 After escaping the bad situation in Syria, in order to better the future of his family, Basel spent three years in Lebanon completing the interview process to relocate. After one year of interviews with the UNHCR, followed by a year of interviews at the Canadian Embassy, Basel was sent to London. He was notified one year prior to departure that he would be relocated to Canada and on arriving at the Montreal Airport he found out that he would be going to London. Basel’s sister and her children are still in Syria along with his mother. “I was sponsored by a church who helped me with everything. Now, for me they are like family.” Basel is very thankful for the way they have taken care of him and helped him during the transition to London; they picked him up from the airport, rented an apartment, and overall made everything easier. With his passion for food, Basel now works at a food store, as well as catering for small events on the side. The church started selling his food and he made $1,500 in a day, and his business only grew from there. The church offered Basel use of their kitchen for his business. He used to cook on ships and in restaurants back in Syria, and overall he enjoys cooking Middle Eastern food and desserts. To Basel, being Canadian means a lot. Mostly, being supportive to the community is what defines Basel as a proud Canadian. His message to newcomers to London: “It’s nice, safe, and everything is good here… I like London a lot. It’s a good city. It’s quiet, a lot of greenery, friendly people… It will be different for the first months but when they get used to it, I’m sure they will be very happy here.”
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 Myrian came to Canada in 2002 with very little information about the country and no knowledge of English. Moving from Bogota, the capital of Colombia, to London was a drastic change. Upon arriving in London, a sense of safety was immediately evident to Myrian. A place so safe that even children could play in the streets with no worries. She grew to love the community she now calls home, commending it as a great place to raise a family. The move to London had its fair share of challenges. Learning English became an immediate task. Myrian recognized that knowing the language was essential: not only to obtain a job, but also to integrate into her new community. Obtaining her Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) was the next priority. Within months of moving to London, she was inspired by her daughter to start volunteering. Volunteering helped Myrian and her family understand the culture in London and was a way of giving back. Today, Myrian works as an employment counsellor where she continues to give back to her community and other immigrants. Her advice to newcomers is simple, take time to learn where you are, give back, and you will always find a helping hand. Pay it forward.  Aaron emigrated from China in 2000. Upon arriving in Canada, Aaron and his wife resided in Woodstock, then moved to London following his wife’s acceptance at Western University. London was the perfect city for Aaron as it was safe, and not too big or too small. The friendly local community atmosphere contrasted to big cities he had visited. Being located in a region close to many of his customers, London also proved to be an excellent base for the software business he started in 2006. Aaron and his wife appreciate London for what it is. London’s excellent healthcare system helped them welcome their first son in 2003. He also praises the education system as well as the friendliness of the community. These are just some of the reasons Aaron thinks London is a great city to raise his family. Aaron appreciates the excellent operating base that London offers his company. In turn, he gives back to the community by providing software grants, offering internships and employing Fanshawe and Western students. He encourages other employers to recognize and avail of the large talent pool of recent graduates from local universities and colleges. Aaron sees the city as a place with lots of potential, plenty of good jobs for newcomers and an excellent place to start a business. He advises immigrant entrepreneurs to connect with the London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) to access their resources.  The youngest of four children born to refugee parents who had fled their own countries to seek peace. Hosain arrived in Canada, when he was 10-years-old.
He was raised and educated in London, where he has spent most of the past decade giving back to the only country he has been able to call home. Hosain is now working and fully engaged in his adopted country. In this city, Hosain is known for his active volunteerism, working with autistic youth, coaching a public school volleyball team and helping run events. His goal for the future is to get into policing. He hopes to continue his contributions to this country and as he says, "Being Canadian is the best thing I’ve ever had.” Hosain’s message to newcomers to London is to not be afraid of what is going on here. He emphasizes that Londoners are willing to help. To the London community, Hosain says thank you for being welcoming and giving him a chance to live and help in a country that he can now call home.  Born in Pakistan and raised in Saudi Arabia, Saleha Khan grew up planning to become a physician.
