Two Community Events

1.  The second Haiti Sister City Planning Committee Meeting is tonight from 7 pm to 8:30 pm at the Columbia Association HQ.  Looking forward to making some progress on the proposed Sister City arrangement with Cap-Haitien.  I will be posting about this effort throughout the year.

2. The scourge of human trafficking is a serious problem in our nation, state and yes, our county.  There will be a panel discussion on this topic and it will occur this Wednesday (January 14), starting at 7 pm at the Jeffers Hill Neighborhood Center.  It is a Columbia Democratic Club gathering, but obviously this issue is not a partisan matter.   The panelists include:

- C. Vernon Gray, Former Administrator of the Howard County Office of Human Rights and Chairman of the Howard County Human Trafficking Task Force

- Amanda Rodriguez, Manager of Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking Policy for the Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention

- Detective First Class Joshua Mouton, Vice and Narcotics, Howard County Police Department

- Nicholas Weikel, Member, Howard County AGAST (Advocacy Group Against Slavery and Trafficking)

I've attended issue-focused CDC panels in the past and they are amazing opportunities to listen, to learn, to ask questions, and to talk with others to help find solutions.  The forum on philanthropic challenges and opportunities was excellent and this event is shaping up to be another important gathering.

Stay tuned, as more will follow.