Mediaboss Marketing

Abdullah Hanif, alongside daughter Hadya as well as Jane Kennedy and Claire Prieur of the Newmarket Together Education Committee, show off a handmade quilt that will be part of an upcoming online auction fundraiser to help bring Hanifs brother and family to Canada from India. They are from Afghanistan, originally. June 13, 2022

Newmarket Together.

Its the community-minded motto behind efforts to bring to Newmarket an Afghan family who fled their homeland in the months leading up to the brutal Taliban regime regaining control of the country last year.

Samiullah Hanif, his wife, Brikhna, and their young children, Omar, Sahar, and Hera are in India but hope to join Samiullahs brother, Abdul Hanif, and his family in Newmarket.

The community is invited to help by participating in an online silent auction at Facebook.com/NewmarketTogether from June 24 to 26.

Residents can bid on dozens of items, from a night in a luxury hotel, Blue Jays tickets, Eagles Nest Golf Club passes and restaurant gift certificates, to sporting goods, tools, household items and gift baskets.

Because Samiullah and Brikhna arent able to work as refugees in India, money raised at the auction will allow Samiullah to put his time there to good use by taking courses to make him more job-ready when they arrive in Newmarket, auction organizer Jill Kellie said.

Samiullah studied economics in Afghanistan and earned his masters degree in business administration in India.

Any additional money raised through the auction will allow Samiullah to earn his chartered accountant credentials in Canada.

I was just thinking that the real story is how our investment now is going to reap such reward in the future. We have the ultra-generous and kind people of Newmarket giving now, we have Abdul volunteering while working two full-time jobs, while he and his beautiful wife manage family and home, Kellie said.

All while (they are) renovating their home in Newmarket to welcome another complete family of five that includes two hardworking adults and three young children.

While its difficult to know when his family will arrive in Canada, Abdul said the application process appears to be going well and discussions with a settlement worker he knows suggest they may be in Newmarket by the end of the year.

He remains in touch with his parents and sisters still in Afghanistan, which is isolated from the rest of the world and facing an uncertain future under the Taliban.

Millions of residents are struggling with severe poverty, malnutrition and lack of education for girls.

As his brother and family cope with some health concerns brought on by the extreme heat of India and lack of health coverage, Abdul said he, his brother and their families are grateful for support from the Newmarket community.

I see people with so much compassion in Newmarket, he said.

The response is very positive and it makes us see that the humanitarian part of our Newmarket is so commendable and people are so awesome to help. I appreciate, we all appreciate, this.

Claire Prieur and Jane Kennedy are two volunteers with Newmarket Together.

I think it is a way of doing something positive when so many in our world are facing the horrors of war and fanaticism. I know in the big picture it is not much but it is something, said Prieur, adding she has been touched by the dedication and commitment of Samiullah and Abdul and their families.

The support of our community and the donors adds to the sense of optimism. Without them we could not do this.

Prieur, Kennedy and other Newmarket Together volunteers have been involved in other humanitarian efforts over many years, including sponsoring Syrian and Vietnamese refugees, Terry Fox runs and the York Region Food Network.

Sometimes I am asked why I work so hard for this but, to be truthful, its not really work at all, Kennedy said.

Like the saying (goes), find a job you love and youll never have to work. I get to visit with my neighbours, spend time with a friend to go shopping, while helping with something that is really important and life-changing for a family which has been terrorized and uprooted from all they know. Tiring? Yes. Hard work? No way. What an opportunity for me to be part of this.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: When reporter Lisa Queen learned of the Newmarket Together online auction, she thought it was chance to give an update on the community's efforts to bring an Afghan family to town.

Read more:
Newmarket Together: Community comes together to bring family who fled Afghanistan to brother in Newmarket - Toronto Star