J U S T I C E & M E R C Y R E S P O N S E

We’re sponsoring this family of 5

The family has arrived!

They fled their home in Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in 2021. Under Taliban rule, their lives as Christians became increasingly threatened. They were living in Pakistan, where they faced many hardships and dangers as refugees. Through our partnership with the Afghan Church of the GTA, our church has committed to supporting the Haidarys on their journey to safety, to a new life in Canada. They have since arrived safely in Toronto.

Will you join our efforts to support them?

PRAY

Our God can do infinitely more than we can imagine. Let’s be together in prayer for this family.

  • for health and safety

  • for speed in the necessary administration processes ahead

  • for the Spirit’s presence and care in all the transitions and cultural adjustment ahead

  • Thank God for the generosity of his people, for the provision funding and resources

GIVE

We have surpassed our initial $50,000 goal, the minimum required by the government to sponsor a family of 5. Thank you all for your generosity! Funds raised above the initial goal will continue to be passed on to the family to meet the expenses of starting anew in Toronto. These funds will support the Haidarys for their first year in Canada including housing costs, food, clothing, and other daily needs. See the updates below for specific emerging needs.

STAY IN TOUCH

We will do our best to keep you posted on events in the process of sponsoring. We’ll post updates below.

Thank you for your care and support!

We are thanking God for his provision and your generosity!

As of March 21, 2024, we have raised

$53,977.53

UPDATES

April 25, 2024

Thanks to Suna for organizing, the wonderful musicians and everyone who supported the fundraising concert for the Haidary family on April 5. More than $3000 was raised!

If anyone has a sewing machine in good working order to donate, Zafia would greatly appreciate it. Contact Lorna, lornahutchinson@sympatico.ca.

  • We are so happy the Haidary family is here and so grateful for the generosity of our church family who are helping them to settle well in Canada. Please pray for the two older children especially this week as they start school classes.

    To help them along, we continue to look for gently used or new donations of:

    2 laptops for the older children
    3 mobile phones
    a tablet for the littlest one
    a television
    vaccuum

    If you can help with any of these, please contact Lorna at lornahutchinson@sympatico.ca.

    A fundraising concert featuring classical music of exiled composers will take place Friday April 5 at Knox. Please invite your friends to attend this lovely concert with you. No tickets required. A freewill offering to support the Haidary family will be gratefully received. Details are here!

  • Thank you to everyone who has responded with prayers for their well-being and with such open-hearted generosity to help them make a new start in Canada.

    Our team has had a good visit with the family and their home is already beautifully organized. The house is generally equipped, but as the kids and parents enrol in school and English classes, the following needs are emerging:

    used laptops
    tablets
    mobile phones
    vacuum

    We’ll be hosting a concert fundraiser on Friday, April 5 to help fill in the last of our financial needs for the year. Details are here!

  • Donation Matching Up to $5000!We are pleased to announce that an anonymous donor has offered to match donations made Saturday, February 24 and afterward up to a total of $5000. If you’ve been waiting to make a donation, now is a great time! Or consider getting creative and do some fundraising: bake some cookies to sell at school or work; sell some things on Kijiji; invite others in your network to give, too, such as sharing a postcard or details from our social media! 

    Give online at knoxtoronto.org/give, select the Refugee Sponsorship fund. For cash or cheque, use a pew envelop and be sure to note “Refugee Sponsorship.”

    Household goods — that’s all for now — thank you!Thank you to all who’ve donated items from our household needs list. We have what we need for now and will let you know if any other particular needs come up in the days ahead. 

    Praise God for PartnershipWe continue to be grateful for the good cooperation with the Afghan Church of the GTA. They initiated this sponsorship and have carried almost the entire burden of administrative work. We have joined in more recently with prayer and practical and financial support. Praise God for this united effort on behalf of the Haidary family in their long struggle to worship freely as Christians.

    March 10, The Haidarys are planning to visit us at Knox.

    They will generally be worshiping with the Afghan Church of the GTA and visiting Knox from time to time.

  • Household donations
    Thank you to all who’ve tagged items on our list already. There are a few gaps still. If you want to donate anything, please comment on the list ASAP here, or email Lorna at lornahutchinson@sympatico.ca.

    Housing Covered We are thanking God that all housing needs are now covered.

    Drivers for moving no longer needed With the volume of things to move, we have decided to hire movers. Thank you!

    Continue to pray
    Please continue to pray that all the family’s needs are met in the coming days.

    Donations graciously accepted anytime at knoxtoronto.org/give.

  • The family is set to arrive February 27!!! Wow—what a prayer answer! It is crunch time!

    Scarborough Housing Leads Needed—we are looking for housing that has 3 bedrooms and is a max o $3000+utilities. Ideal location is Scarborough or East Toronto. Spread the word! Contact eldernorine@knoxtoronto.org with leads.

    Winter Clothing
    We will need winter clothing for the family. Mom, Dad, 17yr old girl, 12 yr old boy, 3yr old girl. Sizes coming soon. Let Norine know if you have any suitable items. eldernorine@knoxtoronto.org.

    Household Donations: List coming soon.
    Donations graciously accepted anytime at knoxtoronto.org/give.

  • Scarborough Housing Leads Needed—Our sponsored family will likely arrive in 6-11 weeks. Our first priority is finding housing for the family of 5, either temporary or permanent. Our ideal location is Scarborough or East Toronto to enable connection with the Afghan community. Pray for provision! Contact eldernorine@knoxtoronto.org if you have any leads.

    Donations: Keep in Mind But Don’t Deliver Yet—In the near future we will be seeking donations of furniture, seasonal clothing and household goods once we have found a place for the family to live. Please keep this in your heart as you tidy your home. We will advise when we are ready to receive donations in the weeks ahead—for now it’s not yet!

  • The family has been issued a permanent resident visa and a request has been sent to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to proceed with final resettlement arrangements. Their estimated arrival to Canada timeline is 7 to 12 weeks. Join us in thanking God for this good news. Continue to pray for the family — for health, peace of mind, safety and all their needs in this season.

  • The family received funds to help them and they are now in a safe place. They have an interview with the Canadian Embassy on December 19th, 2023 (the Embassy was informed about their dire situation and that is why they have an appointment). Please pray for their safety and for the application process.

  • We learned that the family has been arrested and sent to a deportation camp in Pakistan. They were already on their way to an interview at the Canadian Embassy when they were arrested.

    Our partners at the The Afghan Church GTA are supporting them with some practical measures.

    Do pray that the Canadian embassy can reschedule their interview soon after release. This will also mean that as soon as the interview takes place, they could be here in Canada earlier than anticipated.