At a citizenship ceremony on Oct. 15, representatives from the Presbyterian Church in Canada were presented with a letter from Jason Kennedy, minister of Citizenship and Immigration, thanking Presbyterians for personal sacrifices, volunteer hours and financial commitments “motivated by compassion, caring, and a desire to take an active role in protecting refugees.”
The trio of PCC representatives included Colleen McCue of Presbyterian World Service and Development, Hildy Stollery, chair of Morningside High Park’s mission and outreach committee, and Rev. Dr. Art Van Seters, a former moderator, convener of the PWS&D committee and a member of the refugee committee of Armour Heights, Toronto. The letter was presented by Judge Raminder Gill.
In discussion with the Record, Stollery proudly announced that after five years of “trials and tribulations,” and $5,000 spent on a refugee lawyer to overturn a rejection by Canadian immigration, the refugee sponsored by Morningside High Park, Toronto, would be arriving in mid-November. It is the first refugee sponsorship in the congregation’s 120-year history. -C.P.
