Marpheen Chann, a student at University of Maine School of Law, spoke to the crowd about his family’s experience escaping the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and settling in Maine.

“Maine people did their best to help us — with food stamps to feed us, with housing assistance to shelter us and caring people to help watch over us,” Chann said. “I’ve been blessed that I grew up in a time when Maine believed in good government. It is my hope for tomorrow and every single day from here on out that Maine will continue to invest in people — all Maine people, regardless of where we have been.”