WHEREAS, community members are essential to our Commonwealth’s success, prosperity, and quality of life, and their experiences and relationships are vital to establishing a strong foundation for healthy development; and

WHEREAS, families thrive in, stable, and through nurturing communities and positive connections with caring individuals that foster healthy development; and

WHEREAS, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are defined as potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood, such as experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect, which have a tremendous impact across the lifespan of an individual; and

WHEREAS, fostering resilience in response to potential ACEs is a shared community responsibility that impacts the current and future quality of life in the community; and

WHEREAS, investing in programs, strategies, and policies that support children and adults can helps ensure that communities develop resilience; and

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth of Virginia encourages all individuals, families, groups, and organizations to work together in efforts to promote and foster resilience, thereby ensuring positive childhood experiences and strengthening our communities; and

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Abigail D. Spanberger, Governor, do hereby recognize May 1-7, 2026, as RESILIENCE WEEK in the COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.