The Welcome Project, an immigrant advocacy group in Somerville, is excited to be celebrating the 10th Anniversary of their Yum: A Taste of Immigrant City event on April 11 at The Armory in Somerville.

The YUM event showcases local immigrant owned restaurants by inviting attendees to sample their authentic cuisine.  Featured this year are flavors from Mexico, Ethiopia, India, Turkey, a variety of Asian countries, and more! The festivities will kick-off at 7:00 p.m. with the lively Latin stylings of the Clave and Blues Band.  There will be dancing, a photobooth, raffles, a cash bar, in addition to an uplifting program honoring members of the immigrant community.

This year we are proud to present Cecy Del Carman with the 2019 Intercultural Award for her 20 years of service to the immigrant community.  Del Carmen is Presenter of El Tiempo del Noticiero Telemundo New England, which airs on WNEU / Telemundo Boston, WRDM / WDMR Telemundo Connecticut and WRIW / Telemundo Providence.  Originally from El Salvador Del Carmen is now a longtime resident of Somerville.

The 2019 Suzanne Sankar Founder’s Award will be presented to Attorney Betty Francisco, Esq. for her leadership and support of the immigrant community.  Attorney Francisco is the General Counsel at Compass Working Capital where she serves as the organization’s chief legal advisor and director of the national network.  She is a dedicated community leader who has been involved with several non-profit and civic leadership organizations. Attorney Francisco is the co-founder of Latina Circle/Amplify Latinx, a Boston-based social venture focused on increasing Latinx civic engagement and leadership representation.

Tu Y Yo Mexican Restaurant in Somerville is a longtime YUM participant and will be receiving this year’s honor of Restaurant of the Year.  A VIP Reception will take place directly before Yum offering VIP ticket holders the opportunity to mingle with all the award recipients before the event.  Tickets and sponsorship opportunities are available through The Welcome Project’s website www.welcomeproject.org.  Students are encouraged to attend and will receive ½ off their tickets with a special promo code available by contacting The Welcome Project.

The Welcome Project builds the collective power of Somerville immigrants to participate in and shape community decisions. We do this through programs that strengthen the capacity of immigrant youth, adults and families to advocate for themselves and influence schools, government, and other institutions.