By Kiply Lukan Yaworski, Catholic Saskatoon News
The Refugee Committee at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Saskatoon recently welcomed a jointly-sponsored new arrival — a young man who finally arrived in Canada in June 2023, after a four-year wait.
Liyon fled Eritrea via Ethiopia, with many disruptions, hardships, and difficulties since his sponsorship was initiated.
Family sponsors in Saskatoon, Feseha and Almaz, along with other family members, joyfully joined parish refugee committee members Jim and JoAnne Moorhead and David and Betty Schurman to introduce Liyon to the St. Francis community at Sunday Mass June 23.
Liyon’s uncle, Feseha, expressed his appreciation to the parish and to the committee members, as well as to the diocese and to the country for the sponsorship of his nephew and others seeking refuge. “God bless Canada,” he said.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon is a Sponsorship Agreement Holder, which permits private sponsorship through the Canadian government system, with parishes and groups either taking on full sponsorship, or jointly sharing the process with family members already in Canada. Refugee sponsorship is administered through the diocesan Office of Migration, coordinated by Dr. Jan Bigland-Pritchard.
Parishes in the diocese of Saskatoon currently actively involved in refugee sponsorship include Holy Family, Holy Spirit, St. Philip Neri, Our Lady of Lourdes, St. Mary, St. Augustine (Saskatoon), St. Paul, St. Francis Xavier, Saint Anne, and Sts-Martyrs-Canadiens. The diocese also has a sponsorship by special arrangement with St. Eugene Catholic Church in Nipawin, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Prince Albert, as well as with two Orthodox churches, several churches of other Christian denominations, and one community group.
Related: Welcoming new arrivals sponsored by parish refugee committees – ARTICLE
Anyone interested in assisting with refugee sponsorship on parish committees can contact their local parish or the diocesan Migration Office at migration@rcdos.ca for more information. The Office of Migration is supported by the Bishop’s Annual Appeal: https://dscf.ca/baa
St. Francis Xavier pastor Fr. Hoang Nguyen greets Liyon and family members Feseha and Almaz, offering prayers for the new arrival. (Photo by Tim Yaworski)
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Kiply Lukan Yaworski is coordinator of communications in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon: rcdos.ca