What a great weekend at Le Annual Rassemblement with the Franco-American Programs in Orono, Maine, on April 5 – 7th, 2024. It was my first in-person Rassemblement, and the long drive was definitely worth it to connect with familiar faces and finally meet others whom I had only spoken to through our online groups.
Of course, this recap will be from my perspective and will go into a personal essay that I didn’t intend to write for this article, but once I began typing, the words couldn’t stop flowing.
Friday, April 5th: Arrival to Le Centre Franco-Américain d’Orono
On Friday, the first day, I intended to arrive just in time to catch the 4pm panel discussing the Franco-American Centre’s over 50-year legacy in Orono. The panel featured Josée Vachon, Jim Bishop, and Paul Paré, with Jacob Albert of the Franco American Digital Archives/Portail franco-américain (FADA/PFA) moderating.
But I got caught in the rain during the drive up from New Hampshire, so I was held up by traffic in some spots (probably also due to the incoming solar eclipse). Eventually, I arrived at the Centre around 5:30pm, happy to greet people and await the exciting weekend ahead.
