Canada is now home to at least 44,615 Syrian refugees. Of these refugees, four out of five
are women and children. There is a clear need for an increase in mental health resources,
resource accessibility, and social connection for Syrian refugees. This paper describes a
Syrian refugee women’s embroidery program that provided both an accessible art therapy
group and a way for the participants to process feelings of hope and loss. Postgroup questionnaires
indicated that the women experienced a sense of pride and mastery over their
completed artwork, built new friendships and community, and felt connected to their homeland
through the embroidery. One-on-one interviews were held to collect the participants’
stories. The participants’ artwork and stories are summarized in this paper, and the stories
are available in full as supplementary material.
Bringing refugees from crisis to flourishing: The role of resettlement agencies and the church in facilitating integration and stability
Refugee resettlement in recent months has become an issue of intense debate in the United States. An issue that was once viewed as a humanitarian one has now taken on political significance. It has become a commonly discussed subject in public circles and one that requires an opinion regarding its good or evil. Despite these…