海角大神

Like others in Canada and around the world, Ann Hustis and her husband, Nick Assad, were deeply moved by the image of Alan Kurdi, the Syrian toddler who was found facedown on a Turkish beach in September 2015. He died along with his brother and mother after their boat, which was full of refugees, sank in the Mediterranean Sea.

Ms. Hustis and Mr. Assad wondered, 鈥淗ow can we make a difference?鈥� The answer wasn鈥檛 just donating to a cause or leaving it to the government. They were ready to bring refugees to Canada, assume financial responsibility for them, and personally take care of them for at least a year 鈥� under the country鈥檚 (PSR) program.

Hustis and Assad invited relatives, friends, neighbors, and work colleagues to help them form a . More than 40 people answered their call 鈥� including teachers, doctors, nurses, computer consultants, and a former politician.

Members of the group chipped in $25,000 (Canadian; US$18,500) to get the ball rolling. They then turned to fundraising, because looking after a refugee family is a significant investment. Anecdotally, sponsoring three families costs about C$80,000.

The first family the Hustis-Assad group brought over was the Al Khatoufs 鈥� Ali; his wife, Raghdaa; and their four young children. They fled Syria in 2012, after their family home came under bombardment, and they arrived in Ottawa last summer.

The sponsors were so pleased with how the Al Khatoufs settled in that they brought over a second family, and a third is due this summer. It includes the best friend of the Al Khatoufs鈥� eldest daughter, 11-year-old Nour. [Editor's note: In an earlier version of the story, the preceding sentence was mistakenly put in the wrong place.]

鈥淥ur job is to help [a] family become independent and become [well]-functioning Canadians. If we can get them on their feet, then we will have done our job,鈥� says Vicky Assad, who is Mr. Assad鈥檚 niece and part of the sponsorship group.

The experience of the Hustis-Assad sponsors 鈥� as well as that of an Ottawa church鈥檚 sponsorship group 鈥� provides a window into Canada鈥檚 distinct approach to handling influxes of refugees. In the PSR program, ordinary citizens can take a frontline role in aiding those who have been through immense challenges.

This program might not be the answer for other countries. But according to Canadian government data, it鈥檚 so popular that officials are struggling to process a backlog of 16,000 applications from hundreds of sponsorship groups for 40,000 refugees聽(about 40 percent of whom are Syrian).聽

The program came about in the late 1970s聽after citizen groups urged the Canadian government to do more to help 鈥渂oat people鈥� 鈥� refugees fleeing the fallout of the Vietnam War. Over the ensuing years, some 300,000 refugees have been welcomed to Canada in this way, according to government figures.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has lauded Canada鈥檚 program, which it describes as 鈥渦nique.鈥�

鈥淲hile resettlement removes refugees from situations of potential harm, it can be profoundly challenging for people to effectively begin their life once more in a new location where so much is foreign and unknown,鈥� writes Michael Casasola, a UNHCR resettlement officer in Ottawa, in an email. 鈥淪ponsors help bridge this divide. Sponsors play an important role in befriending and providing emotional support to the newly arrived refugees and are an antidote to isolation.聽They introduce the refugee to their community. They accompany them to appointments and make sure family members get registered for relevant programs and services. The sponsors are the ones the refugees may turn to during off hours or when they are unsure.鈥�

Preparing for the refugee families

This is just what the sponsors in the Hustis-Assad group have done. Their work began well before the arrival of the families, as they made arrangements for housing.

鈥淲e researched the best communities to place our families and then proceeded to rent accommodations 鈥� in our case, three-bedroom town houses,鈥� Ms. Assad recalls. The group, she notes, collected furniture and bought some items such as mattresses.

鈥淲e turned over fully furnished homes ready to go with everything from food in the cupboards to window coverings, artwork on the walls, new linens, [and] bikes for the children,鈥� she says.

The group had no concerns about security issues, Hustis says.

鈥淚 know the Canadian government has a very good vetting process,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e have to realize these are people escaping the war 鈥� fathers and mothers who have young children, who want nothing more for their kids than to have an education and be healthy. They are wonderful people. They are like us.鈥�

The sponsors say they鈥檝e enjoyed introducing the families to Canada by organizing social events for them such as days at a cottage, sleigh rides, and Christmas dinners. They鈥檝e also taken the children to choir practice and swimming lessons.

