Senator Collins Meets with Leadership from Immigrant Resource Center of Maine

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Lewiston, ME — U.S. Senator Susan Collins met with Fatuma Hussein, the Executive Director of the Immigrant Resource Center of Maine, in her Lewiston Constituent Service Center.  As the Chairman of the Aging Committee, Senator Collins held the Senate’s first hearing on the disparate health impacts of COVID-19 on seniors from racial and ethnic minority communities and steps that we can take to help address health inequities, including supporting community partnerships and culturally and linguistically appropriate services for immigrant communities.

“Fatuma provided helpful expertise and insight in preparation for that hearing, and I appreciate her ongoing advocacy on behalf of Maine’s immigrant communities,” said Senator Collins.  “I look forward to our continued work together to help all Mainers access the education and resources they need to achieve their full potential.”

The Immigrant Resource Center of Maine has received federal funding through the CARES Act, legislation supported by Senator Collins, to distribute masks in their community during the coronavirus pandemic.

Since 2014, the Immigrant Resource Center of Maine has received approximately $300,000 every two years through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Grants to Enhance Culturally Specific Services Program.  As a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Collins has continuously worked to secure funding for this program, which helps to provide culturally specific programming for victims of VAWA crimes. 

Formerly known as the United Somali Women of Maine, the Immigrant Resource Center of Maine was founded in 2001 to support refugee and immigrant communities by offering culturally and linguistically sensitive services to promote a healthy and equitable Maine. ?

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