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Please help us to reunite a refugee family separated by the Syrian war. It is our Toronto neighbourhood community's dream to help our friend, Hirmina & her family (see boys above in picture), reunite with her 24 year old sister and her parents. THIS IS OUR STORY/JOURNEY:
In September 2015, after the tragic death of 3 year old refugee Alan Kurdi, a group of friends, in Toronto, Canada, decided to honour the memory of all deceased refugee children by sponsoring a Syrian refugee family through the Canadian private sponsorship program. We formed a neighborhood group called "Many Villages Sponsorship Group" and were matched with a family of 6 (2 parents and 4 young children). We immediately hit it off with them and when the year long sponsorship ended, our friendship didn't.
However, despite the family settling into Toronto exceedingly well (working full-time, no welfare, all speaking good English), they were never fully happy knowing their relatives were in danger. We are now endeavoring to help reunite them with some of their family, specifically the mother's 24 year old University student sister (who has a prosthetic leg) and her parents.
Through the Canadian private sponsorship program, it will cost us $41,100 to bring the family over. The Canadian government will not process their papers until we can prove that we have raised the $41,100 in resettlement funds to bring them here. We have already been able to raise approximately $6,000 of our goal and now we are trying to raise the remainder.
Of note, the cost to sponsor refugees was increased by the Canadian government on May 1st, 2018, which meant that we had to raise even more money than anticipated (e.g. approximately $8,100 more than under the old system). We were shocked at the increase, but not ready to give up.
Please help us provide a hopeful future to a young woman with dreams of completing her agricultural engineering degree in peace and allow the grandparents to meet many of their grandchildren for the first time. Thank-you/Shukran to all for your time and consideration.
NOTE: the picture above are the nephews/grandsons of the refugee family we are trying to bring to Canada. The boys are already re-settled in Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario. The boy on the right was sponsored by us in 2015 and the boy on the left was sponsored in 2016 by a Hamilton sponsorship group. Now we are trying to reunite them with their auntie and grandparents.
WHAT ARE THE FUNDS RAISED USED FOR?
1) What is resettlement money? It is the amount of money required to sustain a refugee during their first year of resettlement in Canada. Originally, the amount required was tied to a province's welfare rates, but as of May 1st, 2018, they are using a new system called REP, which requires amounts higher than the rate of welfare, hence the increase in sponsoring a refugee post May 1st 2018.
Resettlement money during the first year is used for things like: rent, food, clothing, furniture, transportation and other minor expenses. It now costs $16,300 (previously it was $12,500) to resettle an individual adult refugee for one year and $26,300 (previously it was approx. $22,000) to resettle an adult couple.
Please check out the IRCC website which explains the process at: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/help-outside-canada/private-sponsorship-program.html
2) Timeline for Resettlement Money Deposit: When a sponsor submits their paperwork to sponsor a refugee, the new rules require that they must deposit into their Sponsorship Agreement Holder's trust account 100% of the resettlement money, before the application will even be considered, let alone processed with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ("IRCC"). Therefore, we are fundraising as quickly as possible, so that we can reach the deposit amount, which will allow us to submit the paperwork and begin the process for bringing them over. Right now it takes approximately 20 months for the paperwork to be processed to bring a person to Canada who is a refugee in Lebanon from Syria. Therefore, in order to ensure they are able to keep their tentative position for resettlement and for their personal safety, getting the money raised as soon as humanly possible is imperative.
Details About the Money Withdrawn from GoFundMe and Where It Ends Up Next
Our GoFundMe account is linked to a non-for-profit bank account (note it is not a registered charity), at BMO bank (Bank of Montreal). Money from GoFundMe goes into this account, which is under the name "Many Villages Sponsorship Group" and cannot be withdrawn without two signatures, in order to ensure transparency (see more below). So two people must be present to withdraw the money in person, which are part of the sponsorship group. When the money is withdrawn it will be sent directly to ORAT via cheque, who will then hold the money in trust until the family arrives and then gives the money to the family in quarterly instalments.
