Blog Archives

118 Ghassan Hassoon

10/23/2016

Ghassan is originally from Baghdad, Iraq and has lived in Maine since he was 16. On Sept 17, 2013 Ghassan became a US Citizen and soon thereafter he participated in The Brick Project. He had a brick laid in the sidewalk on India Street in Portland to commemorate his new status. He continues to visit this brick in his new home town to reflect on his past as well as to contemplate his future plans. First goal: Ghassan hopes to complete his bachelor's degree in biochemistry at USM.
Ghassan takes his citizenship seriously and this upcoming election (Nov 8, 2016) will be Ghassan's first presidential election. He talks about why he encourages as many new Mainers to vote as possible. (Click here for voter guide)

Music: Bob Marley's "Get Up, Stand Up."

nms_118_ghassan_hassoon_iraq_october_23_2016.mp3
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117 Kwan Malwal

10/9/2016

Kwan was originally from Leer, South Sudan and came to the US in 2002, by way of Egypt. When given the choice of countries to move to he selected Maine, USA because of his interest in serving in the US Military. In 2009 he served in the US Army as a linguist, translating Arabic/English documents while stationed in Iraq.

Kwan is now the Chairman of the South Sudanese Community Association of Maine (SSCAM) with a state-wide population approaching 3,000 individuals. The office is located at 500 Forest Ave, Unit 8, Portland, Maine.

As a leader Kwan helps other South Sudanese people navigate some complicated systems in Maine, such as courts, housing, school and government. He also tries to raise awareness, wherever he goes, about the situation in South Sudan where violence is causing mass migration and strife in numbers similar to Syria, Somalia and Afghanistan.

Music: Willie Nelson sings "More Than One Way To Cry".

nms_117_kwan_malwal_south_sudan_oct_9_2016.mp3
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116 Samira Albaldawi

10/2/2016

Samira returns to New Mainers Speak (previously interviewed on August 2015, NMS 070) to thank her emergency room doctor for saving her life after being struck down on a Portland sidewalk in a hit-and-run accident on January 14, 2014. Dr. Scott McCorvey recognized Samira when she returned to the emergency room to thank those who had helped her through that terrible time. She will remain forever grateful to God and to Dr. McCorvey for saving her life. Samira is a proud Mainer who loves living independently and in safety as an active and voting citizen of the United States.

When she lived in Baghdad, Samira was a statistician and branch manager for Rashid Bank where she supervised 10 other employees. She describes herself as a life-long learner and shares what education has meant to her family over the years.

Music: Amir ElSaffar sings "Khosh Reng" from his Two Rivers album.

nms_116_samira_albaldawi_iraq_oct_2_2016.mp3
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118 Ghassan Hassoon

117 Kwan Malwal

116 Samira Albaldawi

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