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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 21 D E C E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 1 6 to prove they have degrees because their universities have been bombed or records destroyed. "Because many Africans coming in are Christians, they had a better education in their home countries," says Hassan Alew, a registered nurse in Portland who hails from Kenya. Many Somalis have become store owners, mechanics, language transla- tors and order-pickers at stores like L.L.Bean. Lewiston Social Services Department numbers from 2010 show the Walmart superstore had 23 full-time and 10 part-time Somali employees who were mostly stackers. Dingley Press had 20 full time, hotels and motels had 20, L.L.Bean had 20 full time and 300 seasonal, and most of the others worked as caseworkers, bus drivers, with two as registered nurses and fi ve as certifi ed nursing assistants, also known as CNAs. "L.L.Bean did a good job to hire peo- ple, but other companies aren't reaching out enough," says Alew. He works as a registered nurse at Barron Center nurs- ing home in Portland, as a part-time RN at St. Mary's d'Youville Pavilion nursing home in Lewiston and as a teacher of medication administration for CNAs at Lewiston Adult Education. " ere's lots of opportunity for peo- ple to work in health care," Alew says. "But it's hard to get jobs because a lot of people get them by word of mouth. ere's a lack of ways to get informa- tion to fi nd a job and some people don't know how to ask." Lewiston got some funding for CNA students, and more New Mainers are taking part in learning this skill, says Bill Grant, director of Lewiston Adult Education. Help for businesses Once New Mainers get their work permits, some start their own businesses, and have help from organizations including CEI, which has a free busi- ness development program called StartSmart to help immigrants start or grow a business. John Scribner, director of StartSmart for CEI, says the program has 250 cli- ents in Lewiston and has contacts with 70 businesses to help them start and strengthen their skills. " ey usually fi rst come to us to get legal information and then we give them more intensive services as they start up," he says, adding that if needed, CEI provides an interpreter. "We spend time with a client to help them write a business plan or work on the cash side, such as getting micro- loans. We off er a fee-for-service loan, which is a technical assistance fee in lieu of an interest payment. We provide expertise and money." Sharia (Islamic law) does not allow interest or fees for loans. Scribner says that within Lewiston's Somali community, most businesses are retail stores, but many people also work as interpreters, in construction, as auto mechanics, sell used cars or run child care businesses. " e halal markets [for foods allowed under Islamic dietary laws] are stable, with some here 10 years or more," he says. "Rents are cheaper so it's easier to start a market here than in Portland." Adds Scribner, "I believe these busi- nesses are helping with the economy. Business is the fi rst way the commu- nity experiences a culture, as well as through sports and food. Businesses and chambers are realizing their core members need employees. And we have skilled immigrants." Abasheikh at the Mogadishu store started with a very small market, only 240 square feet, he says, and now has one of the largest markets in Lewiston. She'll tell customers how to cook goat or camel meat, and is known for her Sambusa, stuff ed triangular pastries with meat and spices. Her older daughter is a doctor, and four of her seven children graduated from Lewiston High School. Another daughter who is an accountant is starting a business across the street, and her son is studying architecture and plans to return to Lewiston. Adds Scribner: "In the next 5 to 10 years, the concentration [of immigrants] in Portland and Lewiston will encom- pass more and more of the whole state, like the Iraqis in Augusta." L V , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e r e a c h e d a t @ . a n d @ L V G R E AT E R L E W I S T O N / A U B U R N F O C U S Toll-free 1-866-HAMMOND www.hammondlumber.com Calm Primary refugee arrivals in Lewiston, FY2016 S O U R C E : Catholic Charities Maine SOMALIA: 166 IRAQ: 16 CONGO: 9 ETHIOPIA: 9 CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: 6

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