BARRHEAD-A Barrhead woman's long-awaited reunion with her family will soon be over.
In a little over a month, Wegahta Aman's parents and six siblings will be joining her in Barrhead, thanks to the efforts of the Barrhead Community Refugee Committee (BCRC).
The committee has been working to bring her extended family for more than three years.
Wegahta came to Canada in 2014 from East Africa after being sponsored by her husband, Mussie. He came to Barrhead about 10 years ago through the help of the Neeerlandia Christian Reformed Church Committee.
Her father has been a refugee since 1987 after fleeing from Sudan to escape the Eritrean’s People’s Liberation Front who were at war with Ethiopia.
The BCRC was first formed in December 2015 as part of Canada's plan to let in 25,000 Syrian refugees fleeing violence in the Middle East. A year later, the committee welcomed its first refugee from Gambia to the community.
BCRC chair Rita Lyster said they learned the good news that Wegahta's family would be coming to Canada shortly after Thanksgiving via an e-mail from the Canadian embassy in Rome with their flight itinerary.
After an organization has completed the private sponsorship of a refugee, Lyster explained, it is forwarded to the Canadian Embassy in Rome for additional processing.
Due to the pandemic, the BCRC believed the process had stalled completely.
Although the pandemic did slow the process, in one way, it proved helpful. Because of the ongoing danger the family faced as a Christian family in a predominantly Muslim country, on top of the already unstable political situation, the family also applied to Australia to be accepted as refugees.
"It was looking like they would be going to Australia, but because of the COVID situation there, the application process there also slowed down," she said. "Which is a good thing, because Barrhead is preferable because their daughter is here and they will have more support."
In August, they received word that the family had been called to complete their medicals. Then, about three weeks later, Lyster received an e-mail from the Canadian Embassy in Rome stating she had three business days to prepare a quarantine plan for the family.
However, they knew from World Renew (a Christian international development, disaster response organization) that helps groups through private refugee sponsorships, that from medicals to when applicants touch foot in their new country, it could be anywhere from 20 days to three months.
Two weeks ago, on Oct. 12, the BCRC learned that the family would be arriving in Canada, specifically Toronto, on Nov. 23.
"They will have to have a COVID test done before flying to Edmonton where we will pick them up and take them to Barrhead where they will have to quarantine for 14-days," she said.
In preparation for the family's arrival, the Canadian government required the BCRC to have enough money to support the family for a year, including a monthly stipend for the two adult children. All totalled the BCRC needs $104,356.
After their latest fundraiser, an online auction, they are about $32,000 short.
Lyster said they are working on preparing the house for their arrival.
They were fortunate that Charlie Parsons, a local business person, donated the majority of the home furnishings needed for the home, but they will still need other items to set up the family, including winter outerwear.
To contribute financially, donations can be dropped off at the Barrhead United Church care of the Refugee Fund.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