Note: Our Sponsorship Agreement Holder (or "SAH"), is O.R.A.T.; see more about what a Sponsorship Agreement Holder is and who O.R.A.T. is, below.
WHEN ARE DONATIONS GIVEN TO THEIR REFUGEE BENEFICIARIES?
Once the resettlement deposit is raised, it is deposited into a trust fund, until the refugee family arrives. It cannot be accessed (or by anyone else) until the refugee family comes to Canada. Once they arrive, they receive the money in quarterly installments and it goes directly to the refugees (into their bank account), to manage themselves (no interference from sponsors). If the family is not approved to come here, the resettlement money is refunded back to the donors. If we cannot locate a donor for some unknown reason (but we should be able to because we will have your email from the GoFundMe site donation), that donation will be split between https://www.matthewhouse.ca/ , which is a non-for-profit charity that helps refugees in Toronto and S.A.M.'s mobile medical unit in Syria, providing medical and psychological health services, led by the Canadian wrestler Sami Zayn of the W.W.E.: https://app.mobilecause.com/vf/SAMIFORSYRIA
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: So You Know That We Aren't Scammers!
-Many Villages Sponsorship Group was formed in September 2015. Since we had never sponsored a refugee before, we decided to partner with a S.A.H. (Sponsorship Agreement Holder), to help us through the process. S.A.H.’s are non-for-profit charities that help match you with a refugee, assist you with the paperwork and provide education on how to resettle refugees.
-Many Villages Sponsorship Agreement Holder is O.R.A.T.: https://www.archtoronto.org/about-us/departments-(o-z)/Office_for_Refugees
-Our first sponsorship, with Hirmina's family from Latakia, Syria, occurred between January 28, 2016 to January 28, 2017, through O.R.A.T’s ‘Project Hope’ program. This program matches a refugee , who has no family or friends in Canada, with a volunteer sponsorship group.
-As previously stated, we are now trying to sponsor the same family’s relatives: the mother’s young 24 year old sister and their parents.
-For legitimate safety reasons, we cannot name the family's 3 relatives who are refugees in Lebanon. Lebanon has not signed any refugee conventions and therefore can deport refugees at their whim; they are not legally bound by conventions to allow them to stay, unlike other countries. Our 3 refugees, are originally from the northern part of Syria, near Qameshli (also known as Kameshli or Kamechli).
- Although we are partnering with ORAT again, we are going through a different ORAT program, which is designed for family members in Canada who want to sponsor a family member who is a refugee in another country. Since it is a family member sponsoring another family member, unlike our first sponsorship,unfortunately NO tax receipts can be issued this time around.
-The contact person for Many Villages Sponsorship Group II, is Maureen Smith (a lawyer in Toronto, who practices family law).
-Of note, in November 2015 to January 2016, we had a fundraising webpage on YouCaring.com, but since YouCaring is closing down by July, we were directed by that website to use GoFundMe going forward.
This was our old fundraising website on YouCaring.Com (which you might be able to still access): https://www.youcaring.com/syrian-refugee-family-tbd-through-canadian-sponsors-428968
-If you have any concerns about the legitimacy of our group and fundraising, please contact O.R.A.T (see link above) and ask whether Many Villages Sponsorship Group II is acting as a Constituent Group to bring 3 refugees from Lebanon over, with their former Syrian sponsorship family.
-As mentioned above, our charitable bank account at BMO, which requires two signatures on withdrawals. Having two signatures on a withdrawal creates more transparency and reduces fraud. Only 3 members of Many Villages Sponsorship Group II have signatory rights to the BMO charitable bank account and 2 of those members are lawyers, one of whom is the organizer of this site, Maureen Smith. If the lawyers are caught defrauding or acting in any inappropriate financial manner, they can lose their law license with the Ontario Law Society -this adds an extra layer of protection/reassurance that the donation money is being held in a transparent and safe manner.
