Greetings!
February, the year’s shortest month, includes the observance and celebration of Black History Month and Valentine’s Day. Black History Month reminds us of the sacrifices made by those who were kidnapped and brought to this land in chains and the civil rights giants that battled racism, exclusion, and violence. We stand on their shoulders.
For us at IWC, February begins and ends with serving our new neighbors, be it teaching them English, distributing free and healthy food to families in need, cooking healthy dishes with our clients while educating them on the benefits of healthy diets, listening with intent and finding solutions to the problem they face, supporting the new business owners in starting and expanding businesses, or lowering and removing barriers they face in becoming Americans. We take pride in welcoming them to Maine, with a warm cup of tea or coffee and a smile.
From free indoor concerts to weekly interactive cooking workshops to coaching on how to write a first resume, we engage New Mainers, with open arms under a sign that says it all: Immigrant Welcome Center!
We cannot accomplish our tasks and implement IWC’s mission without our team of volunteers and the support of our funders and individual donors. In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, we say, “We love you Portland,” for making our dream of welcoming those displaced by force and others coming to Maine by choice a sweet reality.
~ Reza Jalali, Executive Director
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New Program Announcement! |
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Federal funding received to launch Women Lead, a program that will support immigrant women in reaching their educational, professional, or entrepreneurial goals.
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IWC is thrilled to share that we have received $619,000 from the federal government to launch our Women Lead program (see link to full article below, or read more on our website).
Women Lead is an initiative run by women for women, that aims to empower immigrant women to reach economic independence. It will support women to pursue training needed to achieve their goals, whether those be educational, professional or entrepreneurial. IWC will be providing financial support, language acquisition support, leadership modules, resume-building courses, networking opportunities, learning modules, and more.
This program is still in the works; however, it is hoped to be up and running by the Summer of 2023. Anyone interested in becoming a candidate for the program may fill out the application below.
IWC will be reaching out to schedule times to meet the candidates as the start date gets closer.
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Fabiola Mendez is an exceptional instrumentalist, a virtuoso on the Puerto Rican cuatro (10-string “cross between a guitar and a mandolin”), an evocative singer and skilled composer.
She will perform with her trio, including a bassist and percussionist, in the Great Hall of the Portland Museum of Art, as a part of IWC’s New Mainers on Stage concert series, at 6:00PM on Friday, March 3, 2023.
Admission to the concert is FREE, as is admission to the Museum. This event coincides with Creative Portland’s popular First Friday Art Walk. New Mainers on Stage is supported in part by a grant from the Onion Foundation.
We hope you join us!
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Women Lead candidates attend Governor's Inauguration alongside members of the IWC community
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Candidates for IWC’s Women Lead Program, IWC’s Executive Director, Reza Jalali, some of IWC’s board members and candidates for IWC’s Women Lead program, were invited to attend the inauguration and subsequent celebration of Maine’s 75th Governor, Janet T. Mills. Invitees had a great time meeting the governor, mingling with other attendees, and sharing their stories–where they are from and where they are going.
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Immigrants receive business advice from local experts |
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In mid-January, we hosted Coastal Enterprise Institute and cPort Credit Union for a business consultation event. During this event, experts answered questions about starting a business, growing a business, finding financial resources and much more. More than 20 members of our Business Hub showed up as well as several other members of the community. |
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Citizenship and Civic Engagement |
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Community Navigators shift focus from voter registration outreach to Food Security and Nutrition Program |
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As we transition out of the election season, our Community Navigators have been turning their focus towards our Food Security and Nutrition program. Although outreach into high immigrant population areas has continued, the language used to interact with individuals has been revolving around nutritious eating and buying on a budget.
Additionally, the New Year has brought new training and workshops for the team. These trainings have been and continue to be focused on the needs of IWC's constituents, such as a SNAP/ EBT training with Maine Equal Justice, training on the legal procedures required of those seeking asylum, and rapid re-housing training with Preble Street. Our Community Navigators have also been doing light case management work, including acting as the middleman between landlords and clients, and getting warm clothing for clients this winter.
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Food Security and Nutrition Program |
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From Maine Snap ED come weekly cooking classes where students are regaling |
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Every Wednesday Jane Winarta from Maine SNAP-ed has been bringing us wonderful tips on how to buy and cook healthy, culturally appropriate foods on a budget. This program is transitioning into a six-week series titled ‘Cooking Matters’ with a greater focus on cooking, to reflect the positive reception we received from our learners. It is a delight to witness New Mainer’s learning alongside each other as they create delicious foods and teach us a lot about foods from their cultures along the way!
