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Changing lives makes it snow under your skin.. It gives you goosebumps!
My life changed completely when I was privately sponsored to come to Canada as one of the first gay refugees who made it to Vancouver in September 2014. I escaped Syria, leaving behind homophobia, the war, and the refugee blues, and came here for a bright future.
Get to know me better on this feature video on the Global and the Mail.
I felt that rush of happiness overwhelm me when I managed, with the support of a group of Canadians, to sponsor a lesbian friend, Rory, as well as her sister, to leave the land of refuge in Turkey, and come here to Vancouver. Check out their own GoFundMe page for more info.
Now, we want to do it again. And we need your help!
Let me introduce you to Mariam and Salam.
Mariam and Salam (alias names to protect their identities) are a beautiful, late-twenty year-old lesbian couple from Syria. They met in Damascus during the war in 2013 and managed a long distance relationship for a year, only to be able to escape to one of the Gulf countries under work visas and are now living under one roof together.
But this is not their goal in life.. Nor their final destination.
They are living under the threat of losing their jobs and being deported back to Syria at any moment, and the knowledge that they will never be able to present their true identities, and be the strong, independent women they are within.
They are both well educated women with university degrees from Damascus University. Salam holds a degree in Architecture while Mariam holds a Business Management major.
They both enjoy stargazing, camping and chilled nights at home. Mariam operates from a social justice mindset, and Salam is an artistic soul who really loves tattoos.
They are seeking Canada to be their home, and they need our help to make that a reality.
A group of dedicated Vancouverites are gathering to privately sponsor those two ladies to find the home they’re looking for in Canada.
We are sponsoring those two women because we believe that those who seek to be proud of their real identity and with great potential, should surely be given the chance to reach their bright future, not be sent back to homophobia and war.
We’re hoping to raise online a total of $20.000 for the sponsorship of the couple. The total minimum we need is around $28.000, but we’re hoping we will also get more funds through the events we will plan on the ground.
Mariam and I are close friends; we met in Syria in 2011, we were inseparable for the two years I lived in Syria before I had to escape the country.
She and I came out to each other on the balcony of an office, where we were working in Damascus.
Together, we started a makeshift, underground LGBTQ-centre in Damascus, in the midst of war, providing a safe space for the LGBTQ community in Syria to hang out, be themselves and meet other LGBTQ folks. We ran weekly gatherings, documentary nights, and offered the space for LGBTQ folks who needed a place to stay for the night.
I honestly believe that both Mariam and Salam will be a great addition to the Canadian society, and valuable citizens who will positively impact their newfound community.
Through my past experiences being a refugee myself and becoming a sponsor later on, I have built strong relationships with local and national organizations; such as Rainbow Refugee and the United Church of Canada, which will offer us their support to submit this privately sponsored application.
When you donate to this cause, you’re directly changing the lives of those two women, and indirectly strengthening the welcoming nature of Canadians, who keep on showing the world that we can be better humans on this planet call Earth!
All online donated money will be directly given to the United Church of Canada, who will then send it back to the lesbian couple to cover their first year expenses after their arrival in Vancouver.
Please donate now:
If you’d like a tax receipt for your donation, please donate through writing a cheque and sending it to our address:
501-1150 Bute Street, Vancouver, BC. Canada V6E 1Z6
Attention: Danny Ramadan.
- Please write the Cheque to the UCC BC Refugee Working Unit.
In the Memo line, please write: RRS - The Devine road
- Donations of $50 and over will get a tax receipt.
Or you can donate online on this page, just click on Donate Now. Online Donations through GoFundMe do not get a tax receipt.
Thank you very much for supporting our efforts to bring these two women to Canada.
My life changed completely when I was privately sponsored to come to Canada as one of the first gay refugees who made it to Vancouver in September 2014. I escaped Syria, leaving behind homophobia, the war, and the refugee blues, and came here for a bright future.
Get to know me better on this feature video on the Global and the Mail.
I felt that rush of happiness overwhelm me when I managed, with the support of a group of Canadians, to sponsor a lesbian friend, Rory, as well as her sister, to leave the land of refuge in Turkey, and come here to Vancouver. Check out their own GoFundMe page for more info.
Now, we want to do it again. And we need your help!
Let me introduce you to Mariam and Salam.
Mariam and Salam (alias names to protect their identities) are a beautiful, late-twenty year-old lesbian couple from Syria. They met in Damascus during the war in 2013 and managed a long distance relationship for a year, only to be able to escape to one of the Gulf countries under work visas and are now living under one roof together.
But this is not their goal in life.. Nor their final destination.
They are living under the threat of losing their jobs and being deported back to Syria at any moment, and the knowledge that they will never be able to present their true identities, and be the strong, independent women they are within.
They are both well educated women with university degrees from Damascus University. Salam holds a degree in Architecture while Mariam holds a Business Management major.
They both enjoy stargazing, camping and chilled nights at home. Mariam operates from a social justice mindset, and Salam is an artistic soul who really loves tattoos.
They are seeking Canada to be their home, and they need our help to make that a reality.
A group of dedicated Vancouverites are gathering to privately sponsor those two ladies to find the home they’re looking for in Canada.
We are sponsoring those two women because we believe that those who seek to be proud of their real identity and with great potential, should surely be given the chance to reach their bright future, not be sent back to homophobia and war.
We’re hoping to raise online a total of $20.000 for the sponsorship of the couple. The total minimum we need is around $28.000, but we’re hoping we will also get more funds through the events we will plan on the ground.
Mariam and I are close friends; we met in Syria in 2011, we were inseparable for the two years I lived in Syria before I had to escape the country.
She and I came out to each other on the balcony of an office, where we were working in Damascus.
Together, we started a makeshift, underground LGBTQ-centre in Damascus, in the midst of war, providing a safe space for the LGBTQ community in Syria to hang out, be themselves and meet other LGBTQ folks. We ran weekly gatherings, documentary nights, and offered the space for LGBTQ folks who needed a place to stay for the night.
I honestly believe that both Mariam and Salam will be a great addition to the Canadian society, and valuable citizens who will positively impact their newfound community.
Through my past experiences being a refugee myself and becoming a sponsor later on, I have built strong relationships with local and national organizations; such as Rainbow Refugee and the United Church of Canada, which will offer us their support to submit this privately sponsored application.
When you donate to this cause, you’re directly changing the lives of those two women, and indirectly strengthening the welcoming nature of Canadians, who keep on showing the world that we can be better humans on this planet call Earth!
All online donated money will be directly given to the United Church of Canada, who will then send it back to the lesbian couple to cover their first year expenses after their arrival in Vancouver.
Please donate now:
If you’d like a tax receipt for your donation, please donate through writing a cheque and sending it to our address:
501-1150 Bute Street, Vancouver, BC. Canada V6E 1Z6
Attention: Danny Ramadan.
- Please write the Cheque to the UCC BC Refugee Working Unit.
In the Memo line, please write: RRS - The Devine road
- Donations of $50 and over will get a tax receipt.
Or you can donate online on this page, just click on Donate Now. Online Donations through GoFundMe do not get a tax receipt.
Thank you very much for supporting our efforts to bring these two women to Canada.