Sephardic Festival Family Program
Musical Storytelling, Songs, and Dance with Lisa Mayer and Rabbi Sruli Dresdner | 11:00 am
Luncheon featuring traditional Sephardic food | 12:30 pm
Songs of the Sephardim in Izmir, a documentary short, and conversation with filmmaker Brooke Saias. | 1:30 pm
Film Screenings and Performance
The United States of Elie Tahari | 4:00 pm
Seven Blessings | 6:00 pm
Sephardic Music by Cantor Sheila Nesis, Seth Warner, guitar, and Eric LaPerna, percussion | 8:00 pm
The Immigrant Business Owner’s Guide to Financial Projections
This workshop is for startup founders and small business owners looking to understand the basics of financial projections. In this session, you'll learn how to create realistic revenue, expense, and cash flow projections to guide your business decisions and secure funding. Whether you're just starting out or refining your existing business strategy, this workshop will equip you with the knowledge to confidently forecast your financial future.
Instructor Whit Ford owned a small Maine company for 25 years, after working in industrial marketing, strategic planning, software development, and education. He has been a SCORE mentor for seven years.
If you are an immigrant entrepreneur and want to move your business forward, join us!
Register here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-immigrant-business-owners-guide-to-financial-projections-tickets-1041088322197?aff=oddtdtcreator
Grass Roots Organizing Weekend
The goal of GROW is to create a culture of organizing as the way to make change and build grassroots power in the state. The theme every year typically rotates between Skills, Tactics, and Strategies. These gatherings also offer a lot of breathing room for reflection, art-making, community connection, and replenishment. This year our offerings will be as focused on organizer and activist wellbeing as they are on skills-building.
Workshops, education, and activities for this year will focus on
Organizing 101/102
Wabanaki History & Land Acknowledgements
Creating Art for Change and Healing
Direct Action
How to Make Zines
Holding Space for Collective Grief - The Work That Reconnects
A Year in Review of Ceasefire Activism
Opposition Analysis
Community Care and Nervous System Support
…and more to be announced!
Other offerings/activities:
Open mic
Community bonfire
GROW weekend library
Clothing swap
Community art
Access to lake and boating
...and more to be announced!
What does it cost?
We ask people to pay 0-$100 for each day of GROW. All are welcome no matter what you are able to pay. If you and your family don’t have a lot of money, feel free to pay on the lower end or pay nothing. If you and your family have more money, please consider paying more and taking part in class solidarity.
What is class solidarity?
Class refers to where you and your family fit into the world regarding finances (for example: poor, working class, middle class, wealthy). GROW is put together on a shoestring budget so we can make sure it is accessible to all. If you and your family are people who can pay more for you to go to the GROW so others can pay less, please consider doing so. If you do so, you will be taking an action of solidarity and making GROW more accessible for people who cannot afford to pay much.
No matter what you pay for the GROW, there is no judgment. Pay what you can but most importantly come!
HOW TO REGISTER:
Click here: https://forms.gle/g271484LnmRY7df6A
How to pay the event fee
The link to pay is separate from the registration link and can be found here. You can also pay when you arrive instead, but note that even if you pay ahead you still need to fill out the registration form to have your slot held!
Transportation note:
If you’d like to come but transportation will pose a barrier, please add yourself to our carpool board, and/or contact Sass at sass.rosc@gmail.com or Sett at sett.rosc@gmail.com
If you have any questions:
E-mail: Sass at sass.rosc@gmail.com and/or Sett at sett.rosc@gmail.com
Call: 207.607.2571
Workshop: A Beginners Guide to Writing a Business Plan
Do you have an idea for a new business but don’t know how to get started? Are you looking for financing for an existing business? Do you want to grow your business? In all three of these situations, a business plan is useful and, sometimes, required. In general, it is a tool for you to better understand your business and plan for the future.
For many people, writing a business plan feels overwhelming. This workshop will help you better understand:
Why a business plan is important
How it can help you plan and understand your business
What the basic parts of a business plan are
How to get started writing your business plan
Where to find help creating your business plan
If you are an immigrant entrepreneur and want to move your business forward, join us!
Questions? Email us at bizhub@welcomeimmigrant.org or call the Business Hub at 207.517.3401 ex. 822.
We are planning to provide interpretation services. Please fill out your preferred language in the event registration form and we will be in touch.
Register HERE.
2024 Justice for Women Lecture
The 2024 Justice For Women Lecture will feature Juliet Mwongeli Muema and Maria Omare, both of Kenya. Muema and Omare will present their lecture,
Empowering Women and Girls with Disabilities: Fighting Discrimination, and Promoting Inclusion,
on Thursday, September, 26, from 6:30 - 8 p.m. at Hannaford Hall, located in the
on the USM campus. Register to attend in person or virtually.
Register here:
Dancing with Dylan
From Madeleine Saucier: I am pleased to invite you to Dancin' with Dylan, a fundraiser for Hope Acts to be held on Saturday, September 21, 2024, at Cove Street Arts in Portland. Dancin' promises to be a fun evening of live music, dancing, and light refreshments. All funds raised from this event will support our programs, allowing us to continue addressing the needs of the communities we serve. Tickets for the event can be purchased on our website HERE.
Hope Acts offers asylum seekers access to housing and basic needs, assistance in navigating complex immigration processes, and resources for learning English to help them successfully transition to a new life in Maine.
In 2023, our team provided a record number of services to clients:
2,833 new client intakes
5,081 client meetings
839 households received individualized housing education
106 households secured housing (268 people: 161 adults & 107 children)
20 adults (13 simultaneously) lived at Hope House
1,221 work permit applications completed (892 adults & 362 children)
327 households (380 adults and 166 children) completed an asylum application
English classes for over 350 students
Please join us to build on this work and support asylum seekers who call Maine home.
