A newcomer family is settling into life in Stonewall, and they’re hoping to create connections — and find work — in the community.
Originally from Afghanistan, the Faizi family moved to Stonewall in October thanks to a five-person private sponsorship team, who contributed a total of $48,000 to facilitate the process.
On Oct. 13, the widowed mother Zainab arrived in Stonewall with her 29-year-old son Hamid and 22-year-old daughter Shegofa. They had fled Afghanistan for Pakistan, where they spent a year as refugees before moving to Canada. All three were approved as permanent residents of Canada.
The sponsors made a 12-month commitment with Immigration Canada to support the newcomers. The responsibilities of the sponsoring team include finding housing and setting up their home; giving them food, clothing and other basic necessities; covering the cost of local transportation; helping them feel welcome in their new community; and making sure they know about service providers to help them learn English and find a job.
In November, the new family moved into a three-bedroom rental home on 1st Street East. New Life Church members donated furniture and other household items to create a comfortable environment. The sponsors also helped the family apply for social insurance numbers and health cards.
In the winter, Hamid studied for and passed his learner-stage driver’s licence test, while community members showed Shegofa how to bake. She also learned how to sew using an electric sewing machine to bolster her skills of making clothes by hand.
Volunteers from the church also dedicated time in two-hour blocks in the morning and evening, five days per week, to help them learn English at home while they waited for enrolment into a formal classroom setting. Hamid and Shegofa are both now studying English five days per week in Winnipeg, and volunteers drive them to and from their classes.
Hamid has a higher level of English than Shegofa, who is still learning the basics. Their mom does not yet speak English.
Shegofa’s English classes will stop for the summer break in July and August, so she will be available for full-time work at that time. While she’s in school, she is also available for part-time work. She is skilled in sewing, cooking, baking and serving, and she has started taking a few small housecleaning jobs. Shegofa has a Grade 5 education, and her eventual career goal is to become a dentist.
Hamid has a degree in archaeology from Afghanistan, and he worked in his field at an ancient Buddhist site in connection with a museum. Now that he’s here, Hamid is looking into a range of jobs, and he is also considering the possibility of learning a trade. Eventually, he hopes to enter a university humanities program.
Hamid noted that a job might also help him to learn more English.
“I’m looking for work. I also need to improve my English,” Hamid said. “If I can improve my English, maybe I can go to college and continue with my education.”
He is starting to settle into his new community, although he misses his country and their older sister, who is still in Afghanistan. At the same time, he’s been making new Canadian friends from the New Life Church community.
“In Canada, everything is different for me — the culture and personal connections. In my home country, we always had connections with more and more friends, and we’d stay together talking and visiting,” he said.
“It’s different than here. Here, a lot of people are busy and there isn’t always time for talking and conversation.”
They were also surprised by the duration of the Manitoba winter.
“Winter was hard. We came to Canada in October and after we stayed one week, it started to snow,” he said.
“That was interesting to me. I didn’t have experience with snow coming that way. We have snow in our country, but wintertime is a short time — January, February, March and it’s done.”
On behalf of his family, Hamid expressed gratitude for everything that his sponsors have done for them.
“We didn’t have security in Afghanistan. We went to Pakistan for one year in 2022. Our sponsors gave a lot of help. A lot of people from the church community have been coming here to teach me English — reading, conversation — in my home for maybe two months,” he said.
“We have experience living in a village in Afghanistan, so Stonewall is the same as that. Also, it’s really beautiful here in the springtime.”
As one of the sponsors, Al Heinrichs is pleased to see the family making progress with their studies, and he’s encouraging them to continue with their job search.
“We’re happy to have them here in the community,” he said.
Anyone who might have a job opportunity for Hamid or Shegofa can contact Al Heinrichs at aheinrichs620@gmail.com or 204-467-2375.
For further information, please contact Howard Moore, chair of the Refugee Care Team, at howard@newlifestonewall.com or 204-513-1312.
