English classes opens on January 10. English conversation classes take place all year round (no registration required). Registration for computer classes will open soon. Please visit the classes page on the Gilchrist Center website for flyers and details!

The Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center is temporarily suspending in-person services at physical offices but is continuing to provide services virtually and via phone. For information and referral services, call 240-777-4940, Monday through Friday, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Click here for more information about how the Gilchrist Center helps connect with community resources.

The entire team at the Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center wishes you a safe, happy new year!

This year, with respect to social distancing and the need to stay at home, the service event has once again been extended from one day to one week. Volunteers from Montgomery County can choose from a variety of virtual, home-based, or safely distanced activities that honor the life and teachings of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. From letter writing to crafting to making financial gifts, all service opportunities benefit the greater Montgomery County community.

Please browse the activities below for a preview of virtual and home-based volunteer-based opportunities. You can view all available opportunities for the week of MLK here.

Beginning in January, click on your preferred activities to sign up to join the Montgomery County Volunteer Center's 2021 MLK Week of Service -- January 15-22, 2022. Questions? Email servicedays@montgomerycountymd.gov

Listen to Melissa Jackson Cannon from the Volunteer Center talk about Montgomery County's MLK Week of Service on WHUR radio 96.3 FM on Wednesday, January 13 at 6:15 am, 7:08 am, and 8:40 am!

Sign up to watch Sharing Smiles, a virtual youth concert coordinated by Empowering the Ages and aimed at senior audiences, which will honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Sunday, January 17 at 2:00 pm.

Enjoy Montgomery County's annual MLK Day performing arts tribute, live streamed on Monday, January 18 at 5:00 pm.

Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center is not currently scheduling any in-person citizenship application workshops. However, APALRC has access to a safe and secure web platform, CitizenshipWorks, which applicants can use and get free help from an experienced attorney in reviewing and drafting their citizenship application. Click here for more information.

The Maryland Bar Foundation's Pro Bono Program provides free one-on-one telephone consultations with attorneys for low-income county residents in civil cases. Click here for more information. In addition, the program is moving forward with a collaborative effort with immigration attorney Rachel Ullman to address SIJS cases. Clients must meet ALL criteria to be eligible. Please refer potential clients to their main line at 301-424-7651. Flyers are available in English and Spanish.

HIAS Asylee Outreach Project offers free help connecting Maryland asylees (and T visa holders) with the resettlement resources and benefits available to them in the state of Maryland. Click here for more information.

Montgomery College (MC) offers free citizenship preparation classes online via Zoom. In partnership, Catholic Charities Immigration Legal Services offers help with the N-400 application for naturalization. For more details, please email

citizenshipprogram@montgomerycollege.edu or visit the website.

Introductory Training - Representing Children in Immigration Matters

Thursday, January 20, 2022, 9:00 am - 11:00 am.

Click here for information and registration. Deadline: January 14.

The Language Access Program at Ayuda provides professionally trained, trauma-informed interpreters at no cost. Please email interpreterbank@ayuda.com with "Maryland Victims" in the subject heading to learn more and to add your organization to the list of those that will receive services.

CASA, in partnership with Montgomery County, is offering financial assistance to those who are eligible to apply for citizenship but cannot afford the application fee. Click here for more information.

The mission of the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault (MCASA) is to help prevent sexual assault, advocate for accessible, compassionate care for survivors of sexual violence, and work to hold offenders accountable. MCASA is the federally recognized state sexual assault coalition and responsible for certifying comprehensive rape crisis/sexual assault programs to ensure services are survivor centered. Check out upcoming training sessions here.

African Affairs Advisory Group will meet on Thursday January 13 at 7:00 pm. The meeting will focus on food security in Montgomery County. To register for this meeting, please click here. The African Affairs Advisory Group meets every second Thursday of the month. For more information, please email Harrieta.Shangarai@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Asian Pacific American Advisory Group will meet on Tuesday, January 18, 2022. If you would like to attend, please email Mr. Yi Shen at yi.shen@montgomerycountymd.gov.  

