This evening (October 1) a collaborative group of agencies will come together to provide valuable information and resources for newcomers within the Cochrane area.

Cochrane offers two welcoming evenings each year to target as many newcomers as possible. Fleeha Ahmad, Co-Chair of Cochrane Immigrant Services Committee shares the October and February meetings have been quite successful and newcomers have left feeling satisfied and much more connected. "It's an ideal place for newcomers to Cochrane to come and attend because basically all of the community resources are invited. They all bring their flyers, brochures and they are there themselves so they can give you that one-on-one information. Regardless of your status, you will find something that can help you integrate into the community."

Hoping to see at least another 40 to 50 newcomers attend the Boys and Girls Club of Cochrane and Area this evening, Ahmad says there is no time cutoff qualifying someone as 'new.' "We try to welcome everybody because I find even sometimes you are here for four years and are a citizen but there are still so many gaps that you can have and there are many services you can utilize that you are not even aware of."

Even though the committee has made great strides to welcome newcomers over the past few years, there are still many challenges facing those that are new to the area. "The number one challenge is employment and for many depending if they are moving from province to province or country to country, there is that ESL (English as Second Language) barrier. There is also document assistance, for instance, some services no one is aware of unless they ask. So the challenges we see are from housing to schooling to just where things are; some people really need that hold the hand and walk through while others are already pretty adjusted but just need those minor little parts."

The Boys and Girls Club is an ideal host for the free evening and attendees are welcome to drop in and stay as long as they like. "It's a really nice place to enter, walk around, get to know what's there and out there that will work for you. It is not something you are bounded to stay until the end of the night for."

The Cochrane Immigrant Services Committee is made up of many people who once were newcomers themselves and have a great deal of empathy when it comes to making others feel welcome.

The sixth Newcomers to Cochrane Night runs this evening from 6 to 8 pm at 111 Fifth Avenue West. If you would like more information on this evening or the Cochrane Immigrant Services Society, contact information is on the poster below, and all are welcome.