Ex-mayor returns
early from Africa
LEWISTON- After less than a month working in Africa, former Mayor Kaileigh Tara is back in Maine.
“Something came up that was totally unplanned and unexpected,” she said.
Tara, 39, left Lewiston last month to work in the small, war-torn country of Sierra Leone for the International Rescue Committee, a 70-year-old humanitarian organization that helps refugees fleeing persecution, war and violence. With her 11-year-old son and new husband in tow, Tara had planned to spend a year overseeing 60 staff members who worked with young sexual assault victims.
Tara said she was excited by the challenge and opportunity.
But three and a half weeks into her new job, Tara and her son returned to the United States. She arrived late Tuesday night, jet-lagged, exhausted and happy to be home. But also disappointed.
Tara said she had personal reasons for returning, but would not go into detail.
“There was just a situation that arose that was a personal family crisis,” she said.
///////An ‘incredible experience’
It was 1997 when Tara, a spirited political newcomer, defeated 12-year council veteran Normand Poulin in a runoff election for mayor. Four years later, she left the city and made a bid for the U.S. House of Representatives.
But that run ended before it began. Tara didn’t turn in the signatures she needed to get her name on the ballot. At the time, the single mother of two said she was burnt out and concerned about supporting her family if she ran for Congress.
For the past year, Tara has worked as a substitute teacher and municipal consultant as she looked for more permanent work.
With her daughter planning to go to college in the fall, Tara said she was open to any opportunity.
When she heard about the job in Sierra Leone, it seemed perfect: a beautiful but poor country that needed help, work that allowed her to use her experiences in social work, sexual assault cases, child advocacy and government but, also, offered new challenges.
After three months, four interviews and a lot of conversations with family members concerned about her safety, she accepted the job.
Tara, her son and husband left in July.
Although the United Nations named Sierra Leone the most poorly developed country in the world and the International Rescue Committee tried to prepare her for what she would face, Tara said the country still surprised her.
Electricity rarely worked. Medical care was inadequate. People lived in buildings devastated by bombs. The country was so poor that police didn’t have the money for cars or uniforms.
“Simple things like that just blow your mind,” she said.
But at the same time, Tara fell in love with the place and its people.
She found herself awed by the determination and ingenuity of the country ravaged by war but trying to rebuild itself. She delighted in the culture and its “laid back” approach to time. Everyone she met was warm and welcoming, she said.
Tara cried when she left.
“I wish I could have found a way to do both. But I couldn’t be here and be there,” she said.
Although she made a one year commitment to the International Rescue Committee, the group allowed her to back out of the deal with little notice, Tara said. Her husband, a scientist who had lived in Sierra Leone as a boy, stayed behind to finish a grant proposal.
Tara said word of her return has spread fast. Home less than 24 hours, she’s already been asked if she’s going to run for mayor this year.
“I said ‘Oh my God. I just hit the ground,'” she said.
Tara plans now to adjust to a life she suddenly considers luxurious. And she has started looking for a new job.
But she doesn’t rule out another trip to Sierra Leone once her personal issues have been resolved.
“It was an incredible experience,” she said.
ltice@sunjournal.com
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