A Black Diamond gallery is giving a gift not of necessity, but kindness to newcomers.
Working with the Foothills Local Immigration Partnership and Calgary Catholic Immigration Society, Bluerock Gallery has provided 125 gifts for refugees and immigrants in the region.
“As a former refugee myself, I remember the first mug I got in Canada,” said Bluerock co-owner Tarek Nemr.
“As much as it is wonderful to get the essentials like the jacket and food and shelter, it was nice to get something that’s not essential, but something more luxurious like a handmade mug.”
That small gift made a big mark with Nemr, who fled Aleppo, Syria five years ago and went on to become the co-owner and curator of the Black Diamond gallery.
“I’ve kept it until now, and it reminds me of the day I arrived here and someone thought of me,” Nemr said.
“I think what I’m hoping for is they get a little gift, handmade, locally, and they’re going to think that there’s a local art gallery that thought of them and sent that gift.”
The other benefit is the artisans who crafted the gifts benefit from the sales, which are paid for by an anonymous philanthropist, who funded a similar initiative last year to show appreciation for healthcare workers at the Foothills Medical Centre.
“This year she did the same thing, donated amount of money, and we decided to donate those gifts to newcomers or refugees from Ukraine or Afghanistan,” Nemr said.
On the flip side is the Foothills Local Immigration Partnership (FLIP), overseen by Lisa Degenstein, rural program manager for the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society (CCIS).
"These are very specific to the communities – Okotoks is different than Airdrie, than Cochrane – all these communities are different,” Degenstein said.
“The importance is these are coming up with solutions and strategies, and recognizing gaps and challenges that are specific to the local communities, and those may look very different than Calgary, which has a plethora of services to look into there.”
Working with Nemr, who is on the council for FLIP, the partnership saw a chance to offer the gesture to newcomers in the hope they consider settling in the rural communities.
“Tarek has become more aware of the work we’re doing and he’s co-ordinated this fundraiser in years past,” Degenstein said.
“Certainly if you’re coming from an immigration pathway, you don’t have a whole lot of spare dollars, so this feels really good for people to receive something, and they recognize that they’re handmade, they’re beautiful, and wonderful.
“Tarek really recognizes how wonderful it is to be welcomed into the community, and a gift like this goes a long way.
“We know that in the past, with books that have been donated and people receiving those just felt so great because they recognize this wasn’t just a blanket churned out in a factory; somebody made this lovingly.”
The gifts will be distributed through five communities, co-ordinating with the local libraries.
“They’re such great partners, and that does a couple of things,” Degenstein said. "It introduces newcomers to the library and all the resources they can connect to, and it gives us the ability to just meet people.”
Having discovered the gallery through the artist that hosted him when he arrived in Canada, Nemr understood the less-obvious importance of art and simple kindnesses.
“The supportive people during my five years here made Canada what it is for me today, and helped me be where I am today,” said Nemr. “So, I think every support and every bit of empathy we can give to a newcomer will have a lot of impact and bring a lot of joy for them.”
For more information about CCIS and FLIP, visit ccisab.ca and for more information about Bluerock Gallery, visit bluerockgallery.ca.
