It takes a village

Through the contact form on our blog, we recently received an email with the following question: “How do you organize yourselves so that the complex work of settlement and support can happen for multiple families without burning out your team of volunteers?”

It's an important question, and not an easy one to answer. Each of the three families that we have sponsored so far arrived after the first year of settlement of the previous family was over, so that made things easier. But having enough volunteers to carry out all the tasks needed is no easy feat, especially for the latest arrival, a single mum with four children, who needs a lot more support than the previous families.

Being a group made up entirely of volunteers can be a challenge. It means that people are not always available, and not always reliable. Everyone has busy lives outside the Ripple group – work and family obligations, holiday trips and so on. A number of people who joined the group four years ago have since dropped out, while others who are nominally members only sporadically chip in. Community sponsorship groups such as ours are vulnerable to this kind of fluctuation and unpredictability – unlike churches, for example, which can pull in volunteers from a wider congregation.

Newcomer and group members' kids mingle at an Easter party

We have learned a number of lessons of how to make it work, despite all the challenges.

• For the latest settlement, we actively recruited new volunteers who have daytime availability (since many of the ‘old’ members have full-time jobs). All of them are absolutely amazing, always ready to step in when help is needed. We even found a wonderful volunteer ESL teacher who is teaching the mum at home, since she cannot attend formal classes due to a lack of access to childcare.
• Being a volunteer in our group is ideal for people who want to be flexible and who have only a limited amount of time. Except for the English lessons, the need for support varies from week to week and people can volunteer whenever it fits into their schedule. 
• Several of our new volunteers live close to the family’s home, which makes volunteering easier, especially if support is needed at short notice. 
• Online tools are our friend when it comes to organizing ourselves – especially a shared google calendar and a messenger group where we post updates and ask for support, as well as google docs to share information. 
• We have had the same chair and several key members since the beginning, which allows for continuity. 
• Regular meetings with all volunteers, as well as regular message exchanges, help keep up a sense of community and being 'on the same page'.
• Last but not least: We all agree that supporting this beautiful famil is extremely rewarding! We genuinely enjoy hanging out with them and probably get as much out of the experience as the family does. 

                                                                                                                         By Claudia Blume

Please help us bring an Eritrean family of five to Canada

We need your help! The Ripple Refugee group is sponsoring a young mother and her four children, all under 8 years old. The family was forced to flee their home in Eritrea and is currently residing under precarious circumstances in neighboring Sudan. Eritrea is recognized as having one of the most repressive regimes in the world. 

The UNHCR and the Canadian Government have reviewed and approved the family’s application for refugee status and they could arrive in Toronto before this coming Christmas. Our group has chosen to support this young mum and her small children because they are very vulnerable and because we think we can make a huge impact on their lives.

But we need to raise $25,000 to make this happen. Any donations over and above this amount will be used for refugee sponsorships our group will undertake in 2019.

Tax-receipted donations can be made on-line via the Rosedale United Church’s (our sponsorship agreement holder) donation page at Canada Helps (please click here). Please be sure to indicate in the box marked “Include a message for this charity” that the donation is for: RUC-25 Ripple Refugee Project.

Eritreans seeking safe passage to Sudan (credit: UNHCR)

Because of the generous support of our donors we have been able to sponsor and settle two Syrian families and one individual over the last three years, totalling twelve people. You can read about their incredible stories and the journey that our group of concerned citizens from Toronto has been on in our blog.

For more information about donating to our group, please click here. 

Arrivals

I travel a lot for work. When the flight home is over, and after the final exhaustion of body and soul by customs lines and luggage carousels, I used to race through the automatic doors to the international arrivals hall and grab a cab or Uber for the last twenty-one kilometres of the trip.

But for the past two years, though still always heart-hungry to get home quickly and see my family, I now stop and look around when I’m through those doors and free to leave.

I look for signs. Literally. “Welcome xxx Family to Canada!” they say, and, usually "مرحبا بكم في كندا." Sometimes "bienvenue au Canada”. If you know the acronyms and lingo, no small talk with the signs’ bearers is needed. GAR, JAS, or BVOR*? Have you already spoken with the family? How large is it? What country are they from? Do they speak English? How do they feel about coming to Canada? Do you know any of what they’ve been through? Best wishes for you all.

On June 6, I was there, in the international arrivals hall, with a sign. For the third time. I’d joined my friend Sawsan Awad and her family to greet her brother, Mahmoud, the latest human being sponsored by  Ripple and it was at this exact spot in Terminal 1, in December 2015, where we had first met Sawsan, her husband Mohamad, and the rest of the Abdallah family in person.

