Refugee Aid: Non-profit provides support and looks for support in return

Close to 100 refugees from Syria gathered at the École Jeunes Musulmans Canadiens in Saint-Laurent to hear and ask questions from professionals on housing, health, and finance on sunday.

The session was hosted by the Canadian Alliance for Syrian Aid (CASA), an umbrella organisation that gathers resources from different organisations for refugees. The non-profit was founded after the Liberal government announced their plan to bring 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada.

“We felt like it was necessary to help those refugees to easily integrate into Canadian society,” said Dr. Ayman Chamma, president of CASA. “When they arrive here they are confused, they’re quite stressed because they’re coming from a war zone, it’s a completely different atmosphere for them,” he said.

From furniture to psychological support, or even to better understand Canadian culture, Syrian refugees can reach out to their network, “because in Syria it’s not the same as in Canada,” he said.

Lack of funding

The session reached out to refugees in Laval, Longueuil and the Greater Montreal Area, bringing them to the school on busses in some cases, providing lunch, and volunteer childcare while the talks were happening. The cost of the workshop, paid by CASA, was roughly $3,000.

CASA currently survives off of donations and volunteer work. The only resources the group are lacking right now is funding and communication, said Chamma.

He explained they are “disappointed” with the lack of support for CASA from the provincial and federal government. “It’s not only funding. We’ve sent the message to them that we exist, that we would like to sit down and talk . . . and say how we could help them and they could help us.” So far, he says, they have received no response.

Since the end of February, Quebec has taken in 5,199 refugees from Syria, including 3414 adults and 1785 children.

Fleeing Syria

In the summer of 2011, Kamel Ayyash and his family knew they had to leave their life in Daraa, southern Syria, when his wife, Kamthar Al Hariri, and their six children experienced bombardment in the streets. Their home and all of their possessions were destroyed. With only the clothes on their backs, the family spent the next five years in Beirut hoping to come to Canada.

He could not believe the news when he was told the family’s application was accepted. “I thought it was a joke,” he said. Sponsored by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR), the family arrived in Montreal on Jan. 9. They’ve settled in Brossard, where housing was found for them through a separate organisation.

The family had all the essentials upon arrival, from housing to health care. There are some minor issues with dental care right now, but they will be turning to CASA for help. The information session was the first experience the family had with CASA, after they found out about the organisation through a local mosque.

Even if the situation were to improve in Syria, Ayyash said he would want to stay in Canada. “It’s my new home,” he said through an interpreter at the workshop. Al Hariri cannot express her thanks to Canadians enough. “We felt the warmth of our welcome,” she said.

The next step for Ayyash is to improve his English and French so he could find a job. The former hairdresser said he would like to work, but needs to work on the language. Their children are enrolled in school in French.