Welcoming Syrian Refugees Resettlement Information Bulletin January 28, 2016 CCLC is a community organization that exists to provide settlement services and support to newcomers and to promote intercultural awareness and understanding. London Cross Cultural Learner Centre 505 Dundas Street, London, Ontario N6B1W4 Tel: 519-432-1133 Fax: 519-660-6168 cclc@lcclc.org www.lcclc.org
Message from the Chair of the Board - Marc Larcoursière Due to the overwhelming support from Londoners from individuals to governments and dozens of support organizations in between our newest residents are seeing firsthand the compassion of our city. While organizations like CCLC and others have decades of experience supporting new immigrants to London, the scale and pace of this initiative is certainly challenging the community in ways unexpected. Settlement organizations like CCLC recognize that while we are one of the first organizations to support new arrivals, we re not alone, and it will take the efforts of many organizations interacting with these new Londoners for months and years to ensure these families integrate well into our community. And it s just beginning; over the next several months, there will be significant additional need for volunteers, materials (diapers, strollers, clothes, food), and money to augment government contributions. On behalf of CCLC, and our new residents, thank you for your continued collaborative support. Language Assessment and Referral Services (LARS) Language Assessment and Referral Services has been awaiting the wave of Syrians to access our services and now that have arrived on our doorstep. What is normally not an extremely busy period for Assessment now involves a close to two-week wait for an assessment appointment, something we generally do not see except in September and October, our peak client load period. We have increased the number of daily assessments in order to mitigate the wait period, but the additional amount of time required for referrals, due to our dealing with new sponsors who are unfamiliar with the assessment process, still absorbs a great deal of time. We are hoping to see the language training providers add classes in order to accommodate the additional students in short order. 2
Cultural Sensitivity Workshops The London Cross Cultural Learner Centre is proud to offer FREE Cultural Sensitivity Workshops called Welcoming Syrians. This 3-hour workshop is focused on the engagement and integration of Syrian Refugees. Workshops are designed to support attendees: Develop a higher level of self-awareness, learn to respect difference and become more culturally sensitive Learn about the complexities of pre-migration and post-migration experiences Learn about Syrian culture and immediate needs of refugees in our community Learn how to manage expectations as a two-way process Learn effective cross-cultural communication skills Gain information on what resources and services our city has to offer We will have delivered five workshops by February 11, 2016 to interest groups (HOPE Committee at CCLC and the Health Unit). We are waiting to confirm workshop dates with six other organizations, committees and private sponsoring groups, We have also had interest from about 20 community members who will come to workshops at CCLC. We have had an overwhelming interest from community members, faith-based groups, private sponsors, and organizations that serve clients of diverse backgrounds. Join us to help create a more informed and welcoming community. You may request a workshop to be delivered at your location or register for a workshop hosted at CCLC. For more information call Katy at 519.432.1133 Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) and Jeremiah s House The Jeremiah s House Reception Centre at CCLC welcomed 80 families consisting of 415 Syrian GARs since December 20 2015 to Jan 26 2016. 3
The Syrian GARs are temporarily staying at the three locations, Jeremiah s House Reception Centre at CCLC 505 Dundas Street; Residence Inn by Marriott and Econolodge. Out of 80 families, that arrived, we were able to move out 22 families consisting of 95 people. Syrian Government Assisted Refugees (GARs) are coming with various needs such as medical needs, mental and emotional needs. Over 60% of Syrian GARs are children at various ages, from six months old to 17 years old. We have received great support from the community who donated diapers, strollers and baby formula but we are in need of more of these items. Client Support Services (CSS) Mutual Aid Parenting Program (MAPP) Merrymount Family Support and Crisis Centre focuses on helping children by supporting their families in crisis and transition. Therefore, Merrymount Family Support and Crisis Centre delivers the MAAP program in the community. MAAP provides support for parents of children of all ages. MAPP is a self-help group where people with a shared concern, worry or experience come together. In MAPP the parents get help, give help, and learn to help each other and/or themselves. The MAPP program provides and promotes opportunities for the parents to build their confidence as parents, learn to cope with stressors of life, and overcome barriers, which are typically faced by low-income and/or newcomers families. Moreover, sharing resources and exposing parents to available community services is an important element of MAAP. This empowers the parents and helps them to seek their own solutions as they graduate from the MAAP program. By empowering the parents to reach and/or regain their capacity, MAAP also helps children to reach their full-potential both in their academic and community/social involvements. Furthermore, MAAP offers child development programs; staff create child development plans, and skill development. In addition, along with our dedicated staff, students and 4
