On Friday in Calgary, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon praised Canada for its warmth and generosity in response to the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis. However at the local level, a series of delays has stalled progress in welcoming a family to the city.
"It is a bit frustrating considering that we got ready for families very quickly. We spent a lot of time and resources preparing things like accommodations, setting up bank accounts, whatever it may be in terms of settlement. Its frustrating to see other groups receive their families," said Tom Baby, Immigration Partnership Coordinator with the Timmins & District Multicultural Centre, the organization who spearheaded the initiative locally.
"But we're continuing to work towards bringing them here."
Although regionally, one family recently arrived in Sault Ste. Marie, Baby said that Timmins, much like many other groups and organizations around the country are experiencing big delays.
"Once the Government of Canada announced their original goal of 25,000 refugees at the end of February, things really slowed down," he said.
The organization is very eager to provide a new start for a family fleeing a war-torn nation, like so many others across Canada, but Baby the delays aren't targeted at Timmins.
"It's definitely not unique. There's quite a few groups like ours that are in the same situation. For the first family match, we've gone through what's called a sponsorship agreement holder, and they facilitate matches. A lot of the groups like us, who've been working with different partners, are in the same boat and are sharing the same frustrations. We're definitely not alone" he said.
The city has been matched with one family, which is currently in a refugee camp outside of Syria.
"They're still going through medical and security screening."
That screening process includes UNHDR (United Nation Human Development Report) personnel as well as Canadian officials. He said its 'quite a difficult process' to find out information and receive updates, particularly with a specific match.
Last September, city council passed a resolution in which the City of Timmins would match donations up to $15,000. After that benchmark was easily cleared, council stayed true to their word and approved the $15,000 contribution.
Then, at a council meeting in December of 2015, it was announced that Club Richelieu of Timmins had donated $30,000 to sponsor a second refugee family.
Tom Baby (left) speaks at city hall on December 14, 2015. Andrew Autio for TimminsToday "Their contributions, which were very significant, pretty much put us at a point where we could support financially, two families, and that's still the goal, and that's what we're pursuing right now," said Baby.
The Multicultural Centre is looking to 'different routes' to be officially matched with a second family and is on a waiting list
"Currently, the matching is being suspended for the months of August and September, so it's difficult to say when we'll be matched with a second family."
Despite the snail's pace of progress, the cause is still receiving tremendous support from the community.
"We've received donations from some local schools and classes who did fundraising work throughout the school year. We also received some in-kind donations from folks in the community. So people are continuing to support the initiative and we're very please and thankful for everybody's help," he said.
As far as the latest in timelines provided by the Canadian government, there's been nothing but estimates.
"In our case because there's been so many delays, the government officials are really trying to fast track and get them through as quickly as possible. So there's been some estimates from the government about getting it done by the end of this year, if not early next year, but its still a very vague timeline," said Baby.
He has been in conversation with other multicultural centres about their shared struggles.
"Collectively, we have voiced our concerns to the government. They have heard us. They are trying to speed up the process, as much as they can."
