LIRS suffers Sept. 11 aftershocks

One year and two days later, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service felt — again — the impact of Sept. 11. Due to what LIRS President Ralston Deffenbaugh called "unforeseen consequences" of that day, the agency laid off 14 employees — 20 percent of its Baltimore workforce.

"Because of a combination of factors, including the shortfall in refugee arrivals, some other structural changes in our federal contracts and disappointing results in private fund-raising, we ended up [without] revenue to sustain operations at their previous level," Deffenbaugh said.

Employees were offered a severance package proportionate to their years of service, as well as outplacement assistance.