Thanks for reading so many details!!!!!!!!
In September 2015, after the tragic death of 3 year old refugee Alan Kurdi, a group of friends, in Toronto, Canada, decided to honour the memory of all deceased refugee children by sponsoring a Syrian refugee family through the Canadian private sponsorship program. We formed a neighborhood group called "Many Villages Sponsorship Group" and were matched with a family of 6 (2 parents and 4 young children). We immediately hit it off with them and when the year long sponsorship ended, our friendship didn't.
However, despite the family settling into Toronto exceedingly well (working full-time, no welfare, all speaking good English), they were never fully happy knowing their relatives were in danger. We are now endeavoring to help reunite them with some of their family, specifically the mother's 24 year old University student sister (who has a prosthetic leg) and her parents.
Through the Canadian private sponsorship program, it will cost us $41,100 to bring the family over. The Canadian government will not process their papers until we can prove that we have raised the $41,100 in resettlement funds to bring them here. We have already been able to raise approximately $6,000 of our goal and now we are trying to raise the remainder.
Of note, the cost to sponsor refugees was increased by the Canadian government on May 1st, 2018, which meant that we had to raise even more money than anticipated (e.g. approximately $8,100 more than under the old system). We were shocked at the increase, but not ready to give up.
Please help us provide a hopeful future to a young woman with dreams of completing her agricultural engineering degree in peace and allow the grandparents to meet many of their grandchildren for the first time. Thank-you/Shukran to all for your time and consideration.
NOTE: the picture above are the nephews/grandsons of the refugee family we are trying to bring to Canada. The boys are already re-settled in Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario. The boy on the right was sponsored by us in 2015 and the boy on the left was sponsored in 2016 by a Hamilton sponsorship group. Now we are trying to reunite them with their auntie and grandparents.
WHAT ARE THE FUNDS RAISED USED FOR?
1) What is resettlement money? It is the amount of money required to sustain a refugee during their first year of resettlement in Canada. Originally, the amount required was tied to a province's welfare rates, but as of May 1st, 2018, they are using a new system called REP, which requires amounts higher than the rate of welfare, hence the increase in sponsoring a refugee post May 1st 2018.
Resettlement money during the first year is used for things like: rent, food, clothing, furniture, transportation and other minor expenses. It now costs $16,300 (previously it was $12,500) to resettle an individual adult refugee for one year and $26,300 (previously it was approx. $22,000) to resettle an adult couple.
Please check out the IRCC website which explains the process at: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/help-outside-canada/private-sponsorship-program.html
2) Timeline for Resettlement Money Deposit: When a sponsor submits their paperwork to sponsor a refugee, the new rules require that they must deposit into their Sponsorship Agreement Holder's trust account 100% of the resettlement money, before the application will even be considered, let alone processed with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ("IRCC"). Therefore, we are fundraising as quickly as possible, so that we can reach the deposit amount, which will allow us to submit the paperwork and begin the process for bringing them over. Right now it takes approximately 20 months for the paperwork to be processed to bring a person to Canada who is a refugee in Lebanon from Syria. Therefore, in order to ensure they are able to keep their tentative position for resettlement and for their personal safety, getting the money raised as soon as humanly possible is imperative.
Details About the Money Withdrawn from GoFundMe and Where It Ends Up Next
Our GoFundMe account is linked to a non-for-profit bank account (note it is not a registered charity), at BMO bank (Bank of Montreal). Money from GoFundMe goes into this account, which is under the name "Many Villages Sponsorship Group" and cannot be withdrawn without two signatures, in order to ensure transparency (see more below). So two people must be present to withdraw the money in person, which are part of the sponsorship group. When the money is withdrawn it will be sent directly to ORAT via cheque, who will then hold the money in trust until the family arrives and then gives the money to the family in quarterly instalments.
