From January 1 to October 2, 2022, approximately 98,600 Ukrainian refugees fled to Canada due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Of that number, approximately 550 refugees arrived on Vancouver Island as of October 6th.
In Victoria, a few organizations are set up to help refugees find financial, medical and housing assistance. We spoke with Karmen McNamara, General Manager with Help Ukraine Vancouver Island, and with Anne who, with her husband, Marino, recently hosted a young couple with a seven-year-old daughter.
Help Ukraine Vancouver Island is a volunteer-led organization supporting displaced Ukrainians.
“It was a response to a call from the Ukrainian community to have one unified organization with a website and method of distributing information,” says McNamara. “While there are a number of Ukrainian agencies on the Island, most of them are dance troops or churches or very small cultural centres with maybe one part-time employee,”
Ukrainians come to Canada under what is called a CUAET, or Canadian Ukrainian Authorization for Emergency Travel, an expedited work visa where the government can accept people very quickly compared to the much slower refugee process.
“Even so, the Canadian government requires refugees to get a medical within 90 days of arriving,” says McNamara. “That’s about $400, and the refugees pay for it out of pocket. However, since Monday, October 3rd, the BC government announced they are going to cover those costs in the province.”
In McNamara’s experience, hosts see that Ukrainians want to contribute and, ultimately, be self-sufficient. A similar message stems from the experience a Victoria couple had with their Ukrainian guests.
As first-time refugee hosts, Anne and Marino have accommodated international students, with varying language skills, through the University of Victoria and the Greater Victoria School Board. They felt confident their experience put them in a good place to help Ukrainian refugees.
After seeing many news stories that were “pretty devastating,” Anne says Marino said, “we’ve got to do something.” That’s when the couple investigated and ultimately made a post on the website Ukraine Take Shelter, a platform helping to connect Ukrainian refugees with potential hosts.
As a result, Anne received a request to host a young couple with a child. They hosted the family from about mid-May to the beginning of July.
“We could not be happier with the outcome,” says Anne. “Prior to the family’s arrival, I did some background work on finding jobs for the couple, then contacted some employers that had job postings to see if they might be willing to meet the couple upon their arrival in Victoria. One company called back with a job offer immediately and they set up an interview for the husband.”
Doing additional prep, Anne also posted ads for furnishings and household goods, so the young family could be ready to start a home of their own.
“We were very happy by the support we received from friends and the community. Our posts resulted in increased donations of furnishings and even a car,” says Anne. “We were blown away by the number of people who stepped up to help this young Ukrainian family resettle. The family was very surprised that the Canadian community is so supportive.”
Recently, the Ukrainian family made the difficult decision to relocate to Alberta, due to the province’s lower cost of living and the large Ukrainian Community. Anne and Marino were sad to see them go but continue to stay in touch by Zoom calls and emails.
For more information, visit Help Ukraine Vancouver Island’s website: ukrainehelpvi.ca and https://www.ukrainetakeshelter.com/
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