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New Mainers receive helpful tips on how to navigate American grocery stores |
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The last Tuesday of each month, we join Alexis Guy of Maine SNAP-Ed at Hannaford for a Tour the Store event. This event highlights how to shop healthy on a budget, how to navigate the setup of American grocery stores, how to read nutrition labels and much more. This tour is done in a different language each month, and participants receive $20 worth of gift cards to Hannaford afterwards to shop around. |
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New classes and more students and a busy lab, oh my! |
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IWC’s iEnglish Project has started a new partnership with Avesta Housing. Two classes began in January—one beginner and one intermediate—and, as of February 13th, a second beginner class has been added to accommodate the high enrollment.
This winter, EnGen-based classes and lab sessions for employees at Northern Light Mercy Hospital and for trainees at FedCap in South Portland will continue to be offered. Additionally, class instruction via Zoom has been expanded to reach learners at FedCap’s Lewiston and Augusta sites. The iEnglish program is excited to plan for a new class for Goodwill Northern New England set to start soon.
The language lab has continued to host regular learners while welcoming a steady flow of new ones. 32 new learners have been registered in January alone. In addition to learning English, we have supported our learners in many ways, including helping them find and obtain resources in the Greater Portland area, referring them to community colleges and matching them with career mentors.
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Check out these recent articles related to IWC! |
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Immigrant Advocates in Maine Praise New Refugee Resettlement Program |
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New Program Will Help Immigrant Women Achieve Professional Goals |
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IWC is expanding! Join us in welcoming our new staff member and updated staff positions |
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DANIELLE KING
Danielle King is the Operations Coordinator at the Immigrant Welcome Center and is excited for the opportunity to support and work alongside New Mainers. Before joining the IWC, Danielle worked in operations, management and bookkeeping for nonprofits as well as the small business she has owned with her husband for over 20 years. Danielle graduated from Colby College and then spent several years working as a photographer and darkroom manager. She is passionate about the arts and travel. A lover of animals, she and her husband care for over 50 "pets" on their hobby farm. In her free time, she loves to take advantage of Maine's four seasons with her family hiking, skiing and on the water.
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ELIZABETH DONATO
Elizabeth Donato has been working on the Citizenship and Civic Engagement team of IWC for some time, though recently made the transition from Community Navigator to Language Facilitator. Elizabeth has lived in Portland most of her life and is committed to bringing awareness to the resources available for new immigrants and to the larger immigrant communities. You will find Elizabeth busy helping familiar and new faces in our iEnglish lab and is well loved by all of our learners!
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GABRIELLE ROXON
Gabrielle Roxon, a native of England, came to us as an intern on her path in becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), and stayed as a Community Navigator on our Citizenship and Civic Engagement team. Gabrielle has worked and traveled in numerous countries around the world, including Nepal, India, Mexico, Ecuador, France, and Spain, working predominantly in education and agriculture. She is bilingual in English and Spanish and loves the immersion in the speakers of languages besides English that visit us at the center! Her former work experience aligns well with her involvement in our Food Security and Nutrition program, in addition to some experience and interest in community event planning. Although Gabrielle moves towards a clinical counseling career, she is passionate about working with the New Mainer population here in Portland and beyond, as she aspires to combine her cultural curiosity with her passion for equity and social justice.
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View our current job openings and information regarding how to apply. |
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Thank you Jean, Kyra and Betsy! |
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Jean Ward, a retired teacher, has been tutoring New Mainers at Northern Light Mercy.
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Kyra Babakian, a staff clinician at Bowdoin College, has been a volunteer mentor for New Mainer's at MaineMed.
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Betsy Mahoney is a retired immigration lawyer who has been helping individuals apply for asylum. She has also been providing information to staff and clientele on the legal process of applying for asylum.
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Thank you to all our volunteers for your support!
Interested in volunteering with IWC? We'd love to have you! Currently, we are looking for experienced ESOL instructors who can teach basic-to-intermediate-level English to small classes of new immigrants. If you are interested and able, please send your resume and availability this spring and summer to connie@welcomeimmigrant.org, and we will follow up with an in-person or virtual interview.
If you are interested in other volunteer opportunities, fill out the volunteer form on our website. We'll be in touch as opportunities arise.
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Your Contribution Matters
The Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center is a vital link connecting New Mainers with the opportunities our community offers. We help them to help themselves – to attain English fluency, prepare for a job interview, attend college, shop for nutritious food, vote, start their own business, apply for a bank loan and become a US citizen. IWC helps today’s traumatized newcomers become tomorrow’s dynamic leaders.
Your support allows our programs to continue responding to the needs of our new neighbors and expand to accommodate all the new arrivals. Your contribution makes a difference in their lives. Please consider a gift to The Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center.
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Find us on social media or visit our website: |
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