Note: Our Sponsorship Agreement Holder (or "SAH"), is O.R.A.T.; see more about what a Sponsorship Agreement Holder is and who O.R.A.T. is, below.
WHEN ARE DONATIONS GIVEN TO THEIR REFUGEE BENEFICIARIES?
Once the resettlement deposit is raised, it is deposited into a trust fund, until the refugee family arrives. It cannot be accessed (or by anyone else) until the refugee family comes to Canada. Once they arrive, they receive the money in quarterly installments and it goes directly to the refugees (into their bank account), to manage themselves (no interference from sponsors). If the family is not approved to come here, the resettlement money is refunded back to the donors. If we cannot locate a donor for some unknown reason (but we should be able to because we will have your email from the GoFundMe site donation), that donation will be split between https://www.matthewhouse.ca/ , which is a non-for-profit charity that helps refugees in Toronto and S.A.M.'s mobile medical unit in Syria, providing medical and psychological health services, led by the Canadian wrestler Sami Zayn of the W.W.E.: https://app.mobilecause.com/vf/SAMIFORSYRIA
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: So You Know That We Aren't Scammers!
-Many Villages Sponsorship Group was formed in September 2015. Since we had never sponsored a refugee before, we decided to partner with a S.A.H. (Sponsorship Agreement Holder), to help us through the process. S.A.H.’s are non-for-profit charities that help match you with a refugee, assist you with the paperwork and provide education on how to resettle refugees.
-Many Villages Sponsorship Agreement Holder is O.R.A.T.: https://www.archtoronto.org/about-us/departments-(o-z)/Office_for_Refugees
-Our first sponsorship, with Hirmina's family from Latakia, Syria, occurred between January 28, 2016 to January 28, 2017, through O.R.A.T’s ‘Project Hope’ program. This program matches a refugee , who has no family or friends in Canada, with a volunteer sponsorship group.
-As previously stated, we are now trying to sponsor the same family’s relatives: the mother’s young 24 year old sister and their parents.
-For legitimate safety reasons, we cannot name the family's 3 relatives who are refugees in Lebanon. Lebanon has not signed any refugee conventions and therefore can deport refugees at their whim; they are not legally bound by conventions to allow them to stay, unlike other countries. Our 3 refugees, are originally from the northern part of Syria, near Qameshli (also known as Kameshli or Kamechli).
- Although we are partnering with ORAT again, we are going through a different ORAT program, which is designed for family members in Canada who want to sponsor a family member who is a refugee in another country. Since it is a family member sponsoring another family member, unlike our first sponsorship,unfortunately NO tax receipts can be issued this time around.
-The contact person for Many Villages Sponsorship Group II, is Maureen Smith (a lawyer in Toronto, who practices family law).
-Of note, in November 2015 to January 2016, we had a fundraising webpage on YouCaring.com, but since YouCaring is closing down by July, we were directed by that website to use GoFundMe going forward.
This was our old fundraising website on YouCaring.Com (which you might be able to still access): https://www.youcaring.com/syrian-refugee-family-tbd-through-canadian-sponsors-428968
-If you have any concerns about the legitimacy of our group and fundraising, please contact O.R.A.T (see link above) and ask whether Many Villages Sponsorship Group II is acting as a Constituent Group to bring 3 refugees from Lebanon over, with their former Syrian sponsorship family.
-As mentioned above, our charitable bank account at BMO, which requires two signatures on withdrawals. Having two signatures on a withdrawal creates more transparency and reduces fraud. Only 3 members of Many Villages Sponsorship Group II have signatory rights to the BMO charitable bank account and 2 of those members are lawyers, one of whom is the organizer of this site, Maureen Smith. If the lawyers are caught defrauding or acting in any inappropriate financial manner, they can lose their law license with the Ontario Law Society -this adds an extra layer of protection/reassurance that the donation money is being held in a transparent and safe manner.
Thanks for reading so many details!!!!!!!!