The event is sponsored through a collaborative effort between the Mansfield Public Library and the Vernon Regional Adult Based Education (VRABE) program, according to the website. (Amar Batra/The Daily Campus)
Iranian immigrant Maryam Pardakhti will speak on her experience growing up as a woman in Iran as part of a “Meet and Greet Our Local Immigrants” series at the Mansfield Public Library.
The event is free and open to the public. It will take place on Dec. 9 at 2 p.m. in the library’s Program Room.
Maryam’s presentation is titled “Cultivating our heart seeds for a successful life.”
The Town of Mansfield website says Maryam has “hurdled over many difficulties” and is now building a successful life for herself as an Iranian woman.
“Talented, educated, a powerhouse of a woman full of joy, she believes it does not matter where we come from,” the website says. “We all have to harvest that seed of love and perseverance, which is inside each one of our hearts, helping us move forward despite tough times.”
The website says Maryam will speak on how she “cultivated her heart seed” through a loving family, the eyes of her mother and her uncle’s real world experience.
The event is sponsored through a collaborative effort between the Mansfield Public Library and the Vernon Regional Adult Based Education (VRABE) program, according to the website.
VRABE provides free educational programs in 14 surrounding towns, including English for ESL, GED, Credit Diploma, NEDP and citizenship.
Mansfield Public Library employee Peggy McCarthy said the library started “Meet and Greet Our Local Immigrants” presentations last year due to the “new level of fear and concern” expressed by adult ESL students who are local immigrants.
“In an attempt to have them feel welcomed and admired, (we) created a spotlight presentation series where once a month a student from a different country will present some interesting information about their culture,” McCarthy said. “We hope that our community will take this opportunity to broaden horizons.”
Gabriella Debenedictis is a staff writer for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at gabriella.debenedictis@uconn.edu.
