Work and a new home

By Raul and Sarah Alicaway

(let me have the liberty of re-publising a story written by a good friend who recently migrated to Canada - original article published in www.canadianimmigrant.ca)

Leaving Manila on the last eligible day of our visa — and landing in Toronto just about an hour before our visas did, in fact, expire — gave us the jitters as we journeyed to Canada. Our two kids, JC and Migs, never knew the risk we faced of being immediately asked to travel back to Manila.

At the Lester B. Pearson International Airport, we finally relaxed as we were warmly welcomed by the Bolivars, family friends who selflessly accommodated us for almost a month in their home.

But, after landing, we didn’t waste any time. Three days after arriving, we were already attending a downtown seminar about Canadian accounting designations sponsored by the Association of Filipino-Canadian Accountants (AFCA). We had business, banking and accounting backgrounds in the Philippines.

Within our first month in Toronto, we were blessed to have secured confirmed job offers in our respective fields — I as an officer in one of Canada’s banking giants and Sarah as an accounting technician in an accounting firm (she was referred by an AFCA member).

In due time, we moved to a safe and nice community close to everything — subway station, bus stations, church, school for the kids, public library, community centre, family doctor’s clinic, grocery stores, Filipino store, Fairview Mall (which has lots of everything!) and lush parks and greenery. Early on, we already felt our decision to come to Canada was a rewarding one, even though we had had many doubts prior to boarding the plane in Manila.

We are thankful for God’s provision to our family. Just eight months down the road, I became a manager for GTA branch operations at ICICI Bank Canada and Sarah became a senior accountant at Weinberg & Gaspirc, Chartered Accountants.

We’ve both also been blessed on the education front: I took the International Accounting and Finance Professionals (IAFP) Program at Ryerson University and have qualified for the certified management accountant (CMA) accelerated program; Sarah has been granted 50 out of 51 credit hours in her pursuit of the chartered accountant (CA) designation at the same time being granted 14 out of 15 maximum allowable transfer credits in the certified general accountant (CGA) program.

Our kids are also adjusting fast in the Canadian school system, with JC always landing on the honour roll and Migs having lots of friends across many nationalities and cultures.
Paying forward, we have humbly opened our simple home in at least two instances to friends and their families, helping them with their initial stay in Toronto.

As what the Bolivars did for us, we also guided them on what to do during their initial days, from applying for a SIN card, opening a bank account, looking for an apartment, applying for phone lines, getting familiar with transport systems and Toronto maps, and more!

As our story shows, a little help and a smooth beginning can make all the difference in your journey to Canada.