While the Camp Hope exhibit gave students a glimpse of refugee life, the daily work happening inside the same building shows what comes next. The YWCA Settlement Services team helps real newcomers turn survival into stability once they arrive in Prince Albert.
Carolyn Hobden, the program’s manager, said the centre receives families from around the world, often directly from camps where they spent years waiting for a permanent home.
“Our role is to help them start fresh,” Hobden said. “We meet them at the airport, help them find housing, register for language classes, and guide them through the first paperwork they’ll ever fill out in Canada.”
Language barriers remain one of the toughest challenges. Many new arrivals come with limited English, so the YWCA offers full-time classes and conversation sessions with local volunteers.
“Our staff speak nearly 20 languages and dialects,” Hobden said. “That means when someone walks through our door from Somalia or Syria, there’s often somebody here who can greet them in their own language.”
The organization also runs Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS), a program that helps children and families adjust to a new education system. Ruth Kwizera, a SWIS worker who grew up in the Tongogara Refugee Camp in Zimbabwe, said she sees herself in many of the students she supports.
“The school system here is completely different,” Kwizera said. “Back home, everything works another way. We help students understand how to adapt, where to go, who to talk to, how to find confidence.”
Hobden said YWCA’s SWIS workers visit schools every two weeks and organize activities for newcomer youth.
“Everybody who arrives loves to play soccer,” she said. “It’s a universal activity. Through games and camps, they make new friends and feel part of the community.”
The agency also collaborates with health clinics, dentists and daycare centres to make everyday life easier for newcomer families. Community volunteers play an equally important role, helping with grocery trips, conversation practice or simply friendship.
Hobden said events like ‘Hope away from Home’ help residents see why that support matters.
“When people come here and hear these stories, it puts a face to the word refugee,” she said. “It changes how we see one another.”
She said the community’s openness is key. “When people come to events like Camp Hope, it puts a face to the word refugee,” Hobden said. “It means more when you can read someone’s background story. You’re more willing to help and make Prince Albert a welcoming community.”
