program11/10
Posted by Guy Van der Werf
Building community with our immigrant neighbors
How can we, as a community, communicate with our immigrant neighbors? How can we get “past the doorways and into the kitchens”—the heart and soul of the lives of our immigrant neighbors?
Leonor Kennell, the Estes Valley Library English Language Learning Outreach Coordinator and parent educator for Spanish-speaking families for EVICS (Estes Valley Investment in Childhood Success), will speak at the Rotary Club of Estes Park on Thursday, Nov. 10, at the regular noon meeting.
Kennell plans to summarize the Estes Valley Library’s efforts to reach out to English language learners and immigrants that live in our community, through current and future programming and acquisition of appropriate materials. In addition, she will highlight the library’s partnership with Intercambio, a program based in Boulder which provides materials for English language learning. Finally, she hopes to communicate how we can go beyond the typical programming and events that we do in our community.
With over 30 years of teaching experience in a variety of regular, special education and bilingual programs, Kennell also coordinated an adult education program, in collaboration with the National Institute for Adult Education of Mexico, which provided the opportunity for adults from Mexico to complete their primary and secondary education. The majority of her professional experience has involved working with young immigrant children and their families, which prepared her well for her current role.
Rotary is an organization of business and professional leaders who provide humanitarian service and help to build goodwill and peace in the world. There are 1.2 million Rotary members in 34,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Rotary clubs have been serving communities worldwide for more than a century. Rotary clubs around the world initiate projects that address critical issues such as conflict resolution, hunger, poverty, disease and illiteracy.
The Rotary Club of Estes Park meets Thursdays at the Rodeway Inn in Estes Park. Visitors interested in learning more about Rotary and its programs are welcome to attend. Buffet is served at 11:30 a.m., the Rotary business meeting opens at noon, and the program begins at 12:30 p.m.