Part 5—A Region Reshaped: Federal Layoffs in Maryland a Year Later
Federal Workers Continue to Turn to Faith Institutions a Year After Mass Layoffs. Faith groups from synagogues to Black churches stepped up last year to help their congregations impacted by the mass federal layoffs. The effort continues.

By ALINE BEHAR KADO and IRIT SKULNIK
Capital News Service

Soon after the mass layoffs of federal workers in Maryland last year, Ebenezer A.M.E. Church handed out $100 grocery gift cards and offered dinner boxes for community members in need.

“If you suddenly lose employment and you don’t know when the next paycheck is or how to make ends meet, you definitely rely on your faith,” said Kenneth Brown, church administrator for Ebenezer in Fort Washington.

When thousands of Marylanders suddenly lost their jobs, faith institutions across the state stepped up to help. They gave out gift cards, hosted support groups, organized networking sessions and offered prayers.

A year later some houses of worship continue their efforts to help former federal workers get back on their feet. Leaders said providing aid over the months has strengthened community relationships.

“That has lasting impact,” said Uri Topolosky, rabbi of Kehilat Pardes synagogue in Rockville. “The way people felt they were cared for made them feel this is a community or this is a faith community that will be there for them in difficult times and in beautiful times.”

Maryland, home to one of the nation’s largest federal employee populations, was hard hit by the Trump administration’s move to downsize the federal workforce.

Brown said some people leaned on faith when they felt “backed into a corner.”

Ebenezer, an African Methodist Episcopal Church, has continued to support its members still struggling by providing $2,050 food cards every two to three months.

“We continue to provide prayer for them and try to provide whatever kind of job resources,” Brown said.

United Methodist Churches in the region have awarded $150,000 to 67 congregations through their Love in Action Grant program.

“The grant was a result of the federal worker layoffs and the threat to SNAP benefits,” said Alison Burdett, director of communications for the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program provides food benefits to low-income families.

“There’s a whole wealth of resources that we offer,” said Burdett, adding that the grant will provide financial assistance, legal aid and pastoral care, among other resources.

Though applications for grants have closed, Burdett said they may reopen as needed. She said they are able to fund the grant through church offerings.

‘People turned to their houses of worship’

Throughout the layoff crisis, religious institutions played a pivotal role in providing spiritual reassurance and resources for workers, said Ron Halber, chief executive officer of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington.

“When it was happening, and I was in synagogue, I saw a slight rise in participation,” said Halber. “I’ve heard anecdotally that throughout the region, people turned to their houses of worship to just get some spiritual assistance.”

At Emory United Methodist Church, leaders set up a fund to help laid-off federal workers.

“We felt compelled to respond in some sort of way,” said Joseph Daniels Jr., pastor of the church, also known as Emory Fellowship. “Whether it was rent, whether it was food, whether it was something else, we just set up a separate fund for folks to be able to access if they had need.”

Daniels said he noticed during the layoffs a rise in attendance at the church, which is in Washington, D.C., but has many members from Maryland.

“I find that when there is suffering, people tend to go to church,” he said.

Daniels said the only way people get through those tough times is “by going deeper spiritually, by grounding ourselves in the Word, grounding ourselves in worship, grounding ourselves in spiritual disciplines of prayer and fasting, of taking care of our bodies, of exercising.”

Jewish institutions like JCRC, the Jewish Social Service Agency and the Jewish Community Center rallied around members, providing free legal services, vocational training and networking opportunities for those who had been laid off,
 
regardless of their spiritual beliefs, said Halber.

Topolosky said the first thing Kehilat Pardes did to support impacted community members was set up weekly Zoom calls.

He said the calls were to help create a stable space where those laid off could check in and share feelings. The sessions also helped the synagogue staff understand what people needed so they could best leverage resources.

“It was really a beautiful and helpful space,” Topolosky said. “It was also a way for me, as the rabbi, to know who in my community was really hurting.”

For Michael Weinraub, who was laid off from his federal contracting job last February, the weekly sessions were a chance to support others.

Weinraub said that the group offered the opportunity to build relationships within the synagogue.

“You’ve got some people who are just really, really desperately struggling,” said Weinraub, of Rockville. “They benefit from having others who are going through something similar, but maybe having a different experience.”

Halber, of JCRC, said some affected community members continue to network and support one another. Some found new jobs, others took early retirement and some were rehired by the federal government.

“There are some people who are still looking,” said Halber. “It may not be exactly the way they want it to end, but I think most people at this point that I have heard have found their new path.”

Capital News Service reporter Ian Ferris contributed to this story.

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