A group of residents from Greenville and St. Come-Liniere, Quebec, are working to develop an exchange program to foster a relationship between the two communities.

Selectmen embraced the concept last week and agreed to send a formal invitation to the mayor and other St. Come-Liniere officials to visit Greenville later this month.

"We’re less than two hours’ drive from an entire nation with a foreign language and rich Franco-American culture whose history is interwoven with that of New England, Maine and Greenville," Town Manager John Simko said Saturday.

Such a venture would open windows of opportunity for students and the community as well, according to Anne Ehringhaus of Rockwood, the organizer. "What an opportunity it is," she told selectmen last week.

Greenville High School Principal Rebecca Brown and Ehringhaus advised selectmen the proposal was prompted by a desire for local children to participate in a foreign country immersion program.

The fact Greenville doesn’t offer foreign language in the elementary or middle schools astounded Ehringhaus. Since French-speaking Quebec is a neighbor and has a strong connection with Greenville’s history, it seemed natural to reach out to a community in that country, she said outside the meeting. For her, a trip to St. George is closer than Bangor, she explained.

The proposal, according to Ehringhaus, is to match nine students ages 11-15 with a similar number of students in Quebec. She said the offering was open to any schoolchildren in the region at no cost and some Dover-Foxcroft parents have already expressed interest.

"It’s accessible for everyone, it’s not an elitist thing," Ehringhaus said. The students would immerse themselves in the culture and language from Aug. 3 to 10 in Greenville and from Aug. 10 to 17 in St. Come-Liniere, while staying with host families and joining family activities, she said.

Ehringhaus said she enlisted the aid of Jenny Ward of Greenville, and after research they decided to collaborate with a program now in operation between the logging community of St. Come-Liniere and Lewiston. The pair are assisted in the endeavor by Brown, Superintendent Heather Perry and resident Yvon Labbe, director of the University of Maine’s Franco-American Studies Program.

"It’s very grass-roots," Ehringhaus said.

Actually, the relationship was planted earlier this year when a group of Greenville students, parents and residents motored to St. Come-Liniere where they met Mayor Gabriel Giguere and teacher Felix Nunez, who is involved with that community’s program with Lewiston. While in Canada, the group visited a university and a historical society, and toured a school with St. Come-Liniere students as guides, Ehringhaus said.

Ehringhaus said the Greenville delegation was "overwhelmed" by the friendliness of the St. Come-Liniere residents. She also noted the Canadian students were excited to use the English they had learned.

Selectmen found the proposal an interesting one.

"That’s a wonderful idea," board Chairman Bonnie DuBien told Ehringhaus on Wednesday.

"This exchange is a start of what we hope will be a long-lasting relationship between two communities and their schools," Simko said Saturday. "We hope this relationship would eventually enhance student aspirations and opportunities, as well as tourism and business growth on either side of the border."

Ehringhaus hopes the idea will spread throughout the state. "It would be wonderful if more communities would follow this example for closer ties to our neighbors. How great would that be?" she said.
"This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the Monday, May 12, 2008 edition of the Bangor Daily NEWS and is used here with permission."