Caribbean American Advisory Group will meet on January 11 from 7 pm to 8:30 pm at the Silver Spring Civic Building, Fenton Room. If COVID protocol changes, the meeting will return to its virtual format. For information and more on CAAG, please contact Rodrigue Vital, Caribbean American Liaison at Rodrigue.vital@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Faith Community Advisory Group will meet on January 10 at 7:30 pm. The meeting will be in collaboration with the Gilchrist Center for faith leaders to learn more about resources available to their communities. Several prospective FCAG members will be joining the meeting. For more information email Kate Chance at kate.chance@montgomerycountymd.gov

Latin American Advisory Group will meet virtually on Tuesday, January 25, 2022 at 6:30 pm. The guest host is Grace Rivera-Oven, who will speak about County-supported Hubs established during the pandemic. To receive the Zoom link for the meeting, please email Jessy Mejía Terry, Latino Liaison at Jessy.Mejiaterry@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Middle Eastern American Advisory Group will hold its annual retreat on January 22 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. MEAAG will provide updates from the Office of Community Partnerships and community news and updates on MEAAG’s ongoing and upcoming activities. Most of the annual retreat will be dedicated to strategic planning. For more information, please contact the OCP Middle Eastern American Community Liaison.

The Elite Soccer Youth Development Academy (ESYDA) and the American Diversity Group organized a toy and food distribution event and promoted COVID-19 vaccination awareness in Silver Spring on December 22. Despite very cold weather, the event was attended by hundreds of families and volunteers who were ready to serve. To view a video of the event, click here.

On December 18, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich attended a meet and greet session with the African Francophone community at the White Oak Recreation Center. Hosted by the Francophone Africans Alliance, participants had an opportunity to converse with the County Executive, share their concerns and learn about Montgomery County services. French is one of the top 6 spoken languages in the County (Census estimates a total of 30,000 French speakers living in the County).

The Montgomery County Maryland Chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. will host its 45th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast on Monday, January

17, 2022 at the Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, 5701 Marinelli Road, Rockville, MD 20852. As is tradition, the breakfast will begin at 7:45 am.

This year's theme is "Democracy: Can We Keep It?" with Representative Jamie Raskin as the keynote speaker. COVID19 safety protocols put in place by the hotel and Montgomery County will be strictly followed.

On January 17th at 4:00 pm, the annual Montgomery County MLK Celebration and Tribute will be held at Strathmore Music Center. Virtual/streaming options to view the program will also be made available. More details to come, but please save this date and time!

January 13th marks Korean American Day, commemorating the arrival of the first 102 Korean immigrants to arrive in the United States in 1903 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Since then, Korean Americans have contributed to every facet of American society from serving in the American military during World War I and World War II, to scientific discoveries, to winning Olympic gold medals and countless other endeavors. To learn more about Korean American Day, please visit https://nationaldaycalendar.com/korean-american-day-january-13/

VAS Senior Club (Vietnamese American Services) will hold a Lunar New Year Festival on Sunday, January 30 from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm at Northwood High School. Flyers are available in English and Vietnamese.

The Asian Pacific American Advisory Group held internal elections for co-chairs for the 2022 - 2024 term. The new co-chairs will be Devang Shah and Ishani Chowdhury.

This year, OCP Employee Giving activities supported a local nonprofit, Life Connection Mission (LCM) of Germantown, which has conducted missionary and humanitarian work in Haiti for nearly twenty years. LCM's work includes operating a healthcare clinic, distributing three hot meals per day, and other assistance that benefits needy Haitian families and children.

Kate Chance, OCP’s Interfaith Liaison and Rodrigue Vital, Caribbean American Liaison, who coordinated the department’s employee giving events on December 8 and 15. On both dates, OCP staff and other County staff took part in a virtual cooking demonstration by LCM staff and program enrollees in Haiti.

On December 15, OCP staff and other County employees returned to watch presentations by Haitian children who are enrolled in LCM’s program. Children demonstrated their chess skills, played the flute, and sang Christmas carols to express their appreciation for County employees who donated to LCM.

On behalf of his faith organization, Seneca Community Church, Rev. Kenneth Nelson distributed six $50 gift cards to needy Haitian parents in the County. Rev. Nelson explained he was motivated by the earthquake and storm that struck the island in the summer of 2021 and wanted to help his fellow Haitians.

Montgomery County, MCPS and several community partner organizations will be organizing a winter clothing donation drive during January and February to benefit recent arrivals and refugees to the County. To donate and support this worthy cause, please visit AmazonSmile (smile.Amazon.com) and designate ‘Identity’ as your charitable organization of choice. For more information, please contact Jessy Mejia Terry.

The Morazan, El Salvador Sister City Committee will be hosting an in-person meeting (subject to change based on County’s Covid updates) on Saturday, January 8 at 10:30 am at El Golfo Restaurant.

