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w w w .insideH A LTO N .com | O AKVILLE BEAVER |Thursday, M arch 2 , 2 0 1 7 | 6 S p o tlig h t "C o n n e c t e d t o y o u r C o m m u n it y " F A MI L Y C E L E B R A T I O N A Syrian family of six is looking back on the transformation of their lives since relocating to Oakville more than a year ago. Suleyman Musa, his wife, Emel, and their four children Isa, 9, Melek, 8, Hilin, 6, and Esinat, 2, moved to Oakville in February 2016 to es cape escalating violence and abuse in Syria. They were sponsored by Knox Presbyterian Church through a blended Visa Office-Referred (VOR) sponsorship. A one-year celebration of the Musas' arrival in Oakville was held Sun day, Feb. 26 at Knox church, attended by many, including Mayor Rob Burton and Oakville MP John Oliver. Emel, who has been learning English, spoke to the crowd, thanking the sponsors for their support. Since arriving, the Musas have stud ied English and Suleyman has held part-time jobs as a ceramic-tile installer, enabling the family to purchase a car. Before getting the vehicle, Suleyman would commute via train to Scarborough for work. Prior to moving to Canada, the Musas had been living in an apartment in Damascus, where Suleyman worked in the construction fi eld. But life for the family changed drastically in 2012 when the Syrian Civil War broke out, forcing them to flee the area during a lull in the fighting. Travelling by car, it took the family eight hours to leave the city due to the presence of many military and rebel checkpoints. After leaving Damascus, Suleyman and Emel drove with their young children for three days to reach the city of Hasaka, in the northeastern part of the country. They initially applied to immigrate to Europe as refugees, but were accepted into Canada on Feb. 10, 2016. The Musa family's chance to start fresh in Canada came courtesy of Knox Presbyterian Church, which agreed to sponsor the family of six through the Canadian government's VOR sponsorship. With this type of sponsorship, the government located, vetted and made refugees available for sponsorship and covered six months' worth of those refugees' expenses. - with hies from David Lea Clockwise from top left, the Musa family is joined by church mem bers to cut the anniversary cake. Suleyman Musa with his son Isa, 9. Oakville MP John Oliver and Oakville Mayor Rob Burton attended the anniversary celebration. The Musa family. Emel Musa with her 23month-old daughter Esinat in her arms. | Graham Paine/Metroland LLE * m etrolandm edia O PC Defending principles to inspire public Ontario Press Council NEIL OLIVER Vice -President and Group Publisher KELLY MONTAGUE Regonal General Manager DANIEL BAIRD Director of Advertising ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor Beaver* Volume 55 | Number 16 Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Editorial Department Advertising Department Classified Advertising Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington 5046 M ainw ay, U nit 2, Burlington (905) 845-3824 (905)845-3824 (905) 845-3824 (905) 632-4440 (905) 631-6095