Refugees no more

Jeff Green | Nov 11, 2015

After an active two months of meetings, phone calls and community organizing, a group that has been dubbed Welcome Home Ministries, which is made up of parishioners from St. James and St. John's Anglican churches in Kingston and St. Paul's Anglican Church in Sydenham, found themselves waiting at Norman Rogers Airport in Kingston last Thursday, November 5.

The group was eagerly awaiting the arrival of a refugee family, four women, a mother (Alem) and her three daughters (Salamwit, Argawit, and Sarah), whom the group are sponsoring.

“There was anxiety, shyness on the faces of the travelers as they crossed the threshold into the waiting area and then hesitant, unbelieving small smiles as they heard the clapping and shouts of welcome from those who had waited so nervously. There were tears in almost all the eyes, those waiting and those just recently arrived” wrote Patti Black in a Facebook post describing the scene at the airport when the family arrived.

They had driven for eight hours from Port Sudan to Khartoum, followed by 24 hours of flights. The family, who are Eritrean, had been living in a refugee camp in Sudan for many years.

Although Welcome Home Ministries is only just over one month old, they were able to tap in to the DOORS (Diocese of Ontario Refugee Support) of the Anglican Church and were presented with a number of options for families to sponsor.

The group was formed in response to the Syrian refugee crisis, and with the help of DOORS their concern has resulted in a new life for a family from Eritrea.

Since the family has arrived they have been living with the Black family near Sydenham, and getting adjusted to life in Canada. Although they speak only a little English, they can read the language, but they had to learn some things that we take for granted, such as how to turn on a tap for a shower.

Over the last few days they have received clothes, learned much about life in Canada, and Canadian bureaucracy as well, but they now have SIN cards, status as immigrants to Canada, and a family doctor. They have a furnished apartment lined up for the end of November. The youngest daughter, Sarah, will be attending LCVI and the other three will be taking English as a Second Language classes four days a week.

“I am amazed at the services that are available in Kingston, through ISKA (Immigrant Services of Kingston and Area) said Ann Elvins of Harrowsmith, a Welcome Home Ministries member, “and at how much joy they are bringing to us. I think we are getting more from them than they are getting from us.”

For the rest of November, however, they will be living in Frontenac County, adjusting to the weather and the lifestyle, which is a huge change for them.

Some of the new experiences were to be expected. They experienced Canadian fall weather and a tire swing for the first time, but they also kicked a soccer ball in the front yard for the first time because girls do not play soccer where they come from.

In addition to the adjustments they will need to make in terms of culture, language, climate, and the Canadian job market, there are financial issues.

As part of the existing refugee system, they are facing a bill from the Canadian government of almost $11,000 for travel costs, and are expected to begin making payments by the end of November to avoid interest charges. The entire amount is due within 72 months.

Salamwit, the eldest, is intent on finding work as soon as possible, said Patti Black, but the expectation that they can begin paying the government back three weeks after they arrived in the country, not knowing the language or having any belongings, is difficult for the Welcome Home Ministries group to understand

At a meeting they have scheduled for later this week, they will talk about how everything is going for the family, and begin to work on a fund raising plan to help deal with the debt.

“We will not just be giving them the keys to the apartment and leaving everything to ISKA,” said Patti Black. “We all have a connection now and we will continue to help them settle in. They are amazing people.”