A Message from the Chairperson: Farewell 2025

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

On behalf of our Board of Directors–Christina, Jenn, Thea, Bruce and myself, I want to thank all of our Members, Partners and Affiliates for the commitment you have made to work together over the past year. For the survivor families and individuals whose lives we have touch, I have seen first-hand, what an incredible difference we have made in their lives, and the hope that our cooperation, communication, collaboration and coordination has brought to them.

We have continued our support of the Eastern Shore Long-Term Recovery Committee’s work to elevate and repair 100 homes on the Lower Eastern Shore. We have supported the communities in the George’s Creek Valley of Allegany County when devastating floods ravaged many homes in May. We have helped these communities establish the Western Maryland Long Term Recovery Group and begin their work of helping survivors reach recovery. (At our Quarterly Meeting on Monday we will have time to review the work we have done together in the George’s Creek Valley.) We are on the cusp of putting the Maryland VOAD tool trailer into service, as we are securing the best supplier to spend our $25,000 raised for purchase of new tools. This list doesn’t include the myriad of responses many of you have made individually, that reflects positively on all of us.

We (Maryland VOAD) is made up of 60 organizations. It might seem to the outsider that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to get that many organizations to work together. But, that simply is not my experience as one who is involved in this coordination. One of my great joys is what I experience as an extremely high level of commitment to work together for the good of the residents of Maryland. I believe this is our greatest achievement of this past year (and previous years)!

As this year comes to a close and we enter the most special of holiday seasons, I wish all of you and your families the best of celebrations and holiday gatherings. I look forward to our work together in 2026–knowing, unfortunately, there will undoubtably be much to do.

Holiday blessings to all!

Phil