Maurice and his wife came to Portland, ME from Rwanda in 2014.
He is a dancer, choreographer, drummer and master of Rwandan dance. Maurice started to dance in 1995 and in 2006 he joined a group of dance at University called the Indangamuco Cultural Ballet.  Once here in Maine they joined Ikirenga cy'Intore and perform traditional Rwandan dances called Imihamirizo around the state and beyond. For links to upcoming shows click here for June and August 2 and Aug 24. 
Maurice is all about conserving his traditional cultural heritage. Additionally, he is a CNA, nursing student at UNE, father of two young children, and brand new US citizen.
Music: "Ikiribazayire" performed by Uwizihiwe Charles

Ken came to Portland from Burundi in late December 2016 as a sophomore in high school.  He learned English very quickly and took rigorous courses at Deering High School where he distinguished himself academically. 
With the help of his school's program called Make It Happen! Ken was able to find his way through the maze of college applications and will attend Connecticut College in the fall. 
Beyond his school work, his job as a cashier at a local grocery store, and volunteering at the homeless shelter, Ken also was accepted into the selective year-long program at The Telling Room.  The Young Writers and Leaders Program fosters written and spoken expression.  Through this experience Ken learned to speak publicly, share his creative works openly and he became published, all before graduating from high school. 

Music: Canco Hamisi sings "Ewe Burundi"

Ikirenga cy'Intore is a local Portland dancing and drumming group performing the traditional dances of Rwanda.  The choreography depicts scenes of hunting, fishing and other activities while wearing traditional costumes and moving to the rhythms being created on handmade drums.  Christielle Mutoniwase started the group in 2015 to perform at cultural events and weddings in the area.  There are now ten members who invite others to sample the ancient dances at many different venues.  
You can see them perform in Maine or by viewing their facebook page or their website.

Music: "Ganyobwe" by King James

Papy Bongibo came to Maine in 2010 and is now the President of the Congolese Community of Maine. The Congolese population in the state numbers about 2,000 strong.  The organization works to solve common barriers many immigrants experience: housing, education, workforce and childcare.  Presently, CoCoMaine is conducting a survey about the child care needs throughout the community so that they can develop an affordable and accessible parenting cooperative.  You can learn more about their organizing efforts on their facebook page: cocomaine.
Papy is not only the leader of CoCoMaine but he is also the founder of New England African Arts, Entertainment and Community Association which brings big name artists overseas to create a vibrant arts community to Maine venues. 

Music: Fally Ipupa sings "Maria PM"

African Dundada performs all over the Portland area.  His mission is to communicate with as many people as possible, thus he creates music in a wide variety of styles.  In this interview he demonstrates some freestyle rapping and showcases a more reggae style song he just wrote, at the end of the show.
"Sounds of the City" is a platform he is invested in which helps others to showcase their talents. More than most, African Dundada has an eye on what is best for the community and looks to make that happen.
To hear more about African Dundada's background you can listen to his first interview (click here NMS 152). 

Music: African Dundada sings "We All The Same."

Zoe and her husband Walid brought their young family to Maine in 1997 both with degrees in Information Technology. To hear the 2017 interview about her life in Lebanon click here. Seeing the need in the immigrant community Zoe formed New England Arab American Organization in 2014.  NEAAO's mission is to ease the integration of Arab immigrants into American society and bridge the gap between cultures.  NEAAO offers new and established arrivals, older and younger women of different educational and socio-economic levels access to information, support, education, workforce developement and connections in their new realities in Maine. 
Beyond the 60-70 hours a week Zoe invests in this community organization she also serves on a board to prevent sexual assault and hosts a monthly radio program at WMPG called Tarabz.

Music: Enrico Machias sings "J'ai quitte mon pays."