“Being of South Asian heritage, my parents dreamed I would go to medical school. In my family, people are professors, doctors and engineers. It’s limited to that or the army,” she says with a laugh. “I grew up thinking I’d be a doctor for a very, very long time.” It wasn’t until she hit pre-med school and started “dreading the idea of telling people they were hurt,” that she really gave the plan some thought and realized it wasn’t for her. And so she switched gears, started an education in business and personnel management, and forged a path that would eventually land her in London where she is breaking new ground as the city’s first ever Diversity & Inclusion Specialist. Saleha arrived in Canada as a single mom of four kids in 2001. After a few moves she was hired as Equity & Inclusion instructor at the Ontario Police College in Aylmer and in 2006 moved her family to London. She fell in love with the place for its Forest City characteristics, conversations around social justice and generally because it seemed like a great place to raise a family. “London is the first place where I felt that I could put my roots down.” During the past 11 years, while raising her kids, Saleha has volunteered on several coalitions and committees, most recently the London Police Service advisory committee on racial profiling/carding and Re-Forest London. She was also a co-founder of the London Family Honour project. In 2016, Saleha was hired as London’s Diversity & Inclusion Specialist. Her role is to attract employees who reflect London’s cultural diversity and also to help foster an inclusive organizational structure at city hall. Saleha is confident about her ability to fulfill management expectations and more. She wants city hall to become known as a place where all employees are welcomed to “bring their entire selves to work.” And she has a message for other newcomers as well. “Be bold, be honest, be strong, speak up, and work to be a part of the community. Give back wherever you can. Because we are truly blessed to be living in a place where we have so much.” « I am London » est une campagne de médias sociaux présentée dans toute la ville par le sous-conseil sur l’inclusion et l’engagement civique du Partenariat local sur l’immigration pour London et Middlesex (LMLIP). La campagne illustre la diversité de notre ville et célèbre les nouveaux arrivants qui ont réussi et qui ont choisi d’élire domicile à London. Ce sont des membres fiers et engagés de notre collectivité qui veulent partager leur histoire inspirante avec d’autres habitants de London. Les personnes choisies pour être les visages de notre magnifique ville sont présentées sur notre blogue, et leur histoire est affichée sur Facebook et Twitter. La quatrième édition de la campagne est particulière cette année puisque nous célébrons Canada 150! La campagne « I am London 150 » sera lancée en janvier 2017 et se poursuivra tout au long de l’année. Si vous souhaitez prendre part à cette formidable campagne ou soumettre la candidature d’une personne qui serait un magnifique visage de London, veuillez consulter la lettre ci-jointe pour obtenir les détails sur la façon de soumettre une candidature. Les soumissions seront acceptées jusqu’au 31 octobre 2016. Pour en apprendre davantage au sujet de la campagne, consultez notre site Web à iamlondonon.weebly.com (en anglais seulement). Suivez-nous, communiquez, affichez et joignez-vous à la conversation ici : Facebook : facebook.com/iamlondonOnt Twitter : @iamldnont Pinterest : pinterest.com/iamlndnt 
“I am London” is a city wide social media campaign brought to you by the LMLIP Inclusion and Civic Engagement Sub-council. The campaign showcases the diversity of our city and celebrates successful newcomers who have chosen to call London their home. They are proud and engaged members of our community who want to share their inspirational stories with other Londoners. Those selected to be the faces of our great city are profiled on our blog and their stories shared through Facebook and Twitter. The fourth campaign this year is a special one as we celebrate Canada 150! “I am London 150” will launch in January 2017 and will continue throughout the year. If you would like to be a part of this exciting campaign or would like to nominate someone you think would be a great face of London, please see the letter below for details on how to submit a nomination. Submissions will be accepted until October 31, 2016. To learn more about the campaign visit our website: iamlondonon.weebly.com. Follow us, share, post and join the conversation here: Facebook: facebook.com/iamlondonOnt Twitter: @iamldnont Pinterest: pinterest.com/iamlndnt
 We are in the early stages of planning a big I am London campaign to celebrate The Canada 150 Celebration in 2017. We are working on forming the committee, finding volunteers, and starting the process of identifying our next 12 faces of London (That's right, 12! One for each month in 2017) ! If you would like to be involved or have someone you want to nominate to be a face of London, send us an email iamlondonON@gmail.com.
In the meantime, peruse this site. Read about the previous campaigns and the LMLIP. And don't forget to join the conversation on social media (Facebook and Twitter) I hope you are as excited for I am London 150 as we are! |
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