Family reunification is important for the wellbeing of newcomers, and was something that Sawsan had said she wanted and needed - to restore links with some of her family after being separated by war. And so we did not hesitate to sponsor her youngest brother, who was still stuck in Lebanon.

It can take four hours for newcomers to walk through those automatic doors, but I always want to be there, just on the other side, even before the plane lands and for the whole time it takes them to get processed. With my sign, red and white carnations, and Canadian flag. I will not miss the moment the arrivals doors open and they come through, a moment that represents joy, journey, meaning, grace, relief, grief, sadness, happiness, weariness, survival, openness, philanthropy, resistance, resilience, family, citizenry, past, present, and future. I’m unapologetic about this. Such human moments generate more humanity. It’s a ripple effect.

Two months of settling into his new life in Toronto, Mahmoud told me, “Arriving in Canada is one of the best things that ever happened to me. Because I speak English, I’ve faced nothing like the challenges faced by many newcomers. But settling in a new community takes effort. I’m working hard and trying to get involved in the community. I still miss my family and friends back in Syria and Lebanon. l had no choice but to leave. After so many years, I finally reunited with my sister and her family. She has three beautiful daughters, and the two older ones, Aya and Reemas, are very happy and excited to have another uncle around. My sister Sawsan was overwhelmed with joy, and burst into tears when she was at the airport to pick me up.”

In a couple of weeks I’ll be returning from another business trip and walking through that spot where we first met Sawsan and her family, then Amr, Rasha, and baby Kareem, the second Syrian family our group had sponsored, and now, Mahmoud. And I’ll look for more signs, think with gratitude of those who’ve arrived, and the many more we must bring through those automatic doors at arrivals.

*Government Assisted Refugees, Joint Assistance Sponsorship, Blended Visa Office-Referred

By Rebecca Davies

Lessons Learned: Post-Settlement (Self) Evaluation

As our group is in the process of sponsoring additional refugees to come to Canada and we will be assisting these future newcomers in their settlement process, we wanted to learn as much as possible from our first settlement so that we can improve our effectiveness as time goes on. 

A number of people have expressed interest in learning more about the evaluation process we undertook, and the specific questions we asked, so we wanted to share this information in our blog.

The evaluation process was undertaken as we moved into the 13th month, once the formal sponsorship period of 12 months had been completed. The first survey was conducted on a one-on-one basis between the individual members of the newcomer family and an Arabic speaking volunteer, without any of our sponsorship team members being present. The questions were provided ahead of time, in Arabic, and the family members were encouraged to be as critical as possible so that we could learn from their feedback. Some key takeaways from their feedback are included below the questionnaire.

The second questionnaire was completed on an anonymous basis via Survey Monkey with members of the sponsorship team. The results were then discussed and distilled down into the most important learning points for our group members to consider. A few selected examples of our feedback are included below.

The third part of the evaluation, not included here, was an open and frank discussion with each of the newcomers, individually, with a close and trusted member of the settlement team and an Arabic interpreter. The aim of that discussion was to highlight things that the settlement team felt that the particular newcomer still needed to focus on, or opportunities they should take advantage of, or concerns that we had regarding their particular situation.

 
Some of the major areas of feedback from the family were:

• More regular English language work with different members of the settlement team would have been appreciated. Having a regular English “class” in their apartment was very important to them and we should have been doing it more often and continue to do it into the second year.
• Similarly, more support for the job search, including during the second year when they would be more prepared to look for work, would be appreciated 
• They would have appreciated more advice regarding where to conduct their shopping, where to find the best bargains and how to use the Toronto public transport. [Although we did cover this it appears we did not do it as comprehensively as we should have] 
• There was also feedback that they remained uncertain about how certain things, such as making dental appointments, should be executed on, which we had thought had been clearly communicated already. 

As a result of their feedback, our group has decided that in the future, with our next sponsorships, we will conduct a formal monthly review to ensure that we don’t take anything for granted and we ensure that no issues or unmet needs are left unaddressed as the settlement proceeds.

Highlights of feedback from members of the sponsorship group

Q2: What could we do better (Pre-arrival and/or post arrival)?

