Asylum seekers sheltered by Toronto church feel lucky despite uncertain future

John Ondari Mochama and his wife recently saw their very first snowflakes — a magical experience that reminded them how far they've come.

It's been several months since the couple arrived in Toronto from Kenya, where Mochama says he faced political persecution, and landed smack-dab in the middle of the city's housing crisis — joining thousands of refugee claimants in relying on the generosity of local churches due to a lack of available shelter beds.

But since October, Mochama and his wife, Philes Ongori, have been in a hotel room in Niagara Falls, Ont. 

"I was sleeping on the floor and now I'm sleeping on the top [floor]," Mochama said. It's there that they spotted the snow, which transformed the city into "a land of honey and milk."

The room, all their own, is courtesy of the federal government, which began transferring asylum claimants from GTA shelters and churches to hotel rooms around the province on Sep. 8. 

Toronto's struggle to shelter refugee claimants has been a dominant issue in the city all year, and Mochama and Ongori remain in the thick of it.

While they feel lucky now, they still don't have a permanent home and the housing problem isn't expected to go anywhere in 2024. The GTA churches that opened their doors to help this year don't plan to close them any time soon.

'A life is a life,' pastor says

One of those churches is Dominion Church International in North York, where Mochama and Ongori stayed before moving to Niagara Falls.

"This is a place where a life is a life," said Pastor Eddie Jjumba, who helps coordinate the asylum shelter initiative.

"We will treat anyone who shows up here with love."

Dominion Church International only started to shelter asylum seekers about six months ago as the city of Toronto struggled to find beds for arriving refugees.

The church has since received some help, as the city ultimately reimbursed churches and other organizations about one-third of the costs to house refugees. 

Between Sep. 8 and Dec. 3, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) says it moved nearly 1,600 people from GTA churches and shelters to hotel rooms around the province. 

IRCC says it's now found homes for 800 asylum seekers in Niagara Falls, and has moved hundreds of others from Toronto to other parts of the province to help them get their lives started.

But at Dominion Church International, Jjumba says he's getting calls from people all over the world looking for a safe place to stay in Canada.

"You get a phone call from Congo, somebody who is saying, 'Hey, somebody just arrived. Can you please help them,'" said Jjumba. "And I'm wondering if they know that they are calling a church, not a funded government shelter."

Housing asylum claimants ongoing concern 

Despite movement from churches and governments, the city is still fighting to keep up with the number of refugees claimants that continue to land in the country, most of whom land in Toronto.

"This isn't an issue that's going to go away in the new year," said Gordon Tanner, general manager of the city's Shelter, Support and Housing Administration.

"There are millions of people moving around the world. We know that people will continue to come to Canada to start a new life and we need a coordinated and dignified welcome for folks when they arrive," Tanner said.

The federal government says it's taken some steps. IRCC extended $97 million in funding to the city of Toronto to help share costs of interim housing for asylum claimants in response to "extraordinary interim housing pressures." It also committed $7 million to build a refugee reception centre in Brampton.

In the meantime, Mochama and Ongori are now applying for permanent residency, and working to bring their three children to Canada to join them in their new home.

"A family's the basic unit of life. We miss our children," Mochama said. "I hope everything is going to be positive."