Doris Rodriguez, of Falmouth, leads the group of 10 fellows graduating from the city of Portland’s Natural Helpers leadership program on Saturday. Behind her are Victoria Hernandez and Sarah Fitzgerald. Penelope Overton/Staff Writer With no English skills and no family to help, Guy Mpoyi spent his first two months in the United States living in Washington.
He thought he was living in the nation’s capital, but Mpoyi eventually discovered he had been living in Seattle, Washington. That’s how confusing something as basic as the transportation system can be for an immigrant. Mpoyi never forgot that feeling.
Six years later, after he had settled in Portland, the Democratic Republic of Congo native launched a bus-ambassador service to help other immigrants learn to navigate the public transit system they rely on to get to work, school, the market and the hospital. “I was confronted with the stark reality that the public transportation system was a significant barrier for most immigrants,” Mpoyi said. “I told myself this situation must change.
This situation bothered me a lot, and I wanted to advocate for it. ..
. It’s the small things that can make a big difference.” This desire to use his immigrant experience to help others is why Mpoyi was chosen to enroll in the latest round of the city’s Natural Helpers leadership program, which graduated 10 new community leaders during an inspirational ceremony atop the Casco Building on Saturday.
Launched by the city of Portl.