At 32, Marwa Elshiekh packed her bags, flew from Alexandria, Egypt, to Canada and traveled around seeking a place to settle. She had always wanted to live in Canada. “I thought, I will just go and if I don’t like it, I’ll come back. I always hate: ‘what if…’” The … Read more
“ISANS has been my friend in Canada.” Arian Vidal repeats this several times with great emotion. Arriving from Cuba in 2009, Arian and his wife, Marisol, wandered into the YMCA Centre for Immigrant Programs where they were referred to Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia. “We didn’t know anyone. My … Read more
We want all parents to be proud to have their children here, says Hoda Ibrahim, director and owner of Care & Fun Childcare in Halifax. After only a few months, the centre has 50 children and a staff of 11. Hoda came to Canada from Egypt with her husband, Ayman, … Read more
The English in the Workplace program proved to be a lifesaver for Janna Mercado, creating a positive impact on her work at a Dartmouth nursing home. “There are times you just don’t get the simple conversations like: ‘Do you need a lift?’ I had no idea someone was offering me … Read more
It was a long road from Simon Mutabazi’s homeland of Rwanda to Halifax. He left his war-torn country in 1994 for Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo, and then Namibia where he spent almost nine years before arriving here in 2005. Simon used his industriousness and knowledge from his … Read more
Inna Morgulis has her dream job, happily settled at Capital Health as a research assistant in the cardiology department. “This is my kind of job,” she says, explaining that she likes to work with numbers and computers. Inna came to Canada in 2012 from Israel along with her husband, Alex, … Read more
Canada has provided a safe haven for Hossein Safari and his family from Afghanistan — his wife Nazir, and two children, Fahad, 6, and Shahab, 9. In 2001 they arrived in Halifax for what he calls a chance to live in peace. Hossein is not confident about his English skills … Read more
After several trips to Canada as a tourist, British-born Gina Moynan decided she wanted to make it her home. “I liked the environment and I always had the desire to live in North America. When I saw what it was like, I got interested.” Gina worked as a school teacher … Read more
As a teenager studying in the evenings, Akshay Gupta would look out his window in India and see jetliners taking off from a nearby airport. He would read the airlines’ names, consider where they were going, and wonder if he too might see the world one day. Perhaps it’s that … Read more
Junhee Choi’s enthusiasm bubbles to the surface in conversation. The owner of “New Sprout,” a yoga and nutrition business, has a busy life full of challenges. “I have a passion to help people with nutrition, especially pregnant women,” says the mother of a seven-year-old daughter, Dhyana. As a registered holistic … Read more
We wanted to find a better future for the family, especially my son. But the decision about moving to another country took time and planning. It is difficult. No one can say it is easy being here. Every morning during the school year Daysi Carolina Peraza bundles up her two … Read more
Maliha Azhar is living between two countries – Canada and her native Pakistan. She came to Canada with her family in July 2008 in the Provincial Nominee Program. Her parents wanted Maliha and her two younger sisters to get a good education and have more options for the future. Having … Read more