<div>Hello Friends,
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<div>When we met George, Alfreda and Abi Shalom they had just fled for their lives after being beaten and threatened in Pakistan for their Christian faith, this included them losing their business and home. Abi was only 12 years old. The family resided in Korea on a temporary visa when they met two of their Canadian sponsors. Eventually they were forced to move from Korea and found safety in Nepal, yet have resided there for seven years now. Once again a temporary visa was issued for Nepal and expired in 2017. The Nepalis Government has allowed them to sit as UN refugees while they awaited their sponsorship approval to come to Canada.
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<div>We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who has supported the family through finances, prayer, education, and conversation during this long and difficult process.
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<div>Five years ago we started a G5 application to help the Parvaiz family come to Canada as refugees. Their story captured our hearts all those years ago in a pursuit for religious freedom and a new life. We were super excited to receive the sponsorship approval last year and thought we were on the home stretch. We are very pleased to announce that the family have now received the paperwork to complete their medicals and we expect the visas for Canada to be issued in a few weeks, this is the final step to getting them on a plane to Canada.
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<div>However, we have now learned that we are required to pay an overstay fee for each day beyond their expired visa. When a Nepalis visa expires it is their law to pay the overstay fee in the amount of $18 per day. The Government is unlikely to waive these fees and so the family sits with the incredible debt on their shoulders with no hope to leave until it is paid. There is also a pressure to raise these funds as quickly as possible before the visa runs out again.
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<div>We cannot let this happen, we have almost completed this process and we need your help to fundraise the debt and get them here! This has been a long and difficult journey for the family, as you can imagine they are so eager to finally come to Canada where they can settle and know they are finally home.
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<div><em>The overstay to date (Jan 30) is 2,545 days at $18 per day which equals a whopping $45,810 dollars.</em>
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<div><strong>But it is ok...we have a plan!</strong>
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<div>This fundraising campaign is unique and requires very little from the participant. All we are asking for is your commitment of $5 and 2 people! We believe we can raise these funds in 16 days!!
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<div>How you ask?....let me show you!
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<div>I am starting the campaign and donating $5, then I am reaching out to only 2 people, to ask them to donate $5 each and to find two more people to donate $5, and so on...
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<div><strong>If you can commit to a $5 donation today...</strong>
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<div><strong>Then send this link to 2 people who will also commit to the same. </strong>
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<div><strong>This chain can keep going and we can reach the goal in only 16 days!!</strong>
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<div>What an amazing opportunity, with such little effort! Would you help us make that happen?
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<div><strong>So how does this work?</strong>
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<li>Donate $5 today
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<li>Send the GoFundMe link to two friends
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<li>Ask them to donate $5 each
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<li>Ask them to send to 2 friends who will donate $5 each
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<li>Keep it moving!
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<div><strong>Commonly asked questions (?)</strong>
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<li>Can I just donate the $15 myself and forget sending it to my friends?
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<div>The answer is not really, because it breaks the chain and does not allow the continuation of word of mouth. Passing this on and getting people involved is the success of the campaign.
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<li>Can I donate more then $5?
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<div>Yes, as long as you continue to send it to 2 friends with the same $5 request to keep that request burden low, the chain will move forward to reach the goal.
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<li>Can I donate a larger amount then $20 and get a tax receipt?
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<div>Yes, but please contact us to connect with our Church partnership donation plan and we can connect you with a way to do get that receipt!
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<li>What if I don't have two friends?
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<div>Even if you have only one friend, it is important to keep it moving forward. Eventually, that one friend has two friends!
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<li>Can I send it to more then 2 friends?
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<div>Of course, this method relies on a minimum of 2 to work in 16 days - if you send to 20 people and they each give $5 it just takes us less time - go for it!! :)
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<li>What if we raise way more then the requested amount by accident?
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<div>The team will be monitoring the amount daily and as soon as we have the funds acquired we will end the campaign.
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<div>If we do surpass that goal however, we will use any extra funds to buy the family a car, a computer, and any extended support to last them until their permanent residency cards come in.
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Anonymous

John Bonney

Bruce Davies

Shontele Torkelson

Robin Fiddler

Richard Cleaver

Jayden Shawn

Michelle Weaver

Marcos Duerksen

Lynelle Torkelson

Bruce Klassen

David Tonner

Parvaiz Family  Settlement Fund

Parvaiz Family Settlement Fund

Still $43,110 to go. Help us build momentum.