Amjad is getting the hang of the lingo.
Reciting the alphabet, he starts cautiously with A. But speed and confidence picks up as he hits D and E, and soon he is rolling past R and the rest. He wraps up with a strong and solid “Zed.”
Such moments are every parent’s pride, but for Yussef and Fauda Alfaauri hearing four-year-old Amjad do the ABCs in English is amazing given where the family has been.
“Our kids with schooling, the future, it’s quite bright,” said Yussef (through a translator).
The family of seven has only been in Vernon for two weeks, bringing an end to a harrowing experience that began in war-torn Syria and led to four years as refugees in Jordan.
“I feel like I’m home now,” said Yussef of Vernon.
“Everything is wonderful and generous. There’s the mountains, the water and the greenery, and the heartfelt sympathy and love of the people here.”
It’s a peaceful atmosphere that reminds them of Daraa, their traditional home in Syria, where Yussef operated a vegetable distribution centre.
“I spent all of my life putting things together and building up the business and family. We had free health care and education,” he said.
“Everything was fine until the war.”
In 2011, the Arab Spring moved from other Middle Eastern nations into Syria and protesters took to the streets of Daraa demanding reform from the government.
The Assad regime reacted swiftly and harshly, dropping barrel bombs on the population.
“The people burned were part of our family,” said Yussef.
“People started to turn on each other. The chaos spread.”
In December 2012, the family abandoned Daraa and fled to neighbouring Jordan.
“I spent 10 years of my life building a house, and in a few hours it was gone.”
Fauda knew what she had to do for her children, but leaving was traumatic.
“I thought I would not see my family again. For years I haven’t seen my mom and dad,” she says, fighting back tears.
Arriving in Jordan meant the violence stopped, but the conditions were difficult.
Yussef wasn’t allowed to work, so the family had to survive off of the money earned from selling property in Syria. They were ineligible for United Nations assistance because they lived on their own and not in a refugee camp.
“For the last two months, we didn’t have anything,” said Yussef.
But in early 2016, they got word they had been accepted by Canada. They arrived first in Toronto and then to Vancouver and Vernon.
“It was a dream come true in terms of the reception and people,” said Yussef.
Since coming to Vernon, they have set up a home and Seba, 15, Hamza, 14, and Mohammed, 10, are enrolled in school for the first time in four years.
“They are really absorbing the language fast,” said Yussef.
Education is also a priority for Yussef, 39, Fauda, 34, Amjad, four, and Omar, three, who are learning English at the Vernon Immigrant Services Society.
“The goal is to learn English. To get any job, you need English,” said Yussef.
But while they settle in, they worry about relatives left behind in Syria.
“Every few days, we get news of someone killed,” said Yussef.
They aren’t optimistic about Syria’s future.
“Syria is finished,” said Fauda.
The family is sponsored by the federal government but on-the-ground support is coming from a group of North Okanagan residents known as Friends Without Borders.
“Looking at what they have gone through, we have a heck of a lot we can offer,” said Aly Aly, a group member who is serving as interpreter.
Carol Wutzke, VDISS executive director, is optimistic about the family’s ability to become full members of the local community.
“It’s amazing how grounded they are given what they have been through,” she said.
And a large part of that shift from upheaval to normalcy will come from the smiles and hugs the family receives, even from strangers on the street.
“With the love we’ve seen from Canadians, we don’t feel like refugees,” said Fauda.