WELCOMING GUIDE: Aoksana Schemechko felt lost when she arrived in Canada four years ago. But, she says, the Welcome Centre has been a big help to her since she learned about it last year. (Corey Lewis/Vaughan Today)
When Aoksana Schemechko immigrated to Canada from Ukraine four years ago, she was absolutely lost.
Her poor English prohibited her from using many services that would have made her life easier.
“I didn’t know anything about Canada,” she says. “I could not apply to the bank and I could not get my health card because I could not speak.”
Last year, Schemechko found out about the Welcome Centre in Vaughan. Not only has her English improved since she started going, but she can also apply for services herself.
“I can knock on any door in the Welcome Centre and everybody is ready to help,” she says. “They give me advice.”
Located at Rutherford Rd. and Jane St., the Welcome Centre offers myriad services for newcomers under one roof.
The centre teams up with five agencies to offer immigrant services like settlement integration, language training, employment supports, and accreditation and qualification assistance.
Other services — including legal help, mental health aid and culturally appropriate family counselling — are made available based on a community’s needs.
Considering Vaughan’s surging immigrant population, it’s only fitting that the Welcome Centre set up shop here.
“The fundamental premise is that we are trying to alleviate the barriers that newcomers face when they come to Canada,” says Valerie Martin, Welcome Centre general manager. “When our clients come to the centre, they have the opportunity free of charge.”
Clients can access services in any language, though the centre can immediately accommodate 15. A partner agency provides translation services either that same day or within 24 hours.
Since it officially opened in 2007, the centre has been a rousing success, Martin says. About 3,000 clients accessed the centre last year and around 7,000 have contacted the centre for its services.
“When (clients) receive a positive experience here at the centre, they go out and they connect with their individual communities,” Martin says. “And as you’ll see here at the centre, they talk to each other and share experiences from different agencies.”
