After four public meetings and presentations by the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) and Build a Village of Altona, a group of local humanitarians is prepared to spearhead a campaign to bring at least one refugee family to Niverville.
The most recent meeting on April 11 was attended by numerous residents willing to volunteer their time in areas of language interpretation, transportation, housing, education, employment, life skills, finance, and healthcare. Though the volunteer response has been good, more are always welcome to lighten the load and help out in any capacity.
“Twenty people [have] committed to join together to help a family in crisis come to Canada,” says Chris Marchand, interim chairperson for the refugee discussion. “Although we don’t have exact numbers yet, we’ve been told that it will cost around $30,000. As a committed group… we’ll be looking to our community to help us make this dream a reality.”
According to Arisnel Mesidor, MCC’s Migration & Resettlement Program coordinator, the wait time for a refugee family to reach Canada is anywhere from six to eighteen months.
Fundraising and marketing volunteers will be working over the next few months to get the message out to all residents. Karen and Damon Friesen of Niverville will be creating a Facebook page that anyone can join to stay up-to-date on the sponsorship process. The committee is looking at ways to make donations tax deductible.
Donations can be dropped off at Niverville Community Fellowship.