• Clearer division of responsibilities post-arrival 
• Pair up each family member with an RRP member for outings, English lessons etc. No need to always involve the whole family. 
• Encourage family members to take on part time jobs early on 
• Consider location closer to subway, not in Arabic environment 
• Focus on different ways to improve their English (outside of ESL classes) 
• Manage expectations of family for month 13 

Q3: How effective was the communication between our group and the newcomers? What improvements in this area should we consider?

• Understand role and responsibility of volunteer vs professional interpreters 
• Draw on a bigger pool of interpreters 
• Email not a good communication method but other communication means such as text messages, What’sApp, Facebook messenger worked well 
• Regular, formal check-ins with family with different group members to discuss progress, concerns 
• Spend more time with the family post-arrival to clarify mutual expectations, roles and responsibilities 

Q4: What specific actions or approaches could we have done better to promote self-sufficiency and empower the newcomers?

• Encourage them to take on part-time employment 
• Encourage them to take on volunteer positions 
• Be more active in English-language support for the family 
• Earlier start of employment discussion, preparation of CV 
• Manage expectations for month 13 

Q6: In terms of the RRP group overall, considering how we might be able to work more effectively, and in terms of our long-term future, do you have any suggestions regarding changes we should make in any of the following areas? Direction, Goals, Processes; Governance; Membership; Task-definition and assignments; Meetings; Decision-making process; Advocacy; Other

• Defining governance, including membership guidelines/ how decisions are made. Clarifying vision and mission. 
• We should re-visit team member roles, accountabilities and expectations of ourselves and of each other 
• We should continue to support advocacy efforts on behalf of the private sponsorship model in general and its application to the Syrian refugee backlog in particular. 
• Develop mechanisms to ensure engagement of members, to exclude members if needed, to bring in new members 
• Take and circulate minutes at each meeting 
• Continue meetings, perhaps on a more regular basis 
• Clear delineation of roles and responsibilities of members 

Q7: Personal reflections - Please provide your thoughts on any of the following questions: What did you learn personally, what was most meaningful, memorable, about this experience?

• It has been a wonderful personal experience both as part of the RRP itself and in getting to know the newcomers. I definitely feel like I have gained a lot more than I have given. Being a member of the group has connected me with terrific individuals that I might not have known otherwise. Our discussions have been sometimes difficult but it has felt like we have really worked as a team to arrive at decisions. And in a crazy world that seems to be getting crazier, it has felt empowering for our group to make a difference in the lives of these 8 people. 
• The most memorable was the pick up on day on, and the small day to day interactions and light moments and I really enjoyed our Ripple team meetings 
• I found it personally satisfying to assist the family to settle in Canada after the trauma they must have experienced over the past few years both inside and outside Syria. It's only one family from among millions of displaced Syrian refugees but what a difference our team has made in the lives of every member of the family. Our medical team members have been truly outstanding. 
• Seeing the family so grateful to be here in a free country, and being received so warmly was a true pleasure. 
• On the whole, this has been a really positive experience for me personally as I feel I have connected in a meaningful way with people with shared values. It has been an honour to tangibly assist with settling a vulnerable newcomer family. This journey has been an impetus for becoming involved with an advocacy organization and to learn about the problems with the Canadian Immigration system and to explore possible solutions. 
• This has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my life and a real honour to work with such a great group of people. Has given me a lot to think about in terms of empowerment, interpersonal relationships, cultural issues, volunteering
• Very glad to be involved, regretful that did not have more time to make myself available. Regretful also that I did not manage to make a meaningful personal connection with them. 
• The most meaningful part has been to enable two families to have a new life, and a better hope for the future. Also, it is very special to feel part of a group, of a bigger community, and taking a small step into making the world a slightly better place. Doing something concrete to help instead of just complaining. The most memorable moments were the arrival of the family and the many beautiful moments we spend with them socially. The whole year was one big learning experience as everything we did was completely new to me. I am proud that we were able to weather many of the challenges that arose, and stuck together as a group, without a lot of conflict and disagreement. One disappointment was that a number of people in the group simply disappeared or were disengaged, especially when the going got tough, or just came to group meetings without engaging with the family. 
• The friendship with people so very different from me in customs and values has been heart warming. On the other hand, I have come away with a renewed appreciation of the importance of making a contribution to others for both my own and the refugees mental health. Overall, I think that the joy of self sufficiency, contribution to the welfare of others and social participation is a right we need to help the newcomers to access. I am learning about the range of groups in Syrian society and their associated attitudes, and wonder whether the government could better help those on the list to come here to manage their expectations and to understand what will be expected of them in turn. 
•  It was wonderful to be part of a team that helps to provide a safe haven and a new start for people in real distress. I learned that the barriers are larger than I had expected. 