Stela comes from the rose oil region of Strelcha, Bulgaria. She attended high school in Plovdiv, a city she highly recommends visiting.
It has the distinction of being the European Capital of Culture for 2019.
Only having been in Maine since May 2017, Stela has already found her way to meaningful work as an accounting assistant, is taking courses for an accounting certification, tutors students at USM, and helps the workforce development endeavors at SMCC.

FMI: Global Connections video interview with Julia Trujillo Luengo and Stela Markova-Kanin. 

Music: Stefka Sabotinova sings "Prituri se Planinata"

Mariella grew up in Butare, Rwanda as the youngest of 9 children in a loving and supportive family.  25 years ago her world turned upside down because of the genocide.  She speaks here about how she coped with her losses as a young woman. Mariella has lived, worked, and studied in Rwanda, Uganda, Belgium, Denmark, and England prior to arriving in Maine last August 2018.  She is uniquely qualified to be an advisor to those undergoing transformations, having re-invented her life multiple times.  Currently,  Mariella is the Program Coordinator of  Immigrant Business Hub program at the Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center.  They offer new entrepreneurs access to support through mentorship, networking, advice, and finding capital. 
She is also a new member of the Greater Portland Health board of directors and the mother of three sons.

Music: Aline Gahongayire sings "Ndanyuzwe" (I am grateful).

This was a special one-hour round table discussion on Workforce Development in Maine. Guests highlighted a program they all experienced together at Southern Maine Community College called ESOL-to-IT as director, instructor, student, and tutor. 
Maine has a real need to develop a workforce because of an aging population with upcoming retirements as well as new business growth.  Immigrants offer a skilled and hard working labor force.  If Maine strategically plans for it we can match meaningful work with just the right workers. 
Dieudonne summarized it well, New Mainers are grateful for the help/training/support they receive here and want to remain loyal to Maine.  If Maine had more infrastructure to connect jobs and workers, immigrants and native Mainers both would be able to stay here, work, pay taxes, and contribute to building a healthier state for tomorrow, all of us together.

Guests:
David Zahn, Chair of ESOL and Global Languages Department at Southern Maine Community College. For more information on the ESOL to EMT click here
and more on SMCC's workforce training click here.

Stela Markova-Kanin, International Project Coordinator from Bulgaria who was a volunteer and tutor in the ESOL to IT and ESOL EMT programs offered at Southern Maine Community College. She spoke of free Conversational English support at YMCA where she works in accounting.

Dieudonne Nzeyimana is a pioneer in the development of IT in the Rwanda Public Administration, was COO of Population Services International and recently participated in the ESOL-to-IT workforce development program. 

Stefanie Trice Gill is the founder of IntWork, a diversity recruitment firm that specializes in matching Maine employers with engineers, IT, and other STEM professionals, mostly immigrants. She helped in a similar way with the ESOL to IT program at SMCC. MANA also offers info on workforce gap and solutions.

Music:
Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares sing "Ergen Deda" early in the program and to close
Kizito Mihigo sings "Ijoro Ribara Uwariraye"

Salma Al Adhami (Iraq) and Tracy Moore were paired through the Senior Companion Program which is a subset of Catholic Charities of Maine's American Friends Program.  The two women have worked together for four years and have come to think of the other as family. 
Salma retired from teaching first grade after thirty years.  It was a job she loved.  She lived in Basra, Hilah, and Baghdad, Iraq before moving to Westbrook, ME in 2014 to be with her surviving son.
Tracy is a social worker who volunteered through Catholic Charities of Maine and feels lucky to have meet Salma.  Tracy has helped Salma find her way to a fiber arts center and the two women love to exchange recipes and so much more. As you can hear, they care very much for one another.
Salma is also involved in the New England Arab American Organization (NEAAO) where she spends time with peers and receives instruction in swimming, Zumba, and computer literacy.
Though she brought a translator to this interview, Salma has studied English for years and wants to become independent now that she has applied for US Citizenship. 

This interview was translated by Nagham Al Ani.

Music: Samer Didi sings Hymn of Basra.