The Acadian Archives/Archives acadiennes at University of Maine at Fort Kent will host a community forum on the impact of the pandemic and international travel restrictions in the St. John Valley on Saturday, December 3rd, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. in Nadeau Hall conference room.

The event is free and open to the public.

The event came about from oral interviews conducted by the Acadian Archives/Archives acadiennes during this past summer. The project, titled “Voices of the Borderland: The Social Impact of International Travel Restrictions in Northern Maine,” captured local residents’ challenging experience with international travel from 2020 to 2022. The testimonies are now being transcribed and will form a new permanent collection at the Archives.

During the community forum, Acadian Archives’ staff will share their findings. You will also hear from Lisa Lavoie, Ph.D. candidate at the University of the Cumberlands and UMFK assistant professor of behavioral science, who wrote her master’s thesis on borderland communities, and Amber Rankine, executive director of the Greater Fort Kent Area Chamber of Commerce. The forum will provide the audience with the opportunity to share their experience of border restrictions, family hardships, economic effects, challenges at ports of entry, and testing requirements.

“We gathered oral testimonies about the pandemic and its consequences while they were fresh in people’s minds,” states Dr. Patrick Lacroix, director of the Acadian Archives. “This event will help us think about our region’s past, present, and future relationships with the international border.”

Light refreshments will be offered.

This event is generously supported by the Maine Humanities Council.

For more information, please contact Acadian Archives Director Patrick Lacroix at (207) 834-7535.

The Acadian Archives/Archives acadiennes is the premier center for the study of Acadian history in New England and serves as one of the many cultural hubs in the St. John Valley.