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Come from Away

First Impressions

Come From Away

April, 2012 Volume 1 Issue 1

N o r t h e a s t A v a l o n R e g i o n a l E c o n o m i c D e v e l op m e n t , 9 0 O L e a r y Av e n u e , S t . J o h n s , N L A1 B 2 C 7 www.northeastavalonredb.ca communications@nearedb.ca (709) 753-5554

INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1 2 3 4 5

First Impressions Job Experience I want it Spicy! Soccer and Culture About NEA REDB

In August 2004, Ayaz Ghani left his hometown, Dhaka, Bangladesh, to pursue his undergraduate studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland. His perception of a North American city was based on dense population, skyscraper skylines, and underground subways - none of which were present in St. Johns. Years later, he describes his first impression on the city that he eventually came to fall in love with When I first landed in St. Johns, I felt as free as a bird. Being away from home for the first time and independent, I felt that tingling sensation of excitement sparked through my body. After crossing the immigration and customs at St. Johns International Airport, I went straight to the information desk to find a brochure with all the compiled information on the city for a newcomer. However, there was none. A lady at the desk directed me towards a kiosk full of brochures, mostly about hotels and B&B. After half an hour, I had handful of pamphlets on where to stay, dine and tourism. These were certainly not adequate information for a newcomer who would like to reside and settle in St. Read more First Impressions on page 2

UPCOMING EVENTS 1
April 21: Multicultural Day, Kinsmen Community Centre, Town of Torbay, 11am-4pm May 13-19: Mount Pearl Youth Week. For more information, please call Garry Fraser, Youth Services Coordinator at 748-1010 or email gfraser@mountpearl.ca June 24: Paradise Triathlon. For more information, please see townofparadise.ca. July 3-10: International Choral Festival, Festival 500, Sharing the Voices, St. Johns, NL. For more information, please see www.festival500.com .

Job Experience
One of the most important criteria of settling in a place (other than your hometown) is the opportunity to start a career. The Northeast Avalon offers jobs in many different industries, including oil and gas, technology, mining, tourism, fishery, farming, manufacturing, service and culture. There are many places that can help you regarding job search, and it can be only a matter of time before you have a job that matches your qualification. To work, you will need a Social Insurance Number (SIN). This valuable document is a mandatory requirement to work in Canada and you have to apply in person. To get your SIN, you need to apply to Service Canada located at 223 Churchill Avenue, which is on Route 2 of Metrobus. If you are an international student, then Centre of Career Development of Memorial University of Newfoundland at UC-4002 will be happy to help you with on and off-campus jobs. Read more Job Experience on page 2

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First Impressions from page 1

Come From Away

Johns. Soon the excitement eroded and fear began to creep in. Luckily, I found a fellow countryman who came to pick up his in-laws from the airport. He provided me with enough contact details to go on for a day. Upon registering with Memorial University of Newfoundland the next day, I was provided with all the necessary details necessary for residing and settling in the province, and got to know that the situation could have been averted if I had registered for airport pick-up arranged by International Student Advising Office (ISA) at Memorial University. Seven years have passed since then, and there is still no such pamphlet that bears to the point information for newcomers to St. Johns or Northeast Avalon. The newsletter begins the process of providing relevant information to newcomers. Come From Away is the first of its kind where the newcomers, from another province of Canada or a country, will have the opportunity to promote their wants and interests so that being away from home doesnt feel like being away from home at all. I would personally like to thank the Northeast Avalon Regional Economic Development Board (NEAREDB) who were kind enough to publish this newsletter and therefore giving us a platform to address our concerns, needs and desires in making the transition to this beautiful province all the more smoother.

We should embrace our immigrant roots and recognize that newcomers to our land are not part of the problem, they are part of the solution ---Roger Mahony

Believe It or Not:
In 2006, international migration accounted for two-thirds of Canadian population growth. The remaining third was provided by natural increase, the growth that results from the difference between the number of births and the number of deaths.

Job Experience. from page 1

New immigrants or refugees are mainly supported by The Association for New Canadians AXIS Program. This program is based in St. John's and offers many different services that can help newcomers prepare for and find employment. Their head office is located at 10 Smithville Crescent, or you can visit their website at www.axiscareers.net. Newcomers from another province of Canada or country can also use the similar service offered by the provincial Department of Advanced Education and Skills. The departments Career, Employment and Youth Services Division develops programs and services all across the province, that help people plan for, find and keep jobs. Were you aware that newcomers need to assess their credentials from their home country to see whether additional training, education or Canadian work experience are required before being qualified to work in Canada? In St. Johns and Northeast Avalon, Acquiring EXperience; Integrating Skills (AXIS) offers credential assessment for educated professionals and trades person who are willing to reside and settle in the province. You can contact them at www.axiscareers.net. All this information took me an hour to compile from various sources. What would be beneficial is a compact document with all the contact details relevant to obtain a job. Most newcomers, especially immigrants or refugees, do not have access to computers, least it be internet service; therefore, they require hand copies of the information.

What I would like to see is a compact document with all the contact details relevant to obtain a job.

