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No longer strangers

6/21/2022

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Why would 10 Syrian refugees want to visit Writing-on-Stone of all places? Well, if they are accompanied by dedicated volunteers who want to spend a day making new friends and meeting snakes head-on, then wishes fulfilled!

On June 11, 2022, several Syrian refugees, part of three families who have been settling into life in Lethbridge, Alberta, went on an outing to Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park. These families had not been outside of Lethbridge since their arrival to Canada. Some have been here a few years, and the latest just arrived on April 14 of this year. They relished the chance to see this Unesco World Heritage Site.

The entire day was very capably organized by Trudy Niggli and the CWL of Allerston Parish, a mission church of St. Peter’s Parish in Milk River. The day started with a Mass at St. Isidore Catholic Church in Allerston. It was a poignant start to a day that was heaped to the top with blessings and graces. The Mass was arranged specifically for the visiting Syrian families, so Fr. Salvador Ahumada’s sermon reflected on the experiences these families have gone through. He spoke of their forced relocation; seeing the weakness of man; leaving behind loved ones and belongings; grappling with learning a new language and culture. He exhorted them to hear the Lord calling them, to keep praying and to hope in Him. “You needed to be strong, and came here out of need, not want.”

He challenged them to be the ones who can make the change, to see God’s hand at work, and to lean on Him for strength. He also prayed that our society may once again be Christian, and to pray for the ones left behind. Fr. Sal reminded them that they had a responsibility to encourage others in the faith. We left the church feeling blessed and inspired.
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After the Mass, we continued into the Writing-on-Stone Park, where George Kardoh played on his Karbouka (Egyptian hand drum) , accompanying the singing of Syrian folk songs. Everyone enjoyed the true Canadian experience of roasting hot dogs and marshmallows over the campfire, and dodging the smoke. The park guide, after a Blackfoot introduction, gave us a free tour of the petroglyphs, and a snake even said hi on our path! 

A perfectly timed thunder burst after the campfire led into an impromptu and hilarious polka dance as we waited out the storm in the picnic shelter. It was truly a memorable day with new friends, and thought-filled conversations about the refugee situation.

This day came from an initiative of Fr. Kevin Tumback, pastor of All Saints Parish. He suggested pooling three parishes together to support the refugees. So St. Martha’s Parish, All Saints in Lethbridge, and Allerston Mission Parish near Milk River joined forces and the results have been heartwarming. All Saints Parish had already hosted two Syrian families, so their expertise was very helpful with settling the following two families. 

Brian Wright, a long-time member of All Saints Refugee Committee says, "Our Syrian families do cause us to pause and reflect on how fortunate we are to be living in Canada. It is also wonderful to be welcomed to their family just as we have welcomed them. We are the surrogate family for them in Canada, and it is a lifetime journey of sharing, learning from each other, and supporting them in their everyday life in Canada. For us, it has been an expansion of our family."

Another long-time member, Maureen Barnard, reflected that we are the family for these refugees. "We are their security as we help them navigate a new culture, a new language and a new life. We are their friends when they feel alone. We are their advocate when they need help to find a job , or get to school or go to a doctor. We are their voice when they do not yet have a voice here in Canada. It is a journey worth walking with our refugees. We feel the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ walking right beside us, every step of the way. We have witnessed so many miracles as people come forward and give from their hearts, often providing just what was needed at the time."

Lana Takla, who arrived in Canada 6 years ago, talks about coming from a village where their whole life revolves around the two hundred and fifty or so residents plus the priest and their church. They are deeply dependent on our Lord for their daily lives and they miss that community when they come to Canada. They are in constant fellowship in Syria so they miss the other family members they have left behind.

Mazyed Takla, who came to Canada with his family in October, 2021, felt that he misses the food, the weather, their music, their friends and their homes.

George Kardoh, the most recent arrival (April of 2022), expresses that he feels welcomed and loved here in Canada but awaits anxiously the rest of his family. He feels very alone at times. 

They all love the fact that they can trust a bank, the government, and they know that no one here will try to do them harm. They trust us but there are still many challenges - learning a new language, cultural and food differences, financial burdens, and the longing to be reunited with family left behind. The Refugee Committee embraces the work we do as servants of the Lord. We are His body on earth, and we are richly rewarded in this work.

