When Simar, the Volunteer Coordinator at DIVERSEcity, matched an Afghan newcomer family with a Welcome Group, the family found ways to practice their English, nurture a young boy’s love of soccer, and reunite with loved ones.

To find out more about this match, we interviewed Simar, the Volunteer Coordinator at DIVERSEcity, and Astrid and Ramandeep, two Welcome Group volunteers.

Check it out here!

In this year-end report, we’ve created a snapshot of the work that we have accomplished in 2023.

We are so grateful to our Welcome Group Program participants, partners and supporters for helping us build more welcoming communities in Canada. We look forward to growing our impact with you in 2024!

Click here to download our 2023 Impact Report.

To make a holiday donation, please click here!

Before Semhar became a Peer Navigator at Women’s College Hospital’s Crossroads Clinic, she volunteered in our Welcome Group Program.

“It’s quite a transformation from being a volunteer and now working side by side with Together Project staff!”

To learn about Semhar’s journey, click here!

In Toronto, Mississauga, Ottawa, and Surrey BC, two free apps are providing innovative options for low-cost food: Flashfood and Too Good to Go.

To explain how refugee newcomers and volunteers who are seeking low-cost food in their neighbourhoods can use these apps, we spoke with Together Project volunteer Sue Anderson.

As an avid user of Flashfood and Too Good to Go, Sue is eager to share these opportunities with others. “I’m always trying to save money, and these are great!” she said.

For more, click here!

With the coming winter weather, many Welcome Group Program newcomers are seeking community resources to keep them warm and nourished. We’ve made a list of food banks and clothing banks currently accepting clients in Central Toronto, East York, Etobicoke, Mississauga, North York, Scarborough, Ottawa, and Vancouver.

With food banks offering free delivery, online food banks that allow clients to select items in advance, and an organization that gives free snowsuits to children, and two free apps that promote low-cost food, we’ve found a wealth of resources to share. Check it out here!

After arriving in Toronto with her husband and four children, Mary* was anxious about learning how to navigate her new home after leaving the refugee welcome centre.

“We didn’t know anyone who could guide us and give helpful information. We couldn’t ask anyone for information about where to go. When we wanted something for myself, for my children, for my family– we didn’t have someone who could give us directions,” she said.

When a social worker told her about Together Project, she trusted that this was the answer that her family needed.

As her family settled into their new home in Toronto, having a Welcome Group of volunteers in the neighbourhood felt like a perfect fit.

To read more of Mary’s story, click here!