Shared Space Cafe
From Pious Ali: “About a year ago, Portland Empowered partnered with the Maine State Parent Ambassadors (KVCAP) and DHHS to train immigrant parents from Portland, South Portland, and Westbrook on the resources available to them in the state.
Last week, our Parent Ambassadors from South Portland hosted a Shared Space Cafe where they shared what they have learned and the resources available to other parents. This coming weekend, we will be holding another Shared Space Cafe in Westbrook. Please share this flyer with any parents you know who have children aged 0-8.
For those of you who speak only English, here is what you’ll find on the flyer:
"Raising children in America can be challenging. Meet with community parent leaders! Get the help you need, make your parenting journey easier, and learn about the supports available in your community."
Other languages of the flier are available as well.
Portland Park(ing) Day 2024
IWC will be hosting a table right outside our building for Portland Park(ing) Day! See details below.
Mark your calendar for Friday, September 20, 2024! On this exciting day, parking spots across downtown Portland, Maine will transform into vibrant community parks. Join us for a celebration filled with connection, creativity, and fun!
Portland Park(ing) Day is part of a global movement where cities reinvent public spaces. Portland Downtown and the City of Portland Sustainability Office, together with local nonprofits, organizations, and businesses, will create dynamic parklets that inspire and engage. Last year, we delighted visitors with the “Where’s Slugger?” photo gallery and a Baxter Woods replica. This year promises even more creativity!
For updates, follow @PortlandDowntown on Instagram or Facebook.
Here’s How to Join the Fun:
Grab Your Map & Card: Pick up your event map and participation card from various locations in Portland, or download them closer to the event. The map will show all participating parklets.
Discover the Parklets: Wander through unique, interactive parklets around the city. Each one offers engaging activities designed to inspire and connect.
Collect Stamps: Visit each parklet and get your card stamped. The more stamps you collect, the greater your chances to win a prize!
Enter to Win: After gathering all stamps, return your completed card to enter a drawing for a $100 gift card to a downtown business of your choice, courtesy of Portland Downtown.
Stay Updated: We will share a digital map with parklet locations and printed cards for pick-up or download. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram or Facebook @PortlandDowntown.
Don’t miss this chance to experience Portland in a fresh, creative light! For more information, email us at info@portlandmaine.com with the subject line “Park(ing) Day.”
Internationally Trained Professionals Bring Your Talents to Maine
University of Southern Maine Libraries & Learning and the Office of Equity, Inclusion, and Community Impact present a panel of Internationally Trained Professionals at USM who will discuss their experiences as professionals, immigrants, and University students. Following the panel, participants are invited to network and create art together.
Free and open to the public. September 19, 2024, 5:00-8:00 PM, 51 Westminster St., Lewiston, Maine, University of Southern Maine Lewiston-Auburn Campus. Art supplies, materials, and refreshments will be provided.
A limited number of participant stipends are available to support the transportation needs and work or care responsibilities of first- and second-generation immigrants. Language interpretation is available by request. See registration form for details or email Jill at jill.piekut@maine.edu. Please register at https://forms.gle/LH4TXXGzXtdgSCvB6.
If you have questions about disability access or need to request disability accommodations (e.g. sign language interpreters, materials in electronic format, etc.), please contact Jill at jill.piekut@maine.edu.
Living and Learning in Maine: New Mainers Creating a Home is a creative workshop series about print culture, history, immigration, and the arts, hosted by University of Southern Maine Libraries & Learning with support from the California Rare Book School, Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, and the Kate Cheney Chappell ’83 Center for Book Arts.
Prosperity Maine: Housing Forum on new Mainers
Please join us on September 17th from 1:00pm-4:30 pm at the DoubleTree Hotel in South Portland for ProsperityME’s first Housing Forum:
The Housing Journey & Challenges of New Mainers.
ProsperityME is proud to host a panel of experts, advocates, local leaders, and new Mainers to discuss housing solutions and highlight the challenges that immigrants and refugees face to secure housing when they arrive in Maine.
Program Schedule
12:30-1:00pm Registration
1:00pm Welcome and Opening Remarks
Panel 1 Our Housing Journey: The Immigrant Experience
Panel 2 The Highs and Lows of Affordable Housing Services
Panel 3 How can we better respond to the housing needs of new Mainers?
Closing Remarks
Location Address
DoubleTree Hotel
363 Maine Mall Rd
South Portland, Maine 04106
This is an invite only event. Seating is limited so early registration encouraged. Please RSVP at the link below. For more information, contact our Deputy Director, Ellen McFarland at emcfarland@prosperityme.org
Maine Coalition for Palestine: Community Days
The Maine Coalition for Palestine is hosting two Community Days in September! Portland Deering Pavilion Sept 8th and Bangor waterfront Sept 29th! Food vendors, dance, art, and discussion! We are intending this day to platform people from the Palestinian, Sudanese, Somali, and Wabanaki community. we'll have singing, debke, and kid activities along with community discussion on how we grow our awareness in a multi-crisis world while also helping bring the genocide against palestinians to a stop. we understand that together our efforts can accomplish great things with voices from all communities.
Untitled Event
Join us for a restorative day where you will connect with others, explore self-care practices, and learn from mental health professionals!
RSVP here:
Mexican Mobile Consulate
This event will be issuing passport, consular ID’s, Voter’s ID and birth certificate for our Mexican Community in Maine.