Syrian refugees meet Manitoba sponsor community for first time

A Manitoba community that sponsored a Syrian family into Canada got to meet the people they helped at a lunch Sunday.

Residents of La Broquerie raised over $40,000to bring the Rezieh family into the country. The family of fivearrived in Novemberbut have been living in Winnipeg.

On Sunday, they ventured off to La Broquerie for a meet-and-greet luncheon with community members.

"They really looked overjoyed," said Louis Balcaen, who organized the event.

He said it was nice to see the French-speaking family communicate with his community for the first time.

"The kids,especially, they're not shy," he said.

Balcaen said the family is happy to be in Canada and is looking forward to the next steps of their journey here.

"They're keen on finding work for instance, on learning English, on becoming part of the community, on contributing to the community."

La Broquerie has also raised enough money to sponsor a second Syrian family, which is expected to arrive within a few months, Balcaensaid.