BRATTLEBORO — The Ethiopian Community Development Council, Inc. (ECDC) has been approved to resettle refugees in Brattleboro and is opening its local office, called the Multicultural Community Center. In order to celebrate this event with Brattleboro’s refugee resettlement partners and the broader community, ECDC together with Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation, is holding a ribbon cutting event at 2 p.m. Friday at 74 Cotton Mill Hill.
This event will be a celebration of this milestone in the process of making Brattleboro a refugee resettlement community and an opportunity for people to learn more about the people and organization who are leading this work. Core partners, founders and funders will be present, with speakers to include: Dr. Tsehaye Teferra,President & CEO of the Ethiopian Community Development Council; Joe Wiah, Director of ECDC’s Multicultural Community Center, Brattleboro; Ed Shapiro, Trustee of the Shapiro Foundation; Tracy Dolan, State Refugee Coordinator for Vermont Local and State Leadership.
The decision to open a local Multicultural Community Center (MCC) in Brattleboro is a response to community and state interest in expanding refugee resettlement in Vermont and a reflection of ECDC’s desire to expand its capacity to resettle larger numbers of refugees in diverse locations. The center will be ECDC’s fifth branch office, and will work in collaboration with local, regional, and State partners to receive and settle refugees through the United States Refugee Admissions Program. The first refugee arrivals are expected to arrive in Brattleboro this fall.
The event is open to the public. For more information contact Alex Beck, Welcoming Communities Program Manager, abeck@brattleborodevelopment.com, cell 802-490-3779.
