HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Committees - Cultural Communities Board - 04/25/2017 (2)The Cultural Communities Board meets at 6 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month in various
locations throughout Kent. For additional information please contact Dinah Wilson at 253-856-5076, or
via email at drwilson@kentwa.gov.
Any person requiring a disability accommodation should contact the City Clerk’s Office at
253-856-5725 in advance. For TDD relay service call Washington Telecommunications Relay
Service at 1-800-833-6388.
Cultural Communities Board Agenda
Kent City Staff: Mayor Suzette Cooke, Dinah Wilson – Human Services
City Council Members: Bill Boyce, Council President, Jim Berrios, Brenda Fincher, Dennis Higgins,
Dana Ralph
Cultural Community Board Members: Beabe Akpojovwo, Davies Chirwa, Josephine Karanja,
Yusuf Bashir, Marvin Eckfeldt, Mizanur Rahman, Norma Maldonado, Rand Al Hammadi, Satwinder
Kaur, Sharnsdeep Kaur, Sonia Morales, Hussein Al Kinani, Cesar Rangel, Ta Kwe Say
Vaivao Semisi Tupou, Yuriy Zaremba, Shamso Issak, Ted Schwarz
Board Advisors: Pastor Herbert Carey, Marwa Almusawi
April 25, 2017, 6:30 - 8 p.m.*
Kent Senior Activity Center, Room 8
600 East Smith Street
Kent, WA 98032
*6:00 p.m. Dinner/Networking (Dinner Provided for Board)
Item Description Action Speaker Time
1.
1. Call to order 1
2. Roll Call 1
3. Changes to the Agenda 1
4. Welcome Mayor Cooke
5. Approve March Minutes Yes 1
6. Announcements All
7. Discuss Cultural Communities Board Survey
8. Adjourn
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Kent Cultural Communities Board Meeting March 28, 2017
Minutes 6:30 p.m.
Place: Kent Phoenix Academy
11000 SE 264th St., Kent, WA 98030
Approval Pending
1
Attending (CCB Members):
Yusuf Bashir
Marvin Eckfeldt
Rand Al Hammadi
Shamso Issak
Josephine Karanja
Satwinder Kaur
Sharnshoke Kaur
Hussein Al Kinani
Dr. Sonia Morales
Mizanur Rahman (Mizan)
Cesar Rangel
Ta Kwe Say
Ted Schwarz
Vaivao Semisi-Tupou
Elected Officials, Staff & Guests:
Mayor Suzette Cooke, Councilmember Brenda Fincher, Brian Steward, Patrick
Briggs, Ty Whitfield, Samiha Bhuiyan, Sumaya Dirie and Deeqa Mah.
Absent:
Marwa Almusawi
Pastor Herbert Carey
Norma Maldonado
Dinah Wilson (staff)
1. Call to Order
Vice-Chair Rangel called the meeting to order at 6:30 pm.
2. Roll Call
Attendees listed above.
3. Welcome/Changes to the Agenda
Brief welcome by Mayor Cooke who then noted one change to the agenda.
Kent Cultural Communities Board Meeting March 28, 2017
Minutes 6:30 p.m.
Place: Kent Phoenix Academy
11000 SE 264th St., Kent, WA 98030
Approval Pending
2
Mayor Cooke introduced two guests, Sumaya Dirie and Deeqa Mah. Ms. Dirie and
Ms. Mah.
Ms. Dirie and Ms. Mah introduced themselves to the Board and talked about their
work in establishing a program to assist youth in Kent – primarily focused on
elementary students. Their mission is to mentor youth on the importance of higher
education and asked the Board for assistance in making connections in the
community. Several Board members offered suggestions and contacts to assist
them.
Mayor Cooke introduced Samiha Bhuiyan, a prospective CCB member and
Kentwood High School student who volunteers with the Kent-Bengali and Muslim
Population and connects youth with Kent City government.
4. Approve February Minutes
February minutes approved (Vaivao Semisi Tupou moved and Beabe Akpojovwo
seconded).
5. Discuss Information from February Meeting
Mr. Eckfeldt was pleased Chief Thomas addressed the Board in February and felt
the community meeting for people to come together of all faiths following the
shooting of a Sikh community member was extremely valuable. He suggested a
presentation to local schools would be welcomed in the future.
Mr. Bashir commented that members in his and other communities have questions
about immigration and suggested having a speaker address members of Kent’s
diverse populations that wish to hear what documents are legally required for work
and personal issues such as banking. Information from immigration and customs
could be added to the city’s website.
Mr. Chirwa agreed that people are very concerned over future documentation
requirements for travel – inside and outside of the US.
Mr. Rahman mentioned that holders of an enhanced driver’s license (EDL) are
accepted only at land and sea border crossings—not for air travel. Passports
are required for all air travel.
6. Advancing Multicultural Awareness
Kent Cultural Communities Board Meeting March 28, 2017
Minutes 6:30 p.m.
Place: Kent Phoenix Academy
11000 SE 264th St., Kent, WA 98030
Approval Pending
3
Mayor Cooke opened discussion on how CCB members can introduce themselves
and CCB’s mission to Kent residents.
The CCB will develop solid projects in the Kent community related to our many
diverse cultures, religion and perhaps even food.
In an effort to educate the public and offer a safe venue for residents to learn about
other cultures, the following ideas were generated:
- Public comment (3 minutes ea.) at city council meetings
- Tour/worship in different faiths followed by Q&A
- Identify diverse businesses serving the public
- Host community forums representing different cultures/religions
- Present to service clubs in Kent (Rotary and Kiwanis for example)
- Conduct a needs assessment from various communities
- Identify leadership in each cultural community (data)
- Address and engage with neighborhood councils in Kent
- Go to schools
- Invite each other personally to attend cultural meetings
- Helicopter approach – bigger group/picture
- Monthly place and time to connect safety across cultures (perhaps a park
dedicated to cultural communities)
Members of the Board will be emailed a survey of the projects listed above and
asked to commit to one or more in which they would like to participate. Those
results will be shared at next month’s meeting.
CCB members were invited to take a tour of the Kent Phoenix Academy with Brian
Steward to.
7. Tour of Phoenix Academy
Brian Steward took CCB members on a tour of the facility and to learn about the
wide variety of available programs.
8. Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 7:47 pm.
Notes taken by: Patrick Briggs