Wednesday 14 October 2015
Scores of immigrants and new Canadians were at the YM-YWCA on Argyle Avenue as the Newcomer Information Centre held its annual Canadian citizenship week celebration. The event acknowledges the contribution of new Canadians to the arts and culture as well as the general mosaic of the national capital. It included an art exhibition by clients of the Immigrant Women Services Ottawa, ethnic drummers, displays, as well as personal testimonies from newcomers and immigrant settlement service providers. Among the speakers were: Tanya Mendes-Gagnon, Senior Director of Newcomer Services of the YMCA-YWCA National Capital Region; Rita Attieh, Lebanese and Arab Social Service Agency (LASSA); Keltoum Moussa, Somali Centre for Family Services (SCFS); Tuulia Law, Immigrant Women Services Ottawa, as well as representatives of the Newcomer Information Centre.
There were displays by immigrant settlement service providers, namely: Ottawa Community Immigrant Services Organisation (OCISO), Somali Centre for Family Services, La Cite Collegiale and Conseil Economique et Sociale d’Ottawa-Carleton (CESOC).