ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Alida Robles, whose second language is English, talks with Harvey F. Rowe Jr. as part of a conversation group. The group is the equivalent of a college student learning a language by conversing with a native speaker.
By THOMAS GRILLO
LYNN — At 10 a.m. they were strangers.
But after an hour, a group of English language learners and members of the city’s Rotary Club were fast friends.
Nearly two dozen immigrants and Rotarians gathered at the Lynn Economic Opportunity Inc. (LEO) offices on Wednesday for the launch of the Conversation Group. The pilot program for Head Start parents who are learning English is intended to improve their speaking ability through practice with native English speakers.
Josefina Barrios, 40, a Kelly’s Roast Beef cashier, came to the U.S. in 1995 from Guatemala. She signed up for the English language class at Catholic Charities.
“Having regular conversations in English helps me speak better and my skills are getting stronger,” she said. “It’s helping me.”
Barrios was paired with Stephen Upton, a retired Lynn Public Schools business administrator, who used a series of open-ended questions to encourage Barrios to share details about her life — in English.
“I just like the chance to help people,” he said. “The motto of the Rotary is service above self. When I learned that this class was looking for people to have conversations with immigrants in English, I just loved the idea and signed up.”
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Catherine Vigue, a Catholic Charities program coordinator, said the Rotary sessions were arranged so English language learners can get experience having conversations.
“This helps them out in the real world,” she said.
The effort is an example of LEO’s two-generation approach to delivering early child care, according to CEO Birgitta Damon.
“We build upon the skills and resources of parents as much as we focus on developing children’s readiness for kindergarten,” she said in a statement.
Alida Robles, a cashier at Marblehead Village Market, 37, said she came to the U.S. where wages are higher than her native land.
“This program is awesome,” she said. “It’s a way for me to figure out if my English is good. And people tell me it is.”
Kathleen McDonald, LEO’s development director, who got to know Robles Wednesday, said these immigrants are making connections to native Lynners.
“There’s an added benefit to learning about each other’s worlds that you get while you’re practicing English,” McDonald said.
Thomas Grillo can be reached at [email protected].