Mayor, Biden share a moment President speaks with Arulampalam family from White House By Stephen Underwood Hartford Courant image source:linkedin Before Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam headed to the U.S. Conference of Mayors at the White House last month, he dusted off a beloved wool coat that had belonged to his grandfather to bring a piece of his family with him. The coat sparked an emotional exchange with the president of the United States. “My grandfather bought the coat when we left Sri Lanka and moved to England. When he passed away, my grandmother gave it to me,” Arulampalam said Wednesday. “I was thinking about that when I was in the Blue Room of the White House and started to be overcome with emotions.” Arulampalam’s family fled Sri Lanka in 1983 at the start of the Sri Lankan Civil War and moved to England before settling in Zimbabwe. Arulampalam relocated with ...
Mar 12, 2024
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Tagged American Dream, Annual Mayor Invitation, Arunan Arulampalam, Blue Room, Connecticut's Capital City, Emory University, Emotional Exchange, Family Coat, Family Heritage, Federal Resources, Hartford Mayor, New Mayors, President Biden, Presidential Meeting, Quinnipiac University School of Law, Refugee Story, Sri Lankan civil war, U.S. Conference of Mayors, White House
