What can we do to help New Mainers thrive?

We’ve all seen the photos – boatloads of desperate migrants, refugee children washed up dead on the beach, refugee camps with tents as far as the eye can see. War, conflict, and persecution in many parts of the world in recent years have forced over 19 million desperate people to leave their homelands and seek safety in strange lands. Of these many millions, 442 refugees were resettled in Maine in 2015.

Have you wondered what you can do to help? I know I’ve wondered the same thing. Recently I heard about the Fourth Annual Global Awareness and Responsibility Conference, at the University of Southern Maine, and I wanted to let others know about it too.

The conference will take place Friday, December 9th from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm and Saturday, December 10th between 9:30 am and 4:00 pm. The conference theme is: “Continuing Crisis in Africa – How You Can Help” and is sponsored by the Ladder to the Moon Network, which is focused on educating the public about what we can do to help, both abroad and here in Maine. The conference is free of charge.

For information please contact: Georges Budagu Makoko, Coordinator, at gbudagu@yahoo.fr or call (207) 239-9555. Information and registration (free) is available at http://globalawarenessresponsibility.eventbrite.com

I hope to see you there!

Kathreen Harrison

About Kathreen Harrison

Kathreen Harrison is a public school teacher in Maine. She has a master’s degree from Bank Street College of Education and a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College. She has worked in a variety of schools in New York and Maine in a number of capacities – French teacher, gifted and talented teacher, elementary school teacher, and curriculum coordinator for island schools. She has lived in Maine for 20 years and has a particular interest in school reform.