Hello! Our names are Becky (Pelkonen) and Louise (Hockley), and were are fundraising to support Gloria in her pursuit of post-secondary education here in Canada.

A little about Gloria:

As many of you may know, Gloria entered Canada as a refugee close to 1-year ago (see more on her story at the link here). The transition has been a huge one for Gloria and it has been awe-inspiring to see her thriving through resilience and a network of close friends and colleagues. Huge thanks go out to Christian Howes, Rev Elizabeth Huether, John Harris, Patricia Horobin, and all the incredible supporters and donaters to support Gloria thriving in her first year of living in Canada.

Within this first year in Canada, Gloria has secured her learner's license for driving along with a job as a support worker with Nexus Community Services Society in Cranbrook BC and has now moved to Cranbrook BC as the first next step toward her goal to go to the College of the Rockies in September, 2022.

NOW WE NEED YOUR HELP!

The next step for Gloria is to enter the Health Care Assitance Program at the College of the Rockies as a full-time student. This is a 1-year program with very likely immediate access to a full-time, permanent position as a Health Care Assistant in a number of diverse facilities here in the Kootenays (or wherever else Gloria decides to settle in Canada). She has been accepted to the HCA Program at the College but now needs support with paying for tuition and living costs for up to 1-year.

We are applying for many scholarships and student loans to support with Gloria's post-secondary education goal. Gloria has also saved $3,000 of her own money this year to support with her own tuition and living costs.

Our goal is to raise another $15,000 to allow Gloria to fully focus on her post-secondary studies in order to be most successful in her completion. We are looking for private sponsorship of this amount, all of which will go directly to Gloria for both living and tuition costs.

Here is a break-down of how the $15,000 will be spent:

Thank you for your support, in advance. Together we can uplift Gloria to help her dreams in Canada come to fruition!

With this funding and the completion of Gloria's Health Care Aide certificate in 1 year, it is highly expected that Gloria to successfully secure full-time work in the health field here in Cranbrook BC or beyond. This will ensure Gloria's independence immediately upon completion of her education.

A quote from Gloria:

"Thank you to everyone who has contributed to support me so far. I am humbled and so grateful for you all believing in me. Thank you in advance for supporting me with this Gofundme. I am excited to start school in the fall but also nervous about having enough resources to focus on my education. Any contributions made will be accepted with pure intentions to do my absolute best. This certificate will help me start my career in health care in Canada. Thank you for helping me make my dreams come true."

More about Becky & Louise (if you'd like a little background on us as the fundraiser folks):

Becky and her husband Juho worked with the kind folks through Kimberley Refugee Resettlement Group (KRRG) and several supporters and angels out of Japan to sponsor Gloria to move to Canada under the Refugee and Resettlement Assistance Program through the Government of Canada. Many miracles unfolded to get Gloria to Canada as her situation was quite unique (read more here!).

Louise has been a long-time member of the Anglican church, an avid community volunteer within Kimberley and has worked tirelessly as the KRRG's treasurer over the years. Louise has been critical in supporting Gloria's Canadian transition over the past year.