Sikh foundation of Virginia came into existence as a result of the efforts of several Sikh families that had settled in Northern Virginia in the early to mid-1970s. At that time, there was no Gurdwara in Virginia, and families used to go to either the Gurdwara on Military Road in Washington, DC, or the Guru Nanak Foundation of America, Silver Spring, Maryland. Once the number of dedicated families in Northern Virginia reached a critical mass, it prompted about a dozen like-minded Punjabi families to band together to explore the idea of building gurdwara in Northern Virginia to meet the religious, cultural and social needs of the community. In this regard, the first meeting was held in Fairfax County Library in Fairfax City in 1978, in which an Ad hoc Committee was formed and tasked with to write Constitution and By-Laws of a religious non-profit organization, and to look for a property to build gurdwara.