Refugee Sponsorship Initiative 

Our Syrian family arrived February 6th!!!  

We are excited to welcome our new family of 6 (Dad, Mom and 4 children – 3 boys and a girl) into our midst and Canadian life.

All the family except the youngest were born in Syria, who was born in Jordan. Their language is Arabic.

Weekly Update: April 20th 

The family now has bikes and helmets and have taken riding lessons from one of our volunteers using the learning method without having the pedals on the bikes. Our volunteer reports that the 8 year old has mastered it now and is riding with the pedals on the bike.

The father attended Dad’s night with 5 year old at preschool, Jim Adamson accompanied the two.

Most of the family attended Aggie Days at the stampede grounds on April 9. On April 16 the family attended a daylong event at a NE Mosque.

The children have all seen the dentist and from the reports all except the youngest have major dental issues. Correction for the oldest child will take place in May and for the younger two it will likely be October.

April 18 the parents started the Language Instruction for Newcomers (LINC) program at the YWCA. The program is fully funded by Citizenship & Immigration Canada. The program runs from 9 to 12 and goes to August 6. From one of our volunteers the father is very happy to show off his school binder and appears more relaxed and is playing more with the children. As a result the tutoring for the parents ended and a childcare provider was hired to look after the 5 and 2 year old. The childcare provider speaks English and Arabic. Arrangements are under way to supplement the childcare with visitors. This week the father starts swimming lessons.

On April 13 approximately 25 people attended the Refugee Sponsorship Initiative Information meeting at Scarboro United to hear from Sam Nammoura, co-founder of the Syrian Refugee Support Group and updates from some of our working groups. Sam stated that one of the greatest challenges in this new environment is isolation even though they may be safe, have housing with the cupboards and fridge with foods. We learned that first hand when we left the family alone because we thought they wanted to rest and what they felt was being deserted and left alone.

NEEDED:

The family is in need of an iPad, the one they have been using is on loan and will be returned to the owner once the family has one of their own. So if you are thinking of updating your equipment the family would appreciate your used iPad. If you have an iPad to donate please contact Wendy Campbell, Bryon Delarue, Jeanette Petrie, or Marion Wolff.

Weekly Update: Apr 6th

On March 30 and April 6 the father volunteered in picking up food for the food bank with one of our volunteers and the comment has been made that the father appears to be very observant and a quick leaner. The father was reacquainted with his rural life as one of the calls was to the Stampede grounds where they are setting up for Aggie Days. As our volunteer stated the father was like a kid in the candy store. On March 31 the father was interviewed for the purposes of creating a resume.

The children have all seen the dentist and from the reports all except the youngest have major dental issues.

Tutoring in English for the parents is running 4 days a week for 2 hours each day.

On Saturday the family enjoyed a couple of hours in Fish Creek Park. The family now have all the bikes they need and will soon be outfitted with helmets and then the learning to ride in a city will be a challenge.

Good intentions are creating problems. Please don’t bring stuff to the house; we have team leads in the various areas who know best what is needed, check first. Bringing sweets to a family that has major dental problems is not helping. There is a plan in place to educate the family on good nutrition. The owner of the house in which our refugee family is living still occupies the basement and garage. Both areas are used for business and the owner requests that all visitors to the family respect his property.

Weekly Update: Mar 29th

Covering the time from March 9 to 30, the washer and dryer have hooked up and instruction on their use completed which ended the month long volunteer twice a week laundry service. The family has had outings to City Hall for a welcome by the Mayor, the zoo, Herr Family Farm Canmore, and Spray Lakes.

There have been visits to see a doctor and dentist for checkups and dental work. Both father and mother have had teeth extractions. ESL tutoring for the parents began the week of March 14 and after the Easter break will be held 4 times a week for 2 hours per day. Computer training took place during the week of March 14.

On March 25 we celebrated one of the children’s 5^th birthday with some volunteer and interpreters and their families in attendance.

The father will begin some volunteer work on Wednesday by helping pickup food for the food bank and an interview of the father for the purpose of creating a resume is planned for Thursday.

Weekly Update: Mar 9th

On Thursday March 4 the parents had their English assessments completed and this should lead to enrollment into ESL Classes for them. Thursday was also a day of visits to the dentist and doctor.

On Monday March 7 the washer and dryer were delivered, the living room rug was taken out for cleaning and the 4 year old started tot spot, a pre-school program that runs from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm Mondays to Thursdays.   The Ministers from Deer Park, Scarboro and St. Andrew’s visited the parents and the 2 year old. Kiran from Deer Park also made the visit along with an interpreter. The topics ranged from the conflict in Syria to their trip to Canada.  Rev. Lee from Scarboro brought along a bag of lentils that came from a farm in Saskatchewan.

On Tuesday and Wednesday the phone service was hooked up along with the internet and TV.  The washer and dryer have been hooked up and instruction on their use is scheduled for Thursday morning, this will mean the end of the volunteer twice a week laundry service.

We are organized into 11 different working groups with 1 or 2 Team Leads each and we have a base of 70 volunteers.

The rest of this week and next will see more action taken in regards to ESL education for the parents and more in the health related areas.

Weekly Update: Mar 2nd

On Thursday February 25 the family visited Fish Creek Library. On Friday the family visited the doctor, and then a shopping trip in the afternoon for shoes for school. The weekends are generally set aside for visits from other Arabic speaking visitors. On Monday February 29 Ahmad and Kholoud along with a parent and volunteers had an orientation at Braeside School.

