December 8, 2015, Virginia. The American Turkish Friendship Association (ATFA) partnered with Rumi Forum to host a Gala Dinner to benefit Syrian refugees at the Tyson’s Corner Marriott in Virginia. This year’s Syrian Blanket Drive was from November 9th – December 4th.
Also this year, several organizations, including aid organizations, religious groups and elected officials coordinated with the Northern Virginia Regional Commission to collect blankets to help Syrian refugees in Turkey. The program began at 6.30pm with a reception and welcoming remarks from Vaner Kaplan, Director of AFTA. Remarks were provided by Mark Gibb, Executive Director of Northern Virginia Regional Commission; Scott York, Chairman, Loudoun County; Sharon Bulova, Chairperson of Fairfax County; Osman Dulgeroglu, CEO of Embrace Relief; Emre Celik, President of Rumi Forum. The Keynote speech of the evening was given by Dr. Simon Henshaw, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the US Department of State
Donations dropped off at the the Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC), Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Dar Al Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church and ADAMS Center in Sterling.
For more information on the blanket drive initiative, please visit http://helpsyrianrefugees.us/
