Help a refugee family settle in Canada
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We need your help!
Sometime between December 2018 and January 2019, a brave young family fleeing ethnic violence in Myanmar will arrive in Ottawa as resettled refugees. This young couple and their three year old daughter had to flee their home and livelihoods due to fear of persecution based on their ethnicity and political beliefs. They are seeking a new life in Canada, but it will not be without challenges. Your contribution can help support them as they settle into life here in Ottawa.
The Group of Friends sponsorship group (Andra, Liam, Nicci, Dina, Tracey, Benji, Katie, and Adrian) has volunteered to help assist this family in their resettlement. That means being ready and able to help them with anything and everything they may need from the moment they land. We'll be meeting them at the airport, arranging living accommodations, assisting with job searches, connecting them with healthcare professionals, and guiding them through all the ins and outs of the Canadian and Ontario system as they adapt to life here in Ottawa.
How can you help?
Thankfully, many of the basic financial needs (housing, food, public transportation, etc.) will be covered through a combination of funding from the government and a private fund. But, this funding will only provide enough to put the family just above the low-income threshold level. They will need to use it to cover their start-up costs, pay back the cost of their flights from overseas, cover any emergency medical issues and become self sufficient within a year, as the funding only covers their first 12 months in Canada. That is why we're doing all we can to raise funds to help cover the additional costs of their resettlement. 100% of the money raised will go towards this family's resettlement expenses, including:
- Travel loan debt (they have to reimburse the cost of their flights to Canada)
- Supplemental money to ensure they can afford fresh and nutritious food
- Clothing, including jackets, mittens, hats and boots to handle their first winter in Ottawa
- Apartment furnishings
- Toiletries
- Emergency dental/medical expenses
- Associated childcare expenses
- Language training
- Cell phone minutes and internet
- Incidentals & everyday expenses
- and everything else in between!
About the Family
The family are refugees from Myanmar, temporarily residing in Malaysia. They are a married couple (M/31, F/26) with one child (F/3). The father has primary school education and experience working as a fisherman and as a construction labourer, and the mother has post secondary education in law and is fluent in English. She also has experience working as a volunteer teacher.
About the Crisis
Unfortunately, Myanmar has had ethnic conflict for a long period of time. Many different ethnic and minority groups have been persecuted and had to flee their homes in search of safety. The Rohingya are one of these groups, a stateless, mostly Muslim minority who have traditionally lived in Myanmar (Burma). Hundreds of thousands were forced to flee their homes in August 2017 when violence broke out in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, including the burning of entire Rohingya villages. The United Nations has described the Rohingya “as the most persecuted minority in the world.”
For more info, check out this quick clip or infographic from the United Nations:
Infographic - Rohingya Crisis at a glance: https://unhcr.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=5fdca0f47f1a46498002f39894fcd26f
Curious about the Sponsorship Program we're involved in?
It's called the Blended Visa Office Referred (BVOR) Program . The BVOR program is designed to resettle refugees identified by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as being among the most vulnerable in their current setting. The BVOR program is a blended initiative, meaning that private sponsorship (covered here by a generous philanthropic donation ) and the Government of Canada share the cost of providing our newcomer family with a basic income assistance package for twelve months.
As part of the BVOR program, our sponsorship group (Group of Friends) is working with the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa as our sponsorship agreement holder (SAH) and Jewish Family Services of Ottawa as our constituent group. While our sponsorship group is non-denominational, both organizations have extensive experience with refugee settlement in the city, and we are grateful for their support as we work through this process.
Would you like a tax receipt?
You can give online via Jewish Family Services Ottawa by clicking the "Donate" button on the far right side of their homepage. IMPORTANT: Please use the drop down fund menu to donate to “Refugee Support” and add in “Group of Friends" in the message for the charity box to ensure these funds reach our specific group.
All donations through Jewish Family Services are tax receipted.
Prefer to give by cash or cheque?
Let any of us know! We would be happy to facilitate your donation.
Want to support/donate in other ways?
Gently used household items, furniture, clothes and children's toys/books are also very much needed. Post-holiday gift cards especially welcome too!
(Please get in touch at: [email redacted] or directly with any member of our team and we will happily let you know what is most needed!)
Thank you so much for helping us support this family's resettlement in Canada.
