On World Refugee Day, DIVERSEcity’s Safe Haven program shares the story of a mom and small business owner from Mexico who fled to Canada due to threats from organized crime
Imagine having to flee your home and your country because your family is no longer safe there. A mother with two children, you pack up a few suitcases and book a plane to Vancouver, BC, in hopes of being allowed to claim asylum in Canada, a safe place to raise your children. There are no guarantees, but you have hope. This is Ivonne’s story.
Today, Ivonne is a client with DIVERSEcity’s Safe Haven program, which helps refugee claimants integrate into Canada with settlement, mental health, language and employment supports. Back in Mexico, she was a busy mom and a talented baker who had a thriving business in her local town. She had even won a “Best Business of the Year” award in a business competition. But her town was teeming with cartel members, who, unfortunately, took a keen interest in her success. They threatened her livelihood and her family’s safety, extorting money from her business and even bursting into her home uninvited.
“She had a flourishing business,” says Melani, Ivonne’s DIVERSEcity Safe Haven wraparound support worker. “When she started receiving threats, she didn’t know what to do. She said, ‘I’m a single mom, I have no protection.’”
So she went to the police to file a report. “That was the worst thing she could have done, because the authorities gave her name to the cartel,” adds Melani. That’s when the threats became too serious to ignore, and she flew to Canada with her children and new partner to claim asylum.
Help at DIVERSEcity for refugee claimants
They arrived on Christmas Day. Their first steps were focused on finding a place to stay, food for her children to eat and legal aid help for the refugee claim process. She didn’t realize there were non-profit organizations like DIVERSEcity where she could turn to for help.
When she finally connected with DIVERSEcity and Melani, things started to get easier, including getting her refugee protection documents after two failed attempts on her own. “She was overjoyed,” says Melani. “I also helped them find housing, counselling and moved her kids into schools. But the children were still in survival mode and things were difficult at first for the whole family.”
Ivonne started learning English, got her Food Safe and First Aid certificates, and started working as a caterer, cooking up delicious Latin cuisine. Her partner learned English quickly, got a job with the railway and has worked his way up. “She’s been living in fear for a long time, so I’m very proud of her and how far she’s come,” says Melani. “And when her partner got a raise to $40/hour, he couldn’t believe it was real.”
Speaking in Spanish, Ivonne says, “I’m happy that my children are here and have a safe place to live.” She adds that she wants to contribute to the country that has given her so much. “I want to see my children go to college, and contribute and work hard in Canada.”