Group still waiting for refugee family
'It's going to happen' says organizer who expects to find out exactly when later this month or in May
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Friday, April 15, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
An update on the Syrian refugee family expected to arrive in the city is expected this month or next.
Lindsay Armer is a member of the sponsorship group Yellowknife Welcomes Refugees Number One.
Armer said the group has been patiently waiting for the family ever since their paperwork was forwarded to Citizenship and Immigration back in January.
"We didn't receive notification like many of the groups did in Canada saying that your family may not be coming until 2017," Armer said. "We are glad that we didn't get that."
She added that her group has yet to receive a tentative date when immigration officials think the family will arrive.
Armer said the delay in having the first family arrive in Yellowknife has actually helped.
"It has given us more time to prepare. We're prepared and ready now," she said. "The next time we hear from them (Citizenship and Immigration Canada) it could be to say that your family is coming next week. Of course, it is frustrating when you think they are coming then you hear it's going to be delayed a little bit. But when you think of the logistics ... it's really quite impressive. We're just rolling with it. It's going to happen."
As Yellowknifer had confirmed in a story back in February, it is a family of six that is expected to eventually arrive in the city including a mother and father as well as four brothers aged seven, nine 10 and 13. They are expected to attend Range Lake School once they get here, although Armer said that has not yet been confirmed. She said the family's privacy and confidentiality is of the utmost importance to her and the sponsorship group she is
involved with.
"We know about our family and we know their details. We don't know what security risks might be involved. They might still have family back in Syria that they want to protect," Armer said.
She added that they will leave it up to the Syrian family as to how much information about themselves they want to reveal to the public.
Armer said they named their group Number One in hopes that others would follow and that has happened. Five different groups have officially expressed their interest in hosting a family - meaning as many as five Syrian refugee families may eventually call Yellowknife home.
Yellowknife resident Suzette Montreuil, another member of the sponsorship group Armer belongs to stated in an e-mail that a fundraiser for the family will be held in the city on May 23. Further details are still being worked out.
Montreuil's partner, Frame Lake MLA Kevin O'Reilly, said he is not directly involved in the effort to bring Syrian families to Yellowknife. But he, like many other residents, said he has been closely following the endeavor.
"It's really a matter for the federal government. We haven't really been kept in the loop but I am quite supportive and my family is as well," O'Reilly said. "It helps bring together our community. This is an opportunity for us to show that we care about events on the other side of the world and for us to pull together and help."
According to media reports, Canada is the only country in the world that allows private sponsorship of refugees. The Liberal government has reportedly told Citizenship and Immigration to find ways to expedite private-sponsorship applications that were submitted before March 31. Citizenship and Immigration officials had not confirmed those details as of press time.
