Tree Street Youth changes lives

By U.S. Sen. Angus King

(I-Maine)

    With World Refugee Day on Saturday, June 20th, I would like to highlight an organization that is making a difference in Maine by helping young people – particularly young refugees from Somalia, Sudan, and other African countries – to expand their horizons. As the roots of our refugee and immigrant population continue to grow stronger in Maine – and in the process, strengthen our communities – a group called Tree Street Youth is helping to nurture that growth, one student at a time.

    Maine’s history, like the rest of America, is inexorably linked to immigration. With the exception of our native tribes, we are all from somewhere else originally. It began with European immigrants from England, Scotland, Ireland, then people with French heritage came down from Canada, and Swedes settled in Aroostook County. For years, immigrants found work in Maine’s busy mill towns. Now their descendants are our local leaders, our business owners, our neighbors, friends, and family.

    And just as previous waves of immigrants have come to Maine in search of a better life for themselves and their children, newer immigrants – including refugees, asylees, and asylum seekers, from Somalia, South Sudan, and several Central African countries – are making new homes in Maine and making Maine more diverse, more dynamic, and a better place in the process.

    And I think it’s important to point out that the refugees are people who we’ve invited to come to this country because the conditions in their former countries were so unstable or because they feared persecution. These are people looking for a new start who are willing to work hard. But like anyone who finds themselves in a new wholly unfamiliar situation, they can use some help and support. And groups like Tree Street Youth are so important and can have such significant impact because they smooth the transition and help promote cooperation and understanding within the community.

    Founded in 2011 by two former Bates College students – Julia Sleeper and Kim Sullivan – who recognized the need for such a group, Tree Street Youth is dedicated to supporting young people in the Lewiston-Auburn area through academics, the arts, and athletics. The organization, which originally grew out of an after school homework help program, now provides local youth with a safe space to promote healthy physical, social, emotional, and academic development. Through its flourishing arts, college prep, and job training programs, Tree Street is not only giving young people the tools, support, and confidence they need to succeed, it’s also helping to bring students from all different backgrounds together.

    Tree Street Youth has proven to be a tremendous resource in Lewiston and Auburn, particularly for young people from immigrant families. The support services and sense of community provided at Tree Street empowers these young people to be independent, productive members of society. And while integrating into the community can be difficult for recent immigrants, refugees, and their families, the Tree Street experience helps to connect young people to their peers and the community as a whole. This is a two-way street of understanding that helps bring everyone together.

    And just as Tree Street Youth improves young lives, those young people can in turn improve Maine and can improve the rest of this great country. We need motivated, talented, and creative people from all backgrounds if we are going to keep pace with the rest of the world.

    This is what America is all about. It’s about families from around the world finding a new start, bringing with them new perspectives and new hope for the future. It’s about a melting pot of people, cultures, and ideas that combine to create a tapestry that is much stronger than any of its individual threads.

    Welcoming new people and cultures hasn’t always been easy. Sometimes our differences are more immediately apparent than our similarities, but over the years, immigrants and refugees have proven to be an irreplaceable part of America. Tree Street Youth has proven that support and community engagement can help ease the transition and create a brighter future.  That’s good news for Maine, and good news for the country.