Alison Reed  Volunteer lawyer | Refugee Sponsorship Support Program

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“The Refugee Sponsorship Support Program is an initiative of the Refugee Hub at the University of Ottawa. It organizes lawyers who volunteer their time to help sponsors put together their refugee sponsorship applications.

I saw an article in the paper asking lawyers to come to a pop-up legal clinic at City Hall. The thinking was that we could get a bunch of lawyers on site for that one night only, and train them so that they could provide information to whoever walked in the door.

At first, I felt very intimidated. For a lawyer who doesn’t practice in immigration law, the idea that you would sit down with a client and be able to provide them with quality advice, seemed a little overwhelming. But that first clinic helped nearly 400 people who were going to go back into their communities and put together a sponsor group. It was fantastic.

I can’t think of another volunteer activity that has such a direct and positive impact on the world. I think everybody should do it once.

After that, we realized that we were going to have to start matching lawyers with clients on an ongoing basis, as opposed to a one-shot deal. And ultimately, the Ottawa chapter grew, and it spread across the country. Now there are well over 1,000 lawyers across Canada who are signed up to offer this kind of support to people who want to sponsor refugees. It’s heartening to see the kind of energy and enthusiasm folks are willing to bring to the initiative.

I would never want to discourage someone from sponsorship by saying they need a lawyer to do it. They don’t. But the process to privately sponsor refugees in Canada can be a bit daunting — even to figure out which of the application forms they should be using. And it’s something lawyers are educated and skilled in helping do.

We came together and galvanized ourselves as a city, and even a country, to pull together and push through as many Syrian sponsorships as we could. There are so many other families and refugees waiting all over the world who are in equally dire circumstances, and I can’t even think of another volunteer activity where you can have such a direct and positive impact on the world. I think everybody should do it once.”

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Learn more about groups assisting with private sponsorship applications and how you can advocate for improving the sponsorship system.

Private Sponsorship,  Canadian Council for Refugees
Connecting Ottawa
Refugee Hub
Refugee Sponsorship Support Program
Refugee 613 sponsorship page