It isn’t easy to be the new kid on the block.
But it can be just as hard to be the new parent, or the new business professional who can’t speak English, or the person who has to navigate an entirely new culture. And as Chilliwack’s population grows, so do the diverse backgrounds of people who live here. There are more refugees and new Canadians arriving here all the time, from regions around the world.
And they are all welcomed by a network of organizations known as the Chilliwack Local Immigration Partnership (LIP). They all came together on Wednesday morning for the annual Multicultural Celebration – an event with a wide range of dance and music performances, food, stories, and awards.
More than 1,000 immigrants moved to Chilliwack between 2011 and 2016, said Barbara Miller from WorkBC. And in the past two years, they know anecdotally through their work placing clients that the numbers have “increased significantly.” And getting people into jobs they love is a passion of hers, she said, because it gives them purpose and helps them feel a part of the community.
For some people, landing a job will mean first getting a handle on the sometimes-complicated English language. Last year, Chilliwack Community Services served 248 newcomers, including 158 students. They are placed with tutors and into English as Second Language classes, which are called LINC. The levels range from 1 through 6, with LINC 4 being a requirement for Canadian citizenship.
On Wednesday morning, at the celebration held at the Vineyard Church community space on Wellington Avenue, four students whooped and hollered with joy as they each received their proficiency in LINC 4 certificate from their instructor. In total, 39 students progressed from one level to the other this week.
These classes take place every day, and several nights a week, with a team of LINC instructors who are dedicated to teaching English, but also Canadian culture and customs to newcomers. Wednesday’s celebration was just one of many chances the students have had to come together and meet, mingle and socialize – an important part of immigrating, said keynote speaker Rita Kelly.
She moved from Northern Ireland several decades ago, when her children were just young and she was a young mother. She described her feelings of homesickness, despite the excitement of a move, to leave the violence taking place in her own country, and the choice to live in this one.
“For the first time in my life I felt very alone,” she told the group. Everything was different, from driving and what to shop for in the grocery store. Favourite foods aren’t available, packaging is different. Even architecture is unfamiliar, she said.
“And everyone had an accent!” she said in her Irish lilt, to a room full of laughter.
All jokes aside, she said being an immigrant took “an emotional toll, overwhelming. It was months, maybe a year before I began to feel somewhat normal.”
“I did recognize the country was beautiful and had lots to offer but there was a hole inside of me,” she said. “But I made the decision to come here, and I had to take the responsibility to make it work.”
She said she started talking to every single person she met, every day. She told them she was new to Canada, and where she was from. And the next time she would see that person, they would often remember her – if not for her friendly attitude then for “speaking funny.”
She began volunteering at her children’s school, and she and her husband became citizens in 1998.
“That gave us a greater connection to Canada, and a democratic right to vote, and that was very important to us,” she said.
She offered her story up as advice and encouragement for the newcomers in the crowd, acknowledging that having already known English was a help to her. But she commended those there for taking steps to tackle learning the language, and settling in to create a new sense of community.
“My friends are the family I have chosen for myself,” she said of her hard-earned Canadian connections.
There are a multitude of services available for newcomers, through the Chilliwack Community Services contacts. They can even connect newcomers who are professionals with the Skilled Immigrants Program.
To learn more, visit them at 9214 Mary St., or phone 604-393-3251, or visit online at www.chilliwacknewcomerconnections.com.
