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Evacuee Support Network


The Evacuee Support Network (ESN) works hand in hand with the State Department Global Community Liaison Office (GCLO), which includes our flyer in the information given to evacuees. Recently, the ESN has been active with evacuations from Israel in October 2023 and Bangladesh in July 2024.

The Network sends out information through the AAFSW Livelines and other social media sites such as AAFSW Global Connection and Trailing Houses Facebook groups. Once an evacuee with a need contacts AAFSW, we call volunteers to help. The ESN has about 100 volunteers ready to help in various capacities (adults, kids, pets); some have lived through evacuations themselves. Consider joining us and becoming a volunteer! Use our contact form to get in touch.

Background

The Evacuee Support Network was founded in the 1980s by a group of AAFSW members who were concerned about the rising number of family members who were being evacuated from posts around the world for a variety of reasons.

Since then the ESN has helped over 1,500 evacuees to the Washington, D.C. area and other states, and assisted them in their journeys. Over the years volunteers have babysat and offered advice on housing, schools, and hotels. Volunteers have lent winter coats, toys, strollers, and cribs. Evacuees have spent Thanksgivings, Christmases, and Passovers with volunteers who have been friends to frazzled families.

The ESN launches from disaster to disaster. There was the Rwanda Genocide in 1994 and the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 followed by the Arab Spring in 2011 where volunteers helped more than 100 families evacuate from Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries. The summer of 2017 brought families home from Venezuela, from the Embassy and three consulates in Russia, and from the hurricane-plagued Caribbean region. The year 2020 was rich in crisis. The Pandemic which began in China brought families home from the Embassy and multiple consulates in February. Global authorized and ordered departures followed this first wave of evacuees. The Network was able to coordinate with the Junior League of Washington whose annual giant rummage sale had been canceled due to the pandemic. Evacuees were able to shop “free”.

GCLO has compiled an extensive list of help for evacuees, from the definition of Authorized and Ordered departures to Go bag/Stay bag to lists of furnished housing in the area. For other questions, people can email GCLOAskevacuations@state.gov. 

Authorized Departure vs. Ordered Departure:  An evacuation can be either an Authorized Departure (AD) or Ordered Departure (OD), or a combination of both, for designated persons (e.g., AD for government employees and OD for eligible family members). The key difference between AD and OD is choice. Under OD, designated personnel and/or family members are required to depart post, while AD is voluntary and allows designated employees and/or family members to depart at their own discretion. The Department tailors evacuations to fit posts’ particular circumstances.  The Department may change from AD to OD for designated persons as the situation evolves, but switching from OD to AD is not permitted. Allowances for both OD and AD are the same although allowances may vary according to circumstances.

Resources

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