On Tuesday March 1 Ahmad and Kholoud started school, except the school bus did not arrive, there were volunteers there to take them to school and to meet the bus after school. They leave for the bus about 7:30 am and get home close to 3:30 pm. Each child knew one other child in their class whom they had met earlier. In the afternoon Marion and I sat down with the home owner and an interpreter to go over some of the housekeeping areas.

Wednesday morning the parents and younger 2 children met for an hour with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, an interpreter, Marion and I. The family received the 1^st of 6 payments from the Government of Canada as part of the Resettlement Assistance Program.  English assessments of the parents are planned for Thursday.

Your prayers and support both financial and time are needed. For financial please make your donations to Deer Park or St. Andrew’s and mark it for the local refugee fund.

If you would like to volunteer your time to help out with this initiative please contact Wendy Campbell, Bryon Delarue, Jeanette Petrie or Marion Wolff.

Weekly Update: Feb 24th

Wednesday February 17 Ayoub (father) had a dental checkup. On Friday February 19 Marion Wolff, Pat Whyte and an interpreter took Nesreen (mother) and the three oldest children to the Kingsland Assessment Centre. Ahmad (8) and Kholoud (6) will attend Braeside School and be in the L.E.A.D. (Literacy, English and Academic Development) program and they will have a teacher certified with training in English as a Second Language, literacy, and cross-cultural understanding. Abdullah (4) is registered in kindergarten at Andrew Sibbald School to start in September. There are plans underway for a pre-school program for him.  On Monday February 29 there is an hour visitation at Braeside for one of the parents and the two children and it is likely the children start school the next day.

On Saturday February 20, one of our volunteers took the family to Devonian Gardens – here is what they said “when the kids first saw the playground they just stood there and wouldn’t do anything – so we went to the fish pond. The fish were a huge hit. We returned to the playground and Nesreen looked more happy and relaxed today than I have seen her. We met three lovely groups at the mall who acted as translators at different times. People are so incredibly friendly and helpful. The kids loved the elevator and escalator. At first they were hesitant to get on the escalator, but one ride and they were addicted – so we went up and down a few times. I think the parents think we are nuts. One of my favourite political commentators when asked on Thanksgiving Day what he was most thankful for said “the laughter of a child”. I’m with him. What a wonderful privilege to spend time with these little kids and of course with the parents as well. Seeing the kids in news pictures of refugee camps was a strong motivator for us to try and help. I don’t think we anticipated what joy it could bring.”

On Sunday February 21 Marion Wolff and Pamela Scott along with Tara Jorgenson visited the family. When they arrived the neighbour (who speaks Arabic) was visiting. While visiting, an Arabic speaking couple (part of Pamela’s Arabic speaking families group) arrived and took the family to Wal-Mart to shop.

On Monday February 22 one of our volunteers travelled with Ayoub to obtain transit passes for March at a reduced rate, our Social Worker, Kiran wrote the letter to go along with the application. On Tuesday afternoon one of our volunteers revisited spending and the budget that had been created the week before. On Wednesday Jim Adamson travelled with Ayoub to the Centre for Newcomers for an orientation to employment session in Arabic. Jim arranged for Ayoub to get a photo id at AMA. Marion took Nesreen to AMA in the afternoon so she will have photo id as well.

For me this initiative has been so rich – working with the other 3 congregations and getting to know some great people – meeting a new family and learning about some of the hardships and terror they faced and some of their customs – meeting people not connected to any church and giving of their time and money

Weekly Update – Feb 17th

Friday February 12 was a time to register for Alberta Health. Appointments have been arranged for Friday February 19 to complete the assessments for the two school aged children and a pre-registration for another. An interpreter has been arranged and will accompany them to their appointments.  Separate appointments have been made for the parents. The father and a son have ridden the bus and C- train, saw an intoxicated person and saw a man being arrested by police. The family met a next door neighbour who speaks Arabic. On Monday the family walked to the Islamic Center of South Calgary. The father returned later that day for prayers. The father was having some dental problems and was to be seen by a dentist on Wednesday.  The children are learning English quickly and as the family learn more about how to get around and make their own connections with others, their comfort level improves.

Weekly Update – Feb 10th

Friday February 5, a small team went into the house that was being rented to clean carpets, meanwhile furniture was being picked up across the city and stored in a garage close to the house. Saturday morning at 9:15 trucks were loading up the gathered furniture and moving it to the house. By 4:00 pm the house was cleaned and ready except the living drapes needed hemming which was completed by 8:30 pm and for some curtains for the bedrooms which were completed by Monday evening.

The Syrian family of 6, father, mother, 3 sons and a daughter arrived Saturday evening and were greeted at the airport by a small welcoming committee. The welcoming committee had a sign in Arabic to welcome our new friends and they had an interpreter to help with translation. As we were unsure about getting a van with the necessary car seats and we didn’t want to split the family up, we hired a limousine to transport the family plus interpreter to their new home. Sunday was a time spent at the Centre for Newcomers which was hosting an event for Syrian families so they can meet each other, share some Syrian soup and hear presentations on Canadian culture. Sunday was also a time for signing of the lease and an introduction to the appliances and housekeeping etc.

Monday was spent opening a bank account. We had an interpreter present for the events on Sunday and Monday. The family was in desperate need for some alone time so Tuesday and Wednesday were set aside for that. Thursday will be a time to get the cell phone setup and connections to the internet. Friday will be time to register for Alberta Health. Appointments are being arranged for assessments for the two school aged children and a pre-registration for another. An interpreter has been arranged and will accompany them to their appointments.  Separate appointments have been made for the parents.

Committees – if you are interested in joining a committee please let Bryon or Jeanette know.

Education/language/ESL

Babysitting/Childcare

Health

Employment