Vermont Business Magazine Senator Patrick Leahy, Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Peter Welch said in a joint statement today: “We learned this morning that the City of Rutland will receive refugees who have fled the relentless violence in Syria and Iraq, sometimes with just the clothes on their backs. The vast majority of refugees admitted from Syria have been women and children, and when we see the photographs of children fleeing this awful tragedy, we see our own children and are called to do our part to help. We know the good people of Rutland and Vermont will welcome these newcomers into the community. Struggling families, fleeing peril and motivated to start their lives anew, always have and always will enrich America and contribute immeasurably to our state. We are also very pleased that in a separate announcement, the Department of Health and Human Service has awarded Vermont a $150,000 grant to help the newly resettled refugees obtain employment and achieve self-sufficiency.”
The Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program/USCRI said in a post this morning on its Facebook page that: "We have received notification from the US State Department.
"The Syrians are coming to Rutland Vermont! This outcome was expected, Rutland is a welcoming community. It is not certain when the first arrivals will come but, we certainly hope it will be before the end of the year. It will take time to set up an office and hire and train staff. We have no doubt that Syrian’s, just like many other groups that came before them, will be successful."
Rutland Mayor Chris Louras announced last April that he would seek to resettle 100 Syrian refugees in the city. That announcement created a political and social firestorm, which appears to have finally broken the mayor's way.