Mission family opens their home to Syrian refugee family of 10

A Mission family is opening their hearts and their home to a Syrian refugee family of 10.

The Al Youseff family had been living in an Abbotsford hotel since they arrived from Lebanon at the end of February until the Jinnahs offered them a place to stay.

The Jinnahs, who happen to be new Canadians themselves, shared their home with them after learning of their plight.

“Our feeling was that you have to volunteer and give back. We love that about Canada and we want to do something,” said Lise Jinnah.

But not every Syrian refugee family is so lucky, says refugee advocate Ahmad Youseff.

“Some face challenges with crime. Certain unsavoury characters have approached them as, of course, these people are quite vulnerable…they don’t have a lot of language skills. So they are left out for predators.”

Youseff adds that there are 20 other Syrian refugee families that are still living in a hotel in Abbotsford with their lives in limbo. Without permanent housing, advocates say it’s difficult for refugees to land jobs and enrol their children in school. One of the main struggles is learning English, but there are wait lists for getting into federally-funded English classes. The biggest hurdle, according to Youseff, is housing.

“With the government provided assistance of approximately $875 per family it’s really not enough to rent anything. Here in the Lower Mainland we have some of the highest priced real estate in the world,” he adds.

READ MORE: Syrian refugees in Surrey eager to learn English and find work

Global News reached out to the Immigrant Services Society (ISS) to find out how many refugees are still living in hotels and if they’re being pressured to move out of hotels ahead of the busy summer season, but they did not respond to our request in time for this report.

Amir Jinnah says his family will continue to support the Al Youseff family until they become financially self-sufficient.

“I think fearing people is the last thing you want to do,” says Jinnah. “If you start off by fearing someone it’s not going to help, everyone is going to be afraid of each other.”