Sometime between December 2018 and January 2019, a brave young family fleeing ethnic violence in Myanmar will arrive in Ottawa as resettled refugees. This young couple and their three year old daughter had to flee their home and livelihoods due to fear of persecution based on their ethnicity and political beliefs. They are seeking a new life in Canada, but it will not be without challenges. Your contribution can help support them as they settle into life here in Ottawa.
The Group of Friends sponsorship group (Andra, Liam, Nicci, Dina, Tracey, Benji, Katie, and Adrian) has volunteered to help assist this family in their resettlement. That means being ready and able to help them with anything and everything they may need from the moment they land. We'll be meeting them at the airport, arranging living accommodations, assisting with job searches, connecting them with healthcare professionals, and guiding them through all the ins and outs of the Canadian and Ontario system as they adapt to life here in Ottawa.
How can you help?
Thankfully, many of the basic financial needs (housing, food, public transportation, etc.) will be covered through a combination of funding from the government and a private fund. But, this funding will only provide enough to put the family just above the low-income threshold level. They will need to use it to cover their start-up costs, pay back the cost of their flights from overseas, cover any emergency medical issues and become self sufficient within a year, as the funding only covers their first 12 months in Canada. That is why we're doing all we can to raise funds to help cover the additional costs of their resettlement. 100% of the money raised will go towards this family's resettlement expenses, including:
- Travel loan debt (they have to reimburse the cost of their flights to Canada)
- Supplemental money to ensure they can afford fresh and nutritious food
- Clothing, including jackets, mittens, hats and boots to handle their first winter in Ottawa
- Apartment furnishings
- Toiletries
- Emergency dental/medical expenses
- Associated childcare expenses
- Language training
- Cell phone minutes and internet
- Incidentals & everyday expenses
- and everything else in between!
About the Family
The family are refugees from Myanmar, temporarily residing in Malaysia. They are a married couple (M/31, F/26) with one child (F/3). The father has primary school education and experience working as a fisherman and as a construction labourer, and the mother has post secondary education in law and is fluent in English. She also has experience working as a volunteer teacher.
About the Crisis
Unfortunately, Myanmar has had ethnic conflict for a long period of time. Many different ethnic and minority groups have been persecuted and had to flee their homes in search of safety. The Rohingya are one of these groups, a stateless, mostly Muslim minority who have traditionally lived in Myanmar (Burma). Hundreds of thousands were forced to flee their homes in August 2017 when violence broke out in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, including the burning of entire Rohingya villages. The United Nations has described the Rohingya “as the most persecuted minority in the world.”
For more info, check out this quick clip or infographic from the United Nations:
Infographic - Rohingya Crisis at a glance: https://unhcr.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=5fdca0f47f1a46498002f39894fcd26f
Curious about the Sponsorship Program we're involved in?
It's called the Blended Visa Office Referred (BVOR) Program . The BVOR program is designed to resettle refugees identified by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as being among the most vulnerable in their current setting. The BVOR program is a blended initiative, meaning that private sponsorship (covered here by a generous philanthropic donation ) and the Government of Canada share the cost of providing our newcomer family with a basic income assistance package for twelve months.
As part of the BVOR program, our sponsorship group (Group of Friends) is working with the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa as our sponsorship agreement holder (SAH) and Jewish Family Services of Ottawa as our constituent group. While our sponsorship group is non-denominational, both organizations have extensive experience with refugee settlement in the city, and we are grateful for their support as we work through this process.
Would you like a tax receipt?
You can give online via Jewish Family Services Ottawa by clicking the "Donate" button on the far right side of their homepage. IMPORTANT: Please use the drop down fund menu to donate to “Refugee Support” and add in “Group of Friends" in the message for the charity box to ensure these funds reach our specific group.
All donations through Jewish Family Services are tax receipted.
Prefer to give by cash or cheque?
Let any of us know! We would be happy to facilitate your donation.
Want to support/donate in other ways?
Gently used household items, furniture, clothes and children's toys/books are also very much needed. Post-holiday gift cards especially welcome too!
(Please get in touch at: [email redacted] or directly with any member of our team and we will happily let you know what is most needed!)
Thank you so much for helping us support this family's resettlement in Canada.
Co-organisers (8)
Group Of Friends
Organiser
Ottawa , ON
Adrian King
Co-organiser
Andra Taylor
Co-organiser
Dina Mujic
Co-organiser
Katie Abbott
Co-organiser