But it鈥檚 definitely a big time commitment.

鈥淲e had to find doctors and dentists for the families who could speak Arabic,鈥� Ms. Assad says. 鈥淏oth families had major dental issues and lots of dental emergencies, so we spent lots of time setting up appointments and driving them back and forth.聽Every week there are at least two [or] three appointments.鈥�

Also, dental fees have represented unforeseen costs. Although dental care for the children is covered under a special government program, the adults have incurred costs of C$10,000 for dentures, root canals, and other work. (It鈥檚 not uncommon for such needs to fall by the wayside while refugees wait to be resettled.)聽

As for the Al Khatoufs, the parents are busy learning English to ready themselves for the workforce. At their home, 3-year-old Hiba, dressed in a pink tutu, tears around like a ballerina in a whirlwind. Five-year-old Abdallah naps on the sofa while the older girls, Nour and 9-year-old Ghaydaa, talk excitedly about school.

Their favorite subject? Sports: 鈥淲e play basketball, soccer. Then afterward we do volleyball!鈥�

It鈥檚 all a far cry from how they lived for four years in Lebanon 鈥� in the cramped conditions of a converted security guard鈥檚 office. They had ended up there after traveling by foot for the last 12 miles of their journey from Syria.

The role of churches

Since the 鈥�70s, churches have played a key role in the PSR program. One such church is Emmanuel United Church in Ottawa, which has helped settle refugees from Laos, Bosnia, and Liberia, among other places.

鈥淲e want to improve conditions for people in the world that have lives that are more difficult than our own,鈥� says Jonathan Jones, who leads the refugee sponsorship group at the church. 鈥淚t feels good to give money. It feels even better to get involved and meet the family at the end of the story.鈥�

His group sponsored Mamy Zawadi and her three teenage children, who fled violence in the Congo in 2007.

Ms. Zawadi recalls living in fear after she reached Uganda, worried that militias would cross the border to find her. She had been running as a candidate in local elections in the Congo.

It was a struggle to survive in Uganda, she remembers: 鈥淚 think I would have died from hunger ... or malaria. I couldn鈥檛 afford medication.鈥� She says that Mr. Jones鈥檚 group 鈥渞eally saved our lives.鈥�

Indeed, in 2014, the Emmanuel sponsors were given one month鈥檚 notice about the Zawadis鈥� arrival. 鈥淲e had to scramble to find accommodation, get furniture and clothing,鈥� recalls Jones, who notes they had little time to lease an apartment. 鈥淲e had a blitz one weekend when we moved in furniture donated by church members, hung curtains, connected up the TV and internet, and stocked the fridge.鈥�

Zawadi remembers fondly how Jones and his fellow sponsors welcomed her family at the airport with warm coats.

Once the Zawadis settled into the apartment, the sponsors helped them with things they needed to get through everyday life 鈥� getting applications for bus passes, showing them how to take the bus, pointing out where nearby grocery stores were, opening up bank accounts, and obtaining health cards for Canada鈥檚 universal health-care system.

After a year, the usual duration of sponsorship, Jones says that the family manages 鈥渨ith little help from us. But we made sure that someone in the group saw the family at least once per week.鈥� He adds, 鈥淲e gave birthday cards and gifts at Christmas.鈥�

All the Zawadis are doing well in school 鈥� including Mamy, who is studying at the University of Ottawa to be an accountant. Jones has given her lifts during exams, and he presented skates that his sons no longer needed to the hockey-loving Zawadi kids.

With the successful launch of this family, Jones says the church is now focused on getting ready for the arrival of more refugees 鈥� from the Congo and Syria.

The other beneficiaries

But it鈥檚 not just refugees who benefit from the PSR program.

鈥淪ponsors also speak about the profound impact sponsoring has had on their lives as they bridge cross-cultural differences and develop friendships which often last for a lifetime,鈥� says Mr. Casasola of UNHCR.

This is something echoed by Hustis, who has taken six months off from work to spend more time with the newcomers.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a lot more emotional than I expected. I didn鈥檛 realize how close we would become with the family,鈥� she says. 鈥淎ll the volunteers think nothing of dropping in [to have] tea or inviting them out.鈥