“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God.” (Ephesians 2:19)


Written by Ruth McMillan for Faithfully. Ruth and her husband, Bain, relocated from Cochrane to Lethbridge to be closer to their grandchildren.  They attend All Saints and St. Martha's churches in Lethbridge. 
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For more information, or to reach out and help with the work of the Refugee Committee, contact any of the churches named above, or contact Jouhayna El Chamy, CCIS Sponsorship Program Coordinator, for information on how your parish can support and/or sponsor a refugee family, jelchamy@ccisab.ca or 403-290-5750.
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Love for the refugees

2/5/2019

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We’ve all heard the clichés about life, lemons and lemonade. But what if it feels like God has made you responsible for a roomful of refugees who desperately need to learn to speak English and there isn’t a spare chair in any ESL class in the city? The Christian response, according to Sr. Ger Curran of the Faithful Companions of Jesus, is to pray about it—and then start your own lessons.

“Our intention was not to provide professional classes, but we knew these people needed to learn basic words and phrases if they were going to be successful here. We also knew they couldn’t wait, so our classes were based on what they told us they needed to do: get on a bus, see a doctor, go to a store.”
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That combination of prayer and action backstopped the development of the Faith in Action committee based at the FCJ Centre Christian Life Centre in downtown Calgary. Strengthened by their hands-on experience helping several Syrian families settle in Calgary, the committee was formed a couple of years ago “to reach out to people who live in what we call the ‘shadowlands,’” says Sr. Curran. A professional counsellor whose work at FCJ includes individual and family counselling, Curran says the two-year-old committee doesn’t “define shadowlands specifically. It’s really about a willingness to find the people who need the most help.”

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Sr. Ger Curran with her Syrian Godchild
Called to action

In the fall of 2015, a committee of St. Mary’s parishioners, the FCJ Christian Life Centre Staff and FCJ sisters answered a global call for help and sponsored one refugee couple and their child from Syria, says Curran. Less than a year into that project, the committee discovered three fundamental truths about the Christian reaction to refugee sponsorship. First, the 12-month commitment mandated under federal sponsorship rules isn’t nearly long enough for the people you’re helping; second, when the people involved open their hearts to the process, 12 months isn’t long enough for the volunteers, either; and third, when you start to help people who need a particular kind of assistance, you’re likely to meet more of the same. 

That last reality demands decisions about whether you step up or look away. “But it’s not really a choice,” admits Sr. Curran. “We do it because Jesus did it.”

The call to help more refugees arose soon after the group connected with the first family. As that family took its first steps towards settlement, Curran’s group found itself helping another Syrian family. Over time, they also helped two more. Since the newcomers all shared the same Melkite Greek Catholic tradition, it wasn’t long before members of the St. Mary’s and FCJ group were attending masses with the new Canadians. Determined to help the refugees develop relationships in their own cultural community, FCJ Centre also started to host an annual Syrian Christmas party with help from three Catholic schools in the downtown area, St. Monica’s, Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Mary’s. In 2018, that event attracted more than 130 people. It’s down from the 180 who came the first year, “but the people who come really enjoy it and the little ones love seeing a Syrian Santa.”

In addition to helping the Syrians connect with other Arabic speakers in the Catholic community, the group reached out to members of the city’s Turkish Muslim community. Called by their mandate “to live out of our abundant resources,” the FCJ Centre now invite their Muslim friends to an annual barbecue on the FCJ Centre grounds, says Curran. 
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​Fast forward to 2019 and Sr. Curran, admits her social calendar now includes invitations from the people she knows through her refugee work. In addition to being the godmother of one of the three new babies born since the families moved to Canada, Sr. Curran is invited to several birthday parties, including some for preschoolers. When she wants to see how one of the families is doing, she attends a Melkite mass where she can visit with them over coffee after the Divine Liturgy.
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Strengthened by the experience of working with the Syrian refugees, the Faith in Action committee is now reaching out to help others working with Yazidi immigrants to Calgary. Also refugees of the war in Iraq, these immigrants, mostly women, experienced horrendous abuse.

As Sr. Curran sees it, this particular group inhabits the shadowlands, for now. “We don’t know what they need, but we know they need us. That’s enough to step in and try to help. It’s about love and how do we live our fidelity to our faith.”
People interested in learning more about the Faith in Action committee, or the need for ongoing support to the refugees supported by St. Mary’s and the FCJ sisters can contact Sr. Ger Curran a the FCJ Christian Life Centre. 

​Written by Joy Gregory
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