WHEREAS, Intercultural Family Services was founded in 1979 as the Philadelphia Refugee Service Center, a small resettlement agency run by volunteers. In 1992, they changed their name to Intercultural Family Services, Inc. (Intercultural) to better reflect what they had grown into, a multi-purpose human services organization supported by private and public partnerships; and
WHEREAS, Intercultural is rooted in the experiences of thousands of immigrants and refugees who came to Philadelphia to create new homes from countries around the world such as Angola, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Hungary, Laos, Poland, Romania, and Vietnam; and
WHEREAS, Intercultural’s leadership set out to build family-oriented services that were culturally competent, linguistically appropriate and, most importantly, flexible enough to be tailored to individual or family needs; and
WHEREAS, Cultural competence is the cornerstone by which Intercultural measures its success. Intercultural adheres to the belief that all individuals possess invaluable resources that are essential, not only for personal growth, but also for improved family and community relationships. Intercultural builds on the strengths inherent in the cultural heritage and values of its program participants; and
WHEREAS, On October 2, 2019, Intercultural Family Services will have a 40th Anniversary Gala celebrating their longstanding commitment to the community; now, therefore be it
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby recognizes and honors Intercultural Family Services for all the work they have been doing in immigrant and refugee communities in Philadelphia for the past 40 years.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to Intercultural Family Services as a sincere expression of the Council of the City of Philadelphia’s gratitude, admiration, and recognition.
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