volunteers also play an integral role in the MAAP program providing much needed support in the areas, such as, planning, facilitation, interpretation, babysitting, and supporting the children s program. The MAAP program, that is delivered at Cross Cultural Learner Centre (CCLC) by Merrymount Family Support and Crisis Centre, is operational and well-attended. Through the MAAP program, many Government Assisted Refugee (GAR) families learn new experiences and are actively engaged in critical discussions needed to foster a healthy, successful, and happy family environment in their new home: Canada. Hope Committee Both the Canadian and international extensive literature on migration put prominence on the importance of the settlement and integration process. Subsequently, the Hope Committee s weekly meetings with community members, strongly focus on these findings. For example, the Hope Committee s workshops/seminars will prepare community members to build a sense of self-confidence, community, and understanding with the Government Sponsored Refugees (GARs) in order to be allies in their integration process. We are also happy to see that different community members: Churches, Mosques, Canadian Syrian Council, and professionals, such as, health care providers, etc. are eagerly looking for the opportunities to welcome and work closely with new arrivals in our community. The Hope Committee provides weekly presentations and worships on important subjects, such as, ethics, cultural fluency/sensitivity, confidentiality, and other topics that must be strictly followed while working with newcomers such as GARs. For instance, the Hope Committee s workshops highlight the importance of the cultural sensitivity for service providers/volunteers while working in a diverse society because awareness of the cultural factors increases the ability of the service providers to be more neutral and to see how cultural factors affect the newcomers integration. A culturally sensitive service provider/volunteer must realize that there are differences in cultures within a single group. For example, Syrian refugees could have their unique religion, religious denomination, cultural, social, economic, ethnic, racial, sexual, gender, and other differences. Understanding these, often complex, differences help service providers and volunteers to work more effectively with Syrian families. 5
Therefore, the Hope Committee believes that as services providers, we must understand the cultural differences and similarities in order to be able to better serve our newcomers, especially Syrian refugees, as these are more vulnerable due to their unique pre-migration, transitions, and post-migration circumstances. Equally, we believe this collaboration between and among CCLC and other community members will lead to new opportunities, programs, or ideas that will be beneficial for GARs, particularly the Syrian refugees successful integration, which will lay a significant precedent for a more welcoming community in future. Health CCLC is working in partnership with InterCommunity Health Centre. Approximately 60 clients with medical issues and ten clients with dental issues have been seen by a medical team. This medical team travels to the hotels where GARs are temporarily accommodated to conduct medical screening. The Middlesex London Health Unit is providing vaccination clinics to the families. The Youth Empowerment Program (YEP) The Youth Empowerment Program (YEP) is a pilot initiative created to educate Syrian Government Assisted Refugee Youth about various services and resources available to them in the community and to help them with their settlement journey. It is also a way to help them integrate into the community in a smooth and easy way by making connections with individuals who are familiar with the Canadian system and culture. YEP creates a safe space for Syrian refugee youth to practice their English skills and voice their concerns and inquiries about any subject that may trigger their interest. YEP thrives to create a feeling of home away from home for our Syrian Government Assisted Refugee youth. The Immigration Portal - http://immigration.london.ca/pages/default.aspx The Immigration Portal created a new section called Syrian Newcomers. This section contains six pages for those interested about the following: Syrian Refugee Background, Sponsorship, Donations, Volunteering, Message from the Mayor and List of Resources. 6
Since its creation in mid-december, 2015 to January 27, 2016, the number of pageviews was 1,695 (about 1/10 of the overall number of pageviews for the entire site). Top three pages most viewed were: Syrian Refugee Background, Donations and More Info & Resources. Statistics - December 20, 2015 to January 26, 2016 Number of GARs Welcomed Number of Families Welcomed Total GARs 20-Dec 1 4 28-Dec 2 9 29-Dec 2 11 30-Dec 4 18 31-Dec 4 19 01-Jan 8 39 08-Jan 4 23 09-Jan 2 13 10-Jan 3 16 10-Jan 4 22 11-Jan 2 14 11-Jan 13 60 12-Jan 3 17 13-Jan 6 32 14-Jan 1 1 15-Jan 4 27 16-Jan 2 9 17-Jan 1 5 7
19-Jan 1 7 20-Jan 3 14 21-Jan 0 0 22-Jan 4 20 23-Jan 0 0 24-Jan 0 0 25-Jan 4 23 26-Jan 2 12 TOTAL 80 415 Housing Number of GARs Number of Families Total 415 80 Moved to permanent housing 65 15 In process 350 65 Temporary Accommodations Number of GARs Number of Families Marriott 110 20 Econolodge 205 37 Jeremiah's House 35 8 TOTAL 350 65 8