On December 22, VEI team leader Sahar Fahmy coordinated a companion event during the COVID-19 Vaccination Awareness/Toy and Food Giveaway organized by the Elite Soccer Youth Development Academy and the American Diversity Group at the ADG office location in Silver Spring. Thanks to Greg Humes of the County Board of Elections who staffed this VEI event, briefing attendees about the Board’s voting programs and responding to questions.

Meet the Author

MEAAG is planning a new series of author conversations from April through June, hosted by the Montgomery County Public Library. "Meet the Author: Stories to Broaden Understanding" will feature Saudi American author Eman Quotah, Israeli author Reuven/Ruby Namdar, and Pakistani American author Sabaa Tahir. READ MORE.

Stay tuned for dates and times. Comments are welcome; contact dtrent@civilstrategies.net or karenleggett50@gmail.com.

The Office of Community Partnerships (OCP) has established an Afghan Working Group (AWG) to help coordinate the County’s efforts in supporting Afghan refugees and asylees who will be settling in Montgomery County. The group will focus on immediate and urgent needs as well as long-term resettlement services such as employment. Members of the Afghan Working Group include non-governmental and community-based organizations, religious institutions, charities, private and public sector institutions, individuals and others. If you are interested in joining the AWG, please contact the OCP Middle Eastern American Community Liaison or the Faith Community Liaison.

MEAAG issued its fourth monthly e-newsletter in November. The newsletter features the Montgomery County Middle Eastern American communities’ interests and news, along with MEAAG activities. Please contact the OCP’s Middle Eastern Liaison to receive a copy.

 Kwanzaa, December 26 - January 1 | New Year's Day, January 1 | Shogatsu matsuri, January 1 - 4 | Birth of Guru Gobind Singh, January 5 | Three Kings Day, January 6 |

Orthodox Christmas, January 7 | Korean American Day, January 13 | Makar Sankranti, January 14 | Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 17

In light of recent anti-Semitic incidents in Montgomery County and surrounding areas, the Faith Community Advisory Group stands in solidarity with our Jewish community and condemns all acts of hate and ethnic or religious bigotry aimed at Jewish residents. Read FCAG's full statement here.

Ongoing initiatives to support refugees and newcomers in Montgomery County include efforts from the organizations listed below. Please click links for more information or contact kate.chance@montgomerycountymd.gov.

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) is administering two separate Community Safety Works grant opportunities that will encourage the implementation of crime prevention strategies through physical design improvements and community vigilance and maintenance. Maximum grant request is $25,000 for facility-related improvements that make the facilities of nonprofit organizations, including faith-based nonprofit organizations, safer and more defensible.The online application portal is projected to open in early January. For more information, go to https://onestop.md.gov or email dhcd.communitysafety@maryland.gov.

Almost 200 families in Somerset and Dorchester Counties experienced flooding on October 29 and have reached out to Maryland VOAD for support with clean-up, repair and rebuilding. The Maryland VOAD is coordinating a group muck-out day on January 29, 2022. They are looking for work crews (groups of at least 4 are recommended; larger groups can be broken down into different crews to assist at multiple locations) that are self-contained for the day and will be given a briefing upon arrival. Some tools will be available on site, but please bring your own tools if possible. If you have questions or have a group that can volunteer, please contact Kim Hopkins at 340.643.7516 or Kimberly.Hopkins@Yahoo.com

A webinar on Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy for Faith-Based Communities will be held on January 25th at 6:30 pm. Please register here.

Job Opportunity - Senior Legislative Attorney; (Manager I) to the elected members of the County Council and the Council staff. Interested candidates must register HERE before they can apply for the position (or login if they already have account).

Lifelong Learning Courses -- Registration is open for Montgomery College Lifelong Learning Institute Non-Credit Courses. Offering Zoom and on-campus classes! 35 new classes are being offered in Spring 2022. Click here for registration information.

Registration is now open for "Havana's Art & Culture: The Intersection of Architecture, Planning, Preservation, and Economics." This is a 3-week virtual (online) interactive and interdisciplinary course offered by the University of Maryland from January 3-21, 2022. For flyer and links to register, click here.

U.S. Census Bureau is Hiring Field Representatives — Are you available for part-time work? Do you enjoy meeting people? Check out the Census Bureau! Become a Field Representative in YOUR area!

To submit your news and events of interest to those serving Montgomery County's emerging communities and neighbors in need, email complete details and/or a news release to the OCP Newsletter.