In the spirit of the newly created White House Task Force on New Americans, the International Service Center – a community-based nonprofit organization that has been promoting and supporting the educational, social and economic well-being of immigrants and refugees for the past 39 years – initiated a community event that would build bridges among the newcomer and receiving communities in the Central Region of Pennsylvania.

The Welcoming Communities Conference was held at the Camp Hill Radisson Hotel and Convention Center on Monday, October 26, 2015 from 8:00am to 5:00pm for the purposes of:

1. Promoting mutual understanding and mutual support among the immigrants, refugees, and the mainstream community;
2. Sharing the new immigrants’ rich and diverse cultures with the mainstream communities;
3. Creating an opportunity for networking among those interested in other cultures and people of the world; and 4) Informing immigrants and refugees about new government policies and available services.

Conference Speakers included Lieutenant Governor Michael Stack, State Secretary Pedro Cortes, Commissioner George Hartwick of Dauphin County, Office Chief Laura Patching of the USCIS in Washington, Director Carl Rubenstein of the Refugee Assistance Division at ORR/DHHS, and many other prominent workshops presenters from the civic, economic, educational and medical fields such as Deputy Secretary of State Marian Schneider, Mrs. Jeannine Peterson, CEO of Hamilton Health Center, Mrs. Mary Weaver, Executive Director, PA Immigrant Resource Center, Mr. Kevin Perkey, Executive Director, South Central Workforce Investment Boards, Mr. Rick Russell, Senior Advisor, State Street Advisors, Mrs. Lori Rank, Site Administrator of Capitol Region CareerLink, Mrs. Carla Pendino, Community Relations Officer, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Ms. Melinda Fraker de Fonte, Instructional Program Coordinator, Harrisburg Area Community College, Mrs. Rhonda Hendrickson, Director, YWCA of Greater Harrisburg, Tiffany Lawson, Executive Director of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, Mr. Carlos Graupera, President/CEO of the Spanish American Civic Association, Mr. Tim Whelan, Vice-President of United Way of the Capital Region, Mrs. Charlotte Fry, State Coordinator of the PA Refugee Resettlement Program, Mr. Deep Gupta, Founder/Chair of the Asian-Indian Americans of Central PA, Mr. Jelani Cooper, Assistant Chief Counsel of the PA Human Relations Commission, Mrs. Sharon Kelly, Director of Pinnacle Health Systems, Dr. Asresu Misikir, Refugee Health Coordinator, and many other prominent representatives from the public and private sectors.

Following an international lunch provided by the local immigrant businesses, a wonderful series of multicultural performances was offered by the refugee families for the delight of more than 310 participants. In the afternoon, the audience consisting of representatives from federal, state, and local government agencies, health, educational, and public welfare institutions, religious and faith-based organizations, businesses and corporations, refugee and mainstream service providers, as well as immigrant and refugee communities had the opportunity to choose among a diverse selection of twelve workshops focusing on the civic, linguistic and economic integration of immigrants and refugees.

For more information about the Welcoming Communities Conference including the program and speakers, visit the WCC website.

Download Conference Materials

• Conference Booklet and Cover.
• Department of State Certificate of Recognition
• Dauphin County Proclamation

Presentations 

The presentations on this page are only for participants who registered for the conference for the purpose associated with the conference program. Copyrighted materials may not be further disseminated. Please contact the owner of the specific presentation directly to obtain permission on usage.

Below are some of the photos from the Conference:

Greetings from Local Dignitaries

Proclamation/Local Update on New Americans Integration Effort

State Update on New Americans Integration Effort

Federal Update on Immigrant Integration Effort

Lt. Governor Mike Stack’s Welcoming Speech

Carl Rubenstein’s Keynote Address

Lunch Reception

Award Ceremony

Reception Team

Participants of the conference