Template for our self-evaluation, and for the newcomer’s evaluation of our work (in English and Arabic).

By Andrew FitzGerald

A message to our donors

The members of the Ripple Refugee Project wanted to provide all of you, our generous donors, with an update on the Abdallah family, who arrived from Syria to Canada last December, and regarding other sponsorships and initiatives undertaken by the Ripple Refugee Group.

The Abdallahs are settling well into their new life here in Toronto.  All the family members are working hard to develop their English language skills which is a priority in order to provide them with a solid foundation for their new life. The two youngest family members, who are 6 and 8, are already pretty much fluent while the adults are making great progress. Now with the 12th-month anniversary approaching, attention is turning to finding work so that they can support themselves going forward.

Baby shower for the soon-to-arrive newest family member

IT TAKES A VILLAGE:  We have had tremendous support in settling this family into their new life from so many different organizations and individuals and we want to thank everyone who has been involved.  While there are too many to mention, we want to highlight the support from the University Health Network (UHN), the Arab Community Centre of Toronto (ACCT), Access Alliance, Dentists, Sunnybrook Hospital, Ryerson University, Lifeline Syria, the many volunteer Arabic-speaking interpreters and members of that community, and from a wide range of other people in the extended Toronto community.

And of course, our refugee sponsorships would not be possible without all of your generous donations - THANK YOU!

UPCOMING ARRIVALS - We are looking forward to welcoming a family of 3 before Christmas, who are arriving from Syria via Turkey with a new born baby in tow.  We also have an application for another family of 3 and for a single young man who is related to the Abdallahs, who should all be here hopefully by mid 2017. The Ripple group plans to continue sponsoring refugees over the coming years - it has been such a rewarding and transformative experience for all of us.

As Ryerson Lifeline Syria has stopped accepting donations for all their sponsorship teams, which we are one of, we will be working with another organization to continue our funding efforts in order to support the sponsorship of more refugee families in the future - Please stand by for an update regarding this new donation channel. 

ON-GOING ADVOCACY AND SUPPORT EFFORTS - From the beginning, an important goal of the Ripple Refugee Project was to advocate to the government and public for the value and importance of the Private Sponsorship model, to encourage people to get involved and to support other private sponsorship groups in whatever way we can. Below are some more recent examples of our efforts in this area:

- We continue to meet with other private sponsorship groups to provide guidance in their efforts

- Canada4Refugees.org:  3 of our members were co-founders of the Canada4Refugees group which formed last May in order to advocate for and provide support to the citizen-led refugee resettlement model and initiatives.    

- Advocacy through the media in order to build domestic and international support for Syrian refugee initiatives, the private sponsorship model and to encourage people to get involved: 

a) Our newcomer family was recently featured on BBC International Radio and TV broadcasts (click here to view the heartwarming TV story) which also shows an amazing surprise reunion between the BBC reporter, Lyse Ducet and a Syrian family that was last seen in dire circumstances in Damascus.

b) The family and the Ripple Refugee Project group were also featured in the Globe and Mail (Click Here) 

c) On Dutch TV (starts at minute:17:23) (Click Here).

d) Al Jazeera's TV show, "The Stream" (Click Here), featured The Ripple Refugee Project in its episode on private citizens helping Syrian Refugeesple Refugee Project. 

WISHING YOU ALL THE BEST FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON

MANY THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR SUPPORT

A few things we have learned in the first year

It has been almost one year since the Syrian family of eight we are sponsoring has arrived in Toronto. As we are waiting for a second family to arrive, it’s time to take stock. It has been an extremely eventful, rewarding, but also challenging year.  Here are some of the lessons we have learned.*

It’s a life-changing experience

Although the past year has at times been challenging and frustrating, by and large the sponsorship has been one of the most rewarding experiences many of us have ever had. We have not only gained the friendship of a Syrian newcomer family, but we have also grown together as a group and felt part of a larger community, of something bigger than ourselves. While sponsoring a family is a small act in the big scheme of things, it has completely transformed not only this family’s, but also our lives in more ways than we could have imagined.

