Syrian refugees celebrate freedom in Toronto this Thanksgiving

Biti Poladian peels back the sheath of parchment paper to reveal a golden turkey underneath, the centrepiece of the first holiday meal the Syrian woman remembers in years without the interruption of bombings. 

There's so much to be thankful for since her family arrived in Toronto three weeks ago, Poladian says.

It's a sentiment echoed by her 20-year-old son, Hagop, and her husband, Nazar, as they pile stuffed grape leaves onto dishes. It will be a taste of home to the nearly 50 other Syrian-Armenian refugees who, like them, are celebrating their first weeks in Canada.

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"What these people have gone through, it was horrible," Poladian's friend, Aris Babikian says. "But even though they have gone through a lot, they are thankful and they are blessing their fortunes that finally they reach Canada, to safety.

"They don't have to worry when the next bomb will fall, when the next family member will be kidnapped."

Thankful to be in Canada

Babikian helped the Poladians and other Syrian-Armenian refugees come to Canada recently, part of the mass migration leaving the Middle East and North Africa.

In August 2014, the Poladians fled Aleppo, the largest city in Syria — and one that has routinely been at the centre of fighting between Bashar al-Assad's regime, the Islamic State militants and the Free Syrian Army. The family lived in Lebanon for nearly a year, until they came to Toronto in September.

"We are happy that we are just beginning a new life," Poladian says. "Lots of meanings the moment we arrived in the land of Canada."

A friend and the Armenian Community Centre in Toronto sponsored the family.

Polaidian said she's thankful to be in Canada, where they can share in one another's company without the constant worry of violence. She no longer has to call her son every 10 minutes when he leaves home, she says.

"I want to thank my friends here," she says. "They were very helpful, they gave us hope."

Christmas in a war zone

The Poladians spent their last Christmas in Syria in a war zone. Poladian and her mother were preparing dinner when they heard an explosion, she says.

"That Christmas eve, just at three o'clock, a bomb [went off] just in front of my house," Poladian recalls. "And all over the building the doors, the windows get broken."

Babikian, who has lived in Toronto now "for a long time" said that the Syrian-Armenian community here will help the newcomers acclimatize after living in constant fear.

"These people are newborn people — we gave them a new lease on life," Babikian says. "They still have challenges to go through... finding work and... the schooling and the education of the children is the second important thing.

"And, of course, they have to get used to the new country, new culture, new values, new traditions. That's why we're here — we're here to give them that hand of support to make their transition as easy as possible."