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In June 2022 the Church of the Ascension was approached by Jowairya Ghousi and her husband Abdullah to ask if we could help them with their sponsorship of Jowairya’s sister and family who were refugees from Afghanistan currently living in Pakistan. They were able to support them financially  but needed the help of a church to connect with AURA (Anglican-United Refugee Alliance, a government-recognised Sponsorship Agreement Holder).  We were happy to help, especially as it entailed very little financial involvement although we would be the ones holding on to their money and dispersing it over the course of a year.

 

The Saaes family arrived in Canada October 2023 and with the help of Jowairya and Abdullah found an apartment in Ajax and enrolled their two children in the local school.  Mureed went to work in Abdullah’s store in Uxbridge and another store in Ajax, and also acquired a car so that he could do stints as an Uber driver. Salwa, the sister of Jo, attended ESL classes in the morning and helped initially with caring for Jowairya’s small son, Mohammed.

 

The year has flown by and on October 27th Ascension’s involvement with the sponsorship will be officially over.  This past Sunday we had an afternoon tea for the two families in my garden to celebrate their first year in Canada.  Our team - Susan Tremayne-Moon (who bore the brunt of handling the financesl), Alana Andrews, and Linda van Andel with her husband Bas were also present to add to the fun.  Michelle Mallard, Alana’s daughter, couldn’t attend but was with us in spirit.

 

We wish the family the very best of luck as they continue their stay in Canada and work towards becoming Canadian citizens.  We will keep in touch to follow their progress, and to maintain our new friendships.