It’s a big commitment

Several times it hit us what a big commitment we had taken on. All of a sudden we were responsible for eight complete strangers who did not speak a word of English, had never traveled anywhere besides Syria and Lebanon and did not know how things worked in Canada. It was very daunting - almost like adopting a child. Especially at the beginning, settling in the family was very time-consuming and quite challenging because we did not speak each other’s language. The commitment does not stop once the family has moved into an apartment, has all their documents and is enrolled in English lessons. Not only does the practical support continue, but it becomes increasingly an emotional commitment, one that does not stop once the sponsorship year is over. Several of us have formed strong ties with the family, and we hope that the sponsorship relationship will turn into a lasting friendship.  

The family invited us to an Iftar meal during their first Ramadan in Canada

It takes a village

We are very fortunate that the members of our group have a wide range of professional backgrounds - such as health, education and human resources - which made dividing and tackling the multitude of tasks of the settlement process a lot easier. But it was much more than our group that helped settle in the family. Several dentists have provided their services for free. A family we did not previously know, offered temporary housing.  Several community groups collected goods and clothes for newcomers. Within hours of sending a request to our networks, a complete set of baby items – from a stroller to a crib – had been donated for the soon-to-arrive newest member of the family. Ryerson students mentored one of the sons of the family who wants to study here. Several organizations, such as the Arab community center, have given us invaluable support when needed. This amazing outpouring of help from many Canadians has been one of the most positive experiences during our sponsorship year.

Manage expectations

Before we took on the sponsorship, an experienced private sponsor gave us an important piece of advice that helped us manage expectations from the outset: It’s important to remember that the sponsors’ primary job is to settle in refugees as best as they can. If they become friends with the newcomers, that’s an added bonus, but don’t be disappointed if this does not happen, or if you don’t get along. (Luckily for us, we got on really well with the family from day one).

We also realized that a number of our expectations for settling in a newcomer family are driven by our cultural, social and educational background and bias – such as that women should be looking for work. It is important to communicate openly, to recognize cultural and social differences and adjust expectations.

An outing with the family to Niagara Falls

Don’t be scared of making mistakes

None of our group members had a lot of experience with Arab culture and a few mistakes were made. During one of our first visits to the family, for example, I kissed both the women and the men on the cheeks, suddenly realizing that this was probably a complete cultural faux pas. The family was completely unfazed, however, and has always been very forgiving and tolerant of our ignorance. Despite our cultural and social differences, we share a common humanity and emotional bond, and we found that it’s better to jump right in and make a few mistakes than being too shy and scared to interact with newcomers from a different culture with limited knowledge of English.

Don’t infantilize

Because the family we are sponsoring did initially not speak any English and did not know their way around, we took on a large number of jobs at the beginning – booking doctor and other appointments, for example, picking them up and driving them around, sometimes making decisions on their behalf. It is a fine line between helping people settle in and infantilizing them, making them dependent on our support. This goes both ways – the family often continued to ask for support even when we felt they could take on the task themselves. It is not always easy to figure out the right balance.

Being in Canada does not mean being happy ever after

Some people may expect that refugees’ problems are over once they reach Canada, where they are safe and have a roof over their heads. But while they are physically here – and grateful for the warm welcome they have received in Canada - their minds are often still back home. Gruesome images and news reports from the war in Syria are continuously coming in on various electronic devices. There is a constant stream of calls and messages from loved ones who are still in Syria or are refugees in neighbouring countries. The constant worry, and the guilt of being here and not being able to help, can be overwhelming, and makes settling in more difficult. Many sponsorship groups will face the challenge of being asked to sponsor additional family members.

Don’t let setbacks get you down

As with many things in life, sponsoring a refugee family is not always smooth sailing. There are many ups but also quite a few downs - unexpected challenges and frustrations.  It is important to accept that setbacks are normal - it does not mean that the settlement is unsuccessful.

Some of the Ripple Refugee group members at a meeting

Have a strong core group

While our group is relatively big, only a handful of people are actively engaged on a regular basis. Some members are traveling a lot, others are busy with work and family and only sporadically interact with our sponsored family. It is vital to have a strong leader and a small group of committed, hands-on members who continuously give the sponsored family not only practical, but also emotional support throughout the year. Before deciding to sponsor refugees, groups should discuss very clearly if members are around throughout the year, and are willing to be involved on a regular basis. Less engaged members can support the settlement activities on an ad hoc basis.

Do your homework

When we decided to sponsor refugees there were not many resources available. This has changed, and I would highly recommend to anyone thinking about sponsorship to either do a training with the Refugee SponsorshipTraining Program , or read one of the resources that are available, such as the Lifeline Syria sponsorship handbook.

*These personal reflections were written by RRP member Claudia Blume and don’t necessarily reflect the views of all members of the group