It is likely only a matter of weeks, if not days, before Hassan, Omayea and Reham will call Jasper home.
The family of three is among the first wave of Syrian refugees the federal government has approved to come to Canada.
鈥淭hey got the stamp of approval,鈥� said Nancy Addison, who has been spearheading the community鈥檚 effort to help the family resettle in Jasper.
鈥淚t鈥檚 now a matter of when they鈥檙e coming, not if,鈥� she said, adding they were approved Dec. 31 and will likely be boarding a plane bound for Canada very soon.
To prepare for the family鈥檚 imminent arrival, Addison has been collecting everyday household items to furnish their home.
As well as collecting donations from the community, Addison recently made a trip to an Arabic store in Edmonton to buy $300 worth of food to make sure the family has some items they are familiar with when they arrive.
鈥淲e鈥檙e pretty much ready,鈥� said Addison, adding she has a few last minute things to do to get the house ready and is still looking for an ironing board.
She said the community has raised nearly $38,000 over the last two months for the two families that are coming to Jasper鈥攖he second family is being privately sponsored by Jasperites Rod and Beth Tower.
The bulk of the money, nearly $24,000, was collected by St. Mary & St. George Anglican Church, which has been providing charitable receipts to donors.
Another $8,000 was collected through a trust fund set up at Servus Credit Union and an additional $4,500 has been donated through an online Go Fund Me campaign set up by the Towers, who are privately sponsoring a Syrian family of five.
鈥淲e鈥檙e aiming for $70,000, so we鈥檙e more than half way, but as I said before I don鈥檛 know if we will need that much because we鈥檙e getting everything pretty much for free, we鈥檝e hardly bought anything. We鈥檝e bought food and we鈥檙e paying rent,鈥� said Addison.
51暗网 of the family鈥檚 pending arrival comes after the federal government missed its revised target to resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees by Dec. 31, 2015.
According to a press conference on New Year鈥檚 Eve, Immigration Minister John McCallum said 10,700 applications had been fully processed, but only 6,000 refugees were expected to arrive in Canada by Jan. 1. The remaining 4,000 refugees are expected to arrive by mid-January.
During the press conference, McCallum said the government is still on track to resettle 25,000 refugees by the end of February and the government had identified 25,000 refugees for processing as of Dec. 24, 2015.
Whether Omar Al Homosh and his wife Rola, as well as their three young sons, are part of that second cohort of refugees remains to be seen, but the Tower family is remaining hopeful.
鈥淚t鈥檚 moving along, but it鈥檚 hard to throw a dart at the board and hit the target every time,鈥� said Rod, explaining it will be at least another four to six weeks before the family arrives.
According to Rod, Omar was recently reunited with his family in Egypt after being separated in Turkey due to visa complications; the family鈥檚 paperwork was filed with Canadian authorities this week.
鈥淗e was separated 241 days from his family so he鈥檚 pretty excited to be back with them and we鈥檙e trying to keep him enthusiastic and keep up with the paperwork,鈥� said Rod.
In addition to the community鈥檚 support, Beth informed Jasper Elementary School about the family鈥檚 anticipated arrival and the Jasper Adult Learning Centre has applied for funding through the province鈥檚 Alberta Refugee Resettlement Grant Initiative.
The initiative is designed to help ensure municipalities, immigration agencies and private sponsors are prepared to receive refugees and ensure the families have the support they need to successfully integrate into the community.
鈥淓verything seems to be falling into place and maybe I鈥檓 too much of an optimist, but I don鈥檛 really have a lot of worries, I think it鈥檚 going to be great,鈥� said Addison, acknowledging it will take some time for the families to adjust to life in Jasper and to learn English.
鈥淭he biggest thing people can do is just be friendly. It will help them get over all the trauma they鈥檝e been through.鈥�
To support both families, a silent auction and dessert night, called Sweets for Syria, is being organized at Karouzos Steakhouse Jan. 14. Doors open at 7 p.m., however the silent auction begins at noon with bidding closing at 9:30 p.m.
There will also be live music provided by Monika Schaefer and Brian Lackey and a cash bar serving wine and special coffee. Tickets are $15 at the door.
For more information or to donate, contact Magda Mahler at 780-852-3933 or Beth Tower at 780-852-7277 or visit the group鈥檚 Facebook page: Bring Syrian Family to Jasper.
To donate to the Go Fund Me campaign, visit www.gofundme.com and search: Sponsor a Syrian family to Jasper.
Paul Clarke
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