Van Donation to help family of nine

July 22, 2016 · 0 Comments

By Marni Walsh

Mono refugee sponsorship group, First Line for Syria, has gratefully accepted the donation of a van to be given to one of Shelburne’s new Canadian families the Al Diri’s. The family includes mother, father and seven children very much in need of transportation.

The government-sponsored family arrived in Shelburne earlier this year. The children, all between five and twelve years of age, attended Hyland Heights School during the last term of the school year.

Wally Barr, a member of First Line for Syria, made up of three neighbouring families on the First Line of Mono, says their group came together with a “common mindset” last fall.

With an estimated nine million Syrians displaced since the war broke out in 2011, the group felt they could “do more than sit and watch the suffering of the biggest refugee crisis our world has ever encountered.”

Together, the neighbours formed “First Line for Syria”, a non-profit refugee sponsorship group determined to make a difference in the life of a Syrian family.

They officially launched their sponsorship campaign in October of 2015 and have since sponsored two families, one living in Shelburne and one in Orangeville.

The arrival of the family of nine in Shelburne has provided new friends and connections for First Line for Syria’s sponsored family in Town, the Hussein-Aloosh family.

That family has made amazing progress according to the group, with their 17 year old daughter Helin enjoying learning and excelling in her studies at Centre Dufferin District High School.

The group continues to find “creative ways” for the new Canadians to “get to know their community and be a part of it.”

Recently, Sabah, Helin’s mother, “has been participating in local craft shows where she sells her finely detailed crocheted items.”

First Line for Syria says there is much in the way of support that the community could offer to the Al Diri family, especially as they do not have a private sponsorship group to help them navigate.

The van has been safety tested, and the group says it is ready to transfer to Mohammad Al Diri when he gets his license.

“The family has seven children, so it will be a great help for them,” says Wally. “In the meantime we’ll use it to ferry people around to ESL (English as a Second Language) classes and shopping.”

To learn more about First Line for Syria visit: www.firstlineforsyria.ca.