Health News For South West
Tuesday, June 07, 2016
London Cross Cultural Learner Centre
Syrian refugees thank London mayor for warm welcome
New Canadians met with London Mayor Matt Brown to personally thank him and the city for their new home
Syrian refugees met with London Mayor Matt Brown to thank him and the community for welcoming them to the city.
Since December of last year, more than 1,000 refugees have landed in London after fleeing their country and the ongoing violent conflict.
"Our community partners moved in incredible ways," said Lina Fernandes of the London Cross Cultural Learner Centre. "We have found homes for every family. They are currently waiting for English classes, children are in school, so I would say it's been very successful."
Anticipating challenge
Settling so many refugees in such a short period of time appeared daunting for some staff at the Learner Centre. Organizers relied on the experience they have from 45 years of helping people resettle in the city.
"We have the experience, we know the settlement process, we know what the needs are," Fernandes told CBC's Afternoon Drive host Bob Steele. "It was challenging and lots of work, but successful in the end."
The large number of children coming to the city caught some members of the team off guard.
"We didn't have a lot of resources in our centre for children - day care and toys and strollers were a great need at that time," Fernandes said. "We had to move community partners very quickly to take care of that many children."
Now that every refugee family has been housed, there are other challenges many of them face. Most refugees are ready to work, but learning English has been a challenge and often a barrier to finding work.
Fernandes said there was waiting lists for people looking to take English courses.