Highlandgee:
This week, 37-year Nigerian Mom, Vivian Olumide dropped to her knees in her workplace, cried out in a voice tinged with pain of the past and joy of the present, and praised God for all to hear.

Last November, on the day before her actual birthday, Hamilton, Ontario resident Vivian and her 11- year-old son Kelvin were ordered by the Canada Border Service Agency to be out of Canada before Jan. 4, 2022.

Read previous story here: https://afrotimesnews.com/category/immigration/

Six years earlier, they had arrived in Toronto for a vacation, along with Vivian’s then-husband, who is also Kelvin’s father. She said that when the husband returned to Nigeria, he told her not to follow him, but then later demanded Kelvin return to him.

Vivian claimed refugee status together with her only child, but their subsequent application to remain in the country as refugees was denied, as was their appeal. The first order for them to leave Canada was issued in 2017.

In 2021 they applied to remain on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, but were again denied.

What they had going for them were friends in Hamilton who waged a campaign to help. A crowdfunding effort raised $19,800 toward legal fees, and social media posts trumpeted their cause.

With time running out, a prayer vigil in their honour was held at the church. And then, before Christmas, their lawyer Lorne Waldman successfully appealed the denial of the humanitarian application with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. The deportation order was withdrawn.

The appeal refocused their case, emphasizing that it was in Kelvin’s best interests to remain in Canada. He has flourished in Hamilton, where he sings in a choir, plays piano, excels in school, and has made close friends.

But while their case for obtaining permanent resident status looked strong, official approval dragged on for the next five months.

Wearing her scrubs, Vivian, a Personal Support Worker was on a break when she checked her phone. There was an email from an immigration official. Oh no, she thought. What now?

The email was vanilla in tone. But it included a link to a portal to create Canadian permanent resident cards for her and Kelvin.
Permanent resident.

“I just started screaming,” she said “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. One of the ladies asked me: ‘are you OK?’ I said yes, I have good news, my PR was approved! I knelt in the hallway, I felt like I couldn’t breathe, but I calmed myself down ... I felt like I walked through fire to get to this point. I said, God is real, and thank you, Jesus.”

She told Kelvin the news after school.

In recent months she has been attending a women’s discussion group. She said it has helped her learn to forgive herself, for mistakes she has made, as well as those who have hurt her, including her ex-husband.

“I forgive him,” she said. “That chapter has been closed ... Everything feels settled.”

Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CetZYnwr9DH/

aariwa:
Canadian officials must be tired of asylum requests from Nigerians by now.I don’t know if copycating is the only thing in the brain of many Nigerians.If a person does something and succeeds, tomorrow every other person would want to do same.No originality, no thinking, no new ideas or research on internet smh Same Canada you will find very few Chinese , Indians, Arabs applying for asylum like Nigerians rather you find them going IT , school, technology route etc to better their lives

Highlandgee:
This week, 37-year Nigerian Mom, Vivian Olumide dropped to her knees in her workplace, cried out in a voice tinged with pain of the past and joy of the present, and praised God for all to hear.

Last November, on the day before her actual birthday, Hamilton, Ontario resident Vivian and her 11- year-old son Kelvin were ordered by the Canada Border Service Agency to be out of Canada before Jan. 4, 2022.

Read previous story here: https://afrotimesnews.com/category/immigration/

Six years earlier, they had arrived in Toronto for a vacation, along with Vivian’s then-husband, who is also Kelvin’s father. She said that when the husband returned to Nigeria, he told her not to follow him, but then later demanded Kelvin return to him.

Vivian claimed refugee status together with her only child, but their subsequent application to remain in the country as refugees was denied, as was their appeal. The first order for them to leave Canada was issued in 2017.

In 2021 they applied to remain on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, but were again denied.

What they had going for them were friends in Hamilton who waged a campaign to help. A crowdfunding effort raised $19,800 toward legal fees, and social media posts trumpeted their cause.

With time running out, a prayer vigil in their honour was held at the church. And then, before Christmas, their lawyer Lorne Waldman successfully appealed the denial of the humanitarian application with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. The deportation order was withdrawn.

The appeal refocused their case, emphasizing that it was in Kelvin’s best interests to remain in Canada. He has flourished in Hamilton, where he sings in a choir, plays piano, excels in school, and has made close friends.

But while their case for obtaining permanent resident status looked strong, official approval dragged on for the next five months.

Wearing her scrubs, Vivian, a Personal Support Worker was on a break when she checked her phone. There was an email from an immigration official. Oh no, she thought. What now?

The email was vanilla in tone. But it included a link to a portal to create Canadian permanent resident cards for her and Kelvin.
Permanent resident.

“I just started screaming,” she said “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. One of the ladies asked me: ‘are you OK?’ I said yes, I have good news, my PR was approved! I knelt in the hallway, I felt like I couldn’t breathe, but I calmed myself down ... I felt like I walked through fire to get to this point. I said, God is real, and thank you, Jesus.”

She told Kelvin the news after school.

In recent months she has been attending a women’s discussion group. She said it has helped her learn to forgive herself, for mistakes she has made, as well as those who have hurt her, including her ex-husband.

“I forgive him,” she said. “That chapter has been closed ... Everything feels settled.”

Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CetZYnwr9DH/