A small Vancouver Island community is preparing to welcome its first family of Syrian refugees Monday night, including a mother and daughter both widowed by war.
A nine-year-old boy, his 28-year-old mother and 58-year-old grandmother are all scheduled to touch down at Victoria International Airport after flying more than 10,000 kilometres from a refugee camp in Lebanon.
From there, they’ll be taken to their temporary housing among the 3,000 residents of Cowichan Bay.
The Cowichan Intercultural Society told CTV News it expects the new arrivals to receive an extraordinarily warm welcome.
“For the first family, it’s almost like we have to protect them from the well-wishers because I think there’s going to be such an overwhelming response,” said executive director Lynn Weaver.
The family was hand-picked by the Mill Bay Baptist Fellowship for a joint private-government sponsorship. Weaver said once they’re ready, they’ll have access to free English language classes, counselling, and other settlement services.
But what they still desperately need, as will hundreds of other Syrian families set to arrive in B.C. by year’s end, is permanent housing.
Their lives in Canada will begin being billeted through the community by the Baptist Fellowship, but pastor Tammy Klassen said the church hopes to have them set up in an apartment or suite within a couple weeks.
“We hope to offer them a safe place – a place they can heal and become part of the community,” Klassen said.
The Immigration Services Society of B.C. said only a few other families have arrived in the province so far, but it still expects to see 400 more by the end of December.
All government-assisted refugees will be dispersed into transitional housing across Metro Vancouver and southern Vancouver Island, while privately-sponsored refugees will head directly into the communities where they were sponsored.
Chris Friesen, director of settlement services for ISS of B.C., said there’s been a flood of about 1,000 housing leads since the organization put out a call to Metro Vancouverites urging them open up their homes last month – but there’s still a long way to go.
“That’s really encouraging, but we need more,” Friesen said. “Permanent housing is the key piece where we’re continuing to call for the public’s assistance.”
Friesen said he’s hopeful more generous families will consider permanently housing Syrian families in their rental units for less than they would normally charge. A family of four refugees with two children under 19 with a small housing supplement will be receiving about $800 a month for rent, he said.
That would mean a significant drop in rental income for some in the region, but Friesen said it’s worth it to help families, many of whom have suffered through terrible trauma, find stability.
“They’re very anxious about getting employed and working and contributing to Canadian society,” he said. “There’s a number of children that are coming in now too, so they’re excited about starting school.”
With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Shannon Paterson