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Come From Away

I want it Spicy!
Spices allow cooks to gain a lot of flavor without a lot of effort. Most ethnicities have a cooking culture based on varieties of spices. No kitchen is complete without the right assortment of spices. The use of spices and herbs are usually seen among the newcomers delicacies. Food culture has become an important link among societies which have normally been divided by their manners, languages and religions. The cultural integration is seen in restaurants offering foreign cuisine in their menus alongside the indigenous ones. For example, curry cauliflower can be seen in the dinner menu of Blue on Water (319 Water Street), and Teriyaki Udon Bowls is on the menu at Aqua Restaurant (310 Water Street). The diversity and cultural integration in this province has started with St. Johns being the focal point. Major grocery stores, like Sobeys and Dominion, have an aisle for traditional and international spices as well as organic foods. That aisle has been growing substantially since 2004 when I first started my excursion to the local groceries. But the stores still lack quantity and availability and due to the costliness of spices in these major grocery stores, they are often not the number one choice for locals and internationals to buy spices. If you are looking forward to make sushi, Kung pao chicken, or any sort of oriental cuisine, then Asian Variety Store (140 Water Street) and Oriental Snow Market at University Center of Memorial University are the best options in this city. They have frozen oriental vegetables, dried fish, readyRead more I want Spicy! on page 4

The cultural integration is seen in restaurants offering foreign cuisine in their menus alongside the indigenous ones.

Soccer and Culture

Soccer has united a diverse multicultural blend in St. Johns. This can be seen during the summer when people of all nationalities gather at Churchill Square soccer field, and enjoy The Beautiful Game. Churchill Square soccer field is not the only one packed with international faces, but grounds near Gonzaga High School, St. Andrews Elementary School and Memorial University are filled with players from all races, religion and culture. Philip Awate Carter came from Eritrea in July of 2006, and felt lonely as most of his families and friends were back at home. While he was watching a game from the bench, he was invited by other players to join the game. Since then Philip has became a regular player at Churchill Square soccer field, and made friends with whom he kept contact on and off the field. Like Philip, there are lots of newcomers who made everlasting friendship with local and international people through soccer. Soccer, more commonly known as football among the newcomers, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball. see Soccer and Culture on page 4
Top: Bulk Barn spices packed in plastic bags. Middle: Variety of whole spices. Whole spices are available at Sobeys, Dominion and Taste East. Bottom: Delicacies made from local spices.

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I want Spicy! from page 3
made sushi and dumplings, and so on, along with the ethnic Chinese, Japanese and Thai spices and herbs. Have you ever thought of making butter chicken or falafel? If so, then look no further as all the ingredients and spices are available at Taste East (62 A Allandale Road). Currently, they are the only grocery store in St. Johns to offer various middle-eastern and Indian spices. Home-made delicacies like samosa and baklava are also available at the store, but are limited in quantity. European and Mediterranean spices and herbs are available at Dominion and Sobeys, but I personally recommend visiting Bulk Barn. At Bulk Barn, they carry traditional everyday to exotic spices, like cardamom, coriander and Montreal steak and so on, and carry over 4,000 products. Thats all for now, but do share your recipes and they could get featured in the next issue. Bon apptit!

Come From Away

SEND US YOUR RECIPES!

EMAIL: communications@nearedb.ca

Soccer and Culture from page 3

In Newfoundland and Labrador, soccer championships and training are administered by the Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Association (NLSA). It is dedicated to promoting the growth and development of soccer at all levels. The association organizes provincial tournaments every year categorizing by gender and age. For more information, please visit www.nlsa.ca. Last year, glimpses of players with foreign nationality could be seen among most youth teams. This is a very positive sign showing the rise of multiculturalism and involvement of newcomers in St. Johns where soccer played a vital role to integrate them into the society. Indoor soccer facilities are available at Techniplex, 39 Churchill Ave., Pleasantville and NL Sports Centre, 90 Crosbie Road.

Top: International students playing soccer at Churchill Square soccer ground Bottom: Soccer game at King George V Stadium.

Northeast Avalon Regional Economic Development Board

Our province is divided into 19 Regional Economic Development Boards (REDB). The federal and provincial governments have set five core functions for REDBs: Develop and coordinate the implementation of a Strategic Economic Plan supported by the integrated business plan; Develop a strong partnership with municipalities that incorporates the strategies and priorities of municipalities in the economic planning process; Develop partnerships in planning and implementation with Chambers of Commerce, Board of Trades, Industry Associations, labour organizations, post-secondary institutions, CBDCs and other zones in the region; Undertake capacity building and provide support to strengthen the economic environment of the zone; and Coordinate and facilitate linkages with federal/provincial/municipal government departments and agencies in support of the strategic economic environment.

One of the key initiatives of NEAREDB is to build and foster Welcoming Communities for newcomers. NEAREDB is pleased to sponsor and promote the first of what is hoped to be a semi-annual newsletter written by newcomers for newcomers. If you have any suggestions for articles or would like to provide your thoughts and impression on living in this region, please feel free to contact us.

To learn more about NEA REDB visit: www.northeastavalonredb.ca or follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NEAREDB