About
Desiree Vargas
Our ancestors were extraordinarily creative weavers, healers, artists, navigators of the water, and cultivators of the land. We too can carry on their legacy as we weave our way into history, and plant our seeds of healing and resilience for the next generations. Desiree has been called to weave together collective healing, earth tending, education, and organized movement to create change. Desiree (Anakoniwa) Vargas (she/her) is a mother, wife, herbalist, gardener/farmer, community social justice organizer, community resource distributor, healing retreat facilitator, harm reductionist, business owner, nonprofit director, and racial justice advocate. She currently plants seeds of change as a State of Maine certified DEIA Racial Justice trainer, educator, and Consultant at her LLP ECE Firm, a Food Sovereignty Director at Presente! Maine Non-Profit, an educator at the University of Maine for the School of Social work and through the professional development center, Co-founder of REJ Non-Profit, and Tukuda (tribal councilwoman) of Higuayagua Taino People of the Caribbean. Desiree is also launching a woman-owned business, Healing Roots Adahi Kena Akuaiyaba Nakan (Medicine and Culture Center), where she will offer trauma-informed massage therapy, energetic healing through polarity therapy, trauma-informed yoga therapy, meditation and mindful coaching, facilitated land-based healing retreats, herbal remedies, and more. Desiree believes we all bring different medicines to earth weaving spaces of recovery, pollinating lifeways for healing, and creating collective change is hers.
She couples her anthropological education, experience, and knowledge as a CapeVerdean, Boricua-Taino Indigenous, and Portuguese woman of Color, racial justice expertise, and trauma-informed holistic health background together to create unique and wholesome educational curriculums, strategic plans, healing modalities, trailblazing community programs, interconnective healing offerings, intersectional social critique, and solution-based action plans to uproot injustice and inequity. Desiree has supported school districts, municipalities, non-profits, businesses, higher institutions, BIPOC students and families, and youth-led organizations, through keynote speaking, policy editing, DEIA committee formation, curriculum edits, strategic planning, data collection, culturally supportive programming and initiatives, and sensitive community engagement.
Her consulting and facilitation offerings help partners reimagine their approach and values that drive services and programs to become more impactful, intentional, inventive, collaborative, and communal. She first discovered my passion for community collective wellness, paradigm shifts through education, and the justice movement work as an empathic youth. Her experiences growing up in Wabanaki Territory (Maine) have taught her how to navigate and survive homogeneous, complex, and violent environments with sensitivity and responsiveness. As a survivor of racial violence and gender-based violence, her whole life goal is to help others also alchemize wounds, imbalance, injustice, and sickness into something more magical, truthful, wholesome, balanced, and strong. She is committed to fighting for her community to have access to what she says is “our divine birthright” which is healing, freedom, sovereignty, healing, cultural continuation, earth stewardship, and wellness.
Education
Spa Tech Institute
Massage & Polarity Therapy Certified, 2016
University of Maine
Anthropology B.A. with a Minor in Native Studies
State CEU Certified Comprehensive racial equity and diversity trained
Affiliations
Tribal Councilwoman - Higuayagua: Taíno of the Caribbean
Co founder of Racial Equity & Justice Nonprofit
Presente! Maine
Healing Roots Adahi Kena Akuaiyaba Nakan (Medicine and Culture Center)
Leadership Team Member at Land In Common
Needle Point Sanctuary Harm Reduction Volunteer
David Patrick
David Patrick (he/him/his) is the Cofounder of Equity Consulting & Education Services. David holds a B.S. from The Maine Business School in both International Business & Marketing with an advanced Master of Social Work (MSW) degree through The Graduate School of Social Work at The University of Maine. David currently works as a clinical social worker and educator in a variety of practice settings with experience in Care Coordination through The State of Maine Office of Aging & Disability Services (OADS) and clinical counseling in his current professional role. David specializes in advocacy for underrepresented communities and outpatient therapy services with a focus on diverse client populations and patients. These practice settings include providing services and clinical support for New Mainers, underrepresented community members, and those most impacted by DEIA policies. David is a state certified continuing education (CEU) educator and training facilitator.
As an alumni of the University of Maine David has been featured as a subject matter expert in several publications. Most notably “Social Work Today” where his contributions to the field have been featured on a national peer reviewed platform. David prides himself on the time he spent at the University of Maine. David is currently partnering with the University of Maine and local healthcare facilities to teach students and preceptors the importance of DEIA through strategies designed to increase more equitable outcomes in practice settings. This partnership through the State of Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) was established to enhance cultural awareness for social workers in healthcare settings. David continues to maintain key partnerships with the University as a guest lecturer for the School of Social Work, The Maine Business School (MBS), and as a training facilitator through the Office of Professional Development at the Hutchinson Center located on the University of Maine’s Belfast campus. David has successfully partnered with numerous organizations to uplift and strengthen DEIA practices and workplace culture both as an advocate and organizational consultant. David has worked with many public schools and municipalities. This includes drafting school policies to better address instances of bias and improve curriculum as well as co-authoring the City of Bangor’s landmark ordinance that helped lead to the formation of Bangor‘s first Advisory Committee on Racial Equity, Inclusion and Human Rights. As chairperson of this city committee, David partnered with community leaders, elected officials, and stakeholders to evaluate policies, identify funding & training priorities, and assess city projects to ensure diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility were centric to these initiatives. In his free time, David volunteers with organizations focused on civil liberties and advocacy . David is the Vice President of The Greater Bangor Area NAACP and serves on several other boards and committees throughout the state of Maine. David is a proud father who enjoys fishing,gardening, and adventures with his two young children and wife.
Education
University of Maine
Bachelors of Science
Marketing & International Business and a Masters Degree
MSW School of Social Work
CEU Certified
Comprehensive racial equity and diversity trained
Affiliations
NAACP Political Action Chair - Law Enforcement Liaison
Advisory Committee on Racial Equity, Inclusion and Human Rights- City of Bangor
Bangor Urban Gardens
Racial Equity and Justice Organization Program Director
National Association of Black Social Workers (NABSW)
