Category: Helmer Happenings

The opportunity to serve in our General Assembly has been the honor of a lifetime. Over the past two years, our office has passed transformative legislation that put food on the table of tens of thousands of Virginia families, expanded access to voting for students and members of the military, and put college in reach…

I hope all had a chance to enjoy their Independence Day. We have had some challenging moments as a country over the past few years. Nevertheless, when I think over the course of human history and even my own family’s history and challenges, I do feel lucky to be an American and to live in…

Like many, I was devastated by Supreme Court decisions this past week on guns and women’s healthcare. As a legislator and in the Army, I’ve sworn oaths to uphold and defend our Constitution. Settled law about our Constitution for generations has allowed for commonsense gun violence prevention measures – indeed, some of the first gun…

Like many of you, my heart has broken – repeatedly – in recent weeks. A couple weeks ago, we witnessed the murder of ten Black Americans at a grocery store in Buffalo. Last week, we witnessed the murder of nineteen students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. For all of us, the…

Last week, I had the opportunity to tour the Richmond Electricians’ Joint Apprenticeship Committee building with members of the environmental advocacy community and labor groups, an outgrowth of my own efforts to bring together labor and the environmental community for regular conversations. These days, there is a lot of talk about “sustainability.” For me, we…

For too many Virginians, an unexpected medical issue triggers financial ruin. That’s just not right. So this year, we introduced a bill to protect Virginians from medical debt. We worked across the aisle and garnered bipartisan support from almost every member of the House and Senate. Governor Youngkin vetoed the bill. Too many Virginians face…

Across our community, people are celebrating Easter, Passover, and Baisakhi this week as our Muslim neighbors continue to observe Ramadan. It is a testament to the diversity of our community and our strength that we can all celebrate our faiths together. With so many here coming, as my family did, from lands where persecution was…

Spring is upon us, and it’s great to be home with all of you and able to take part in events with our community. Enjoy the Cherry Blossoms, and let’s hope that by the time they all fall we have an incredibly qualified new justice on the US Supreme Court; some salve for the soul.   Community…

The costs of everything are going up, and it’s hurting a lot of people. Some of this is the inevitable result of a global pandemic. Some of it is the result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and economic sanctions. Plenty of it, however, is the result of corporate welfare and collusion. Over the past three…

My grandmother was born in Zolochiv, a few years after the town was the subject of fighting by Soviet soldiers who sought to seize it in the wake of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire. In 1939, the Soviets seized the town again. In 1945, they occupied it permanently, incorporating it into the Soviet Union. Their…