‘Welcome Évangéline’
Initiative launched to help welcome new residents to community
Initiative launched to help welcome new residents.
To ensure that new residents feel welcomed, several partners from the Acadian community have partnered with the Conseil scolaire-communautaire Évangéline (CSCE) to establish a new welcome program.
“We want to help these people integrate themselves more into our community so that they will feel right at home, which will undoubtedly encourage them to stay here on a permanent basis,” said CSCE executive director Nick Arsenault.
The “Bienvenue / Welcome Évangéline” initiative was launched on Sunday in AbramVillage, Arsenault explained that new residents will get a visit from two project representatives. During the visit, families or individuals will be presented a bilingual booklet containing listings of all the businesses and public and community services available in the area.
They will also be offered a bag from the Wellington Rural Action Centre bearing the “Bienvenue / Welcome Évangéline” logo. The bag will be filled with pamphlets and small welcome gifts provided by various organizations and businesses from the community.
At present. The bags contain “galettes blanches” (French biscuits), children’s books and games books, a note pad with a pen and pencil, coupons for tickets to summer shows, magnets and pins, a bottle opener, a homemade handbag, an Acadian bar clam shell and a map.
The initiative is similar to the Welcome Wagon concept that exists in various P.E.I. and Canadian communities.
“The clientele for this new initiative can be people from other countries, other provinces, other regions of P.E.I. or even people originally from here who are returning to the area after living away for many years,” said Arsenault.
“We want to provide them with a bit of orientation on what is happening in our community and where various activities take place, as well as to answer their questions. At the same time, we’ll be able to talk to them about volunteering in our community and events – all things that will help them to meet new people and get more integrated into the region.”
The project will work closely with the municipalities of Wellington and Abram-Village to make sure that a municipal representative takes part in visits. Among the partners of the project, in addition to those already mentioned, are RDÉE Prince Edward Island, the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI and the Coopérative d’intégration francophone de I’Î.-P.-É.
Any local business or organizations wanting to add product samples, gifts, promotional items or information to promote themselves, contact the CSCE at: (902)-854-2166.