A throng of Sudburians waving Canadian flags welcomed a trio of Syrian refugee women to Canada on Dec. 13.
The trio, representing three generations of women, touched down at the Sudbury airport just before 2 p.m. on Wednesday and were welcomed with open arms by members of Sudbury Project Hope, a volunteer organization that raises money and works to bring refugees to Canada.
Project Hope works with the Office for Refugees, Archdiocese of Toronto (ORAT), who are the community agreement holders that work with Canada's immigration department to make sure all of the necessary paperwork and screening is done when selecting the people looking to immigrate to Canada.
Jinan Dakkak was one of the three women wearing a big smile and shedding some happy tears on Dec. 13, as she and her 10-year-old daughter Pamela, and mother Noura Jallouf were welcomed to their new home.
Jinan and her family fled from Aleppo, Syria, around five years ago when the battle of Aleppo was just starting between the Syrian government and the Free Syrian Army.
"I remember planes flying over us and they were shooting at the ground and people on the ground shooting back," said Dakkak.
The three spent the following years living in Beirut, Lebanon, where Project Hope Sudbury co-ordinator Jim Gordon says it was nearly impossible for them to make a life for themselves.
"They can not make a life for themselves over there, they're not allowed to work, she was so afraid that the police were going to get her and send her back to Syria," said Gordon.
Much of Jinan's fears were alleviated when she and her mother and daughter finally arrived in Sudbury, and was replaced with relief and excitement for the future.
"I'm so excited and so happy to be here," said Jinan. "I'm most looking forward to safety."
The process of bringing the three to Sudbury was started back in April of 2016, when Gordon and wife Donna found out that there would be a mission to Lebanon to interview 'urban refugees' looking to find a new permanent home.
The two-week trip saw Gordon interview roughly 60 people, and a mixup may have played a major role in Jinan and her family being chosen.
"It was the third last day and I had no interpreter to go to the interviews with me," said Gordon. "I interviewed Jinan and she spoke passable English and I told her that she would be my first and last interview of the day. She was quite bright and I asked if she would be willing to be my interpreter for the other interviews and she agreed. You can't tell them at that point that you're choosing them as there's still paperwork to fill out, but at that point I kind of knew that she would be a good fit."
Nearly 20 months later, and the three women can now call themselves Sudbury residents, and Project Hope will be with them every step of the way for their first two months in their new home.
"We have a 60-day plan in place and not a day goes by in that time period where they won't have a few people there to help them with whatever they need," said Gordon. "It's a big job but we have a great group of volunteers who are ready to help."
It was hard for Jinan to put into words what a whirlwind it has been in the months, weeks and days leading up to her and her family's arrival in Canada, though she said that packing was a bit of a handful.
"It was hard to know that I will get to this point. I had lots of luggage," she said with a smile.
The three will settle into their new home, and there will certainly be some adjustment period, though Jinan says she is excited for her first Christmas in Canada.
