CN Railway announces $5M donation to Syrian welcome fund at Calgary event

Canadian National Railway is donating $5 million to the Welcome Fund for Syrian Refugees, officials announced at an event in Calgary Thursday morning.

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The fund was established late last year byManulifeand the Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) with a $500,000 seed contribution byManulife.

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"CN has showed tremendous leadership and generosity with its support of the Government's plan to settle 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada," saidManulifeCEODonald ArthurGuloienin a release.

"We would like to thank CN for directing its donation into The Welcome Fund and we invite, welcome and encourage contributions from other companies."

Immigration Minister John McCallum joined Mayor Naheed Nenshi, officials from CFC and corporate leaders from CN, Manulife, and General Motors to announce CN's donation.

Of the 434 government-assisted refugees who have arrived in Calgary so far, 362 have beenhoused, McCallum said.

The minister was treated to a song by a group of Syrian children after the press conference.

Nenshi praised CN and Manulife for their generosity, and he called on other corporations to join the effort to help refugees settle in Canada.

"Today we announce that private industry is stepping up in a very major way," he said.

"Today we get a national push."

Calgary is receiving $600,000 fromOttawato help with rent supplements and short-term housing needs.

Nenshi saidone of the things that caught officialsoff guard was the size of some Syrian families.

"The housing for those families, or multi-generational families, has been more challenging than we expected," he said.

"So in that area, this announcement today is going to help us a lot."