Mazenah’s Journey and Back to School

Grade 9 Westdale Secondary School student Mazenah (left) and her sisters and parents were interviewed by CBC Kids for a short documentary last week at their home in Hamilton. The family is originally from Syria and came to Wesley’s Resettlement Assistance Program in Hamilton just last year after a long stay in Egypt. The film explores what the return to school looks like for four kids across Canada, and Mazenah shared their family’s journey and her excitement for starting high school this year.

Mazenah learned English quickly at school and is looking forward to returning. She and her sister Leem say the teachers in Hamilton are very nice, and they enjoy visiting the local parks and making new friends.

Their father, Mohamad, is trained as a welder and looks forward to building a career in Canada. When they arrived in Canada, their mother, Reem, was expecting her youngest child and said that her Wesley support staff, Hannah, helped them a lot with everything, especially in preparing for the baby’s arrival. When asked what she wants to do when she grows up, little sister Zina (orange dress) said she wants to work at Wesley.

Read more of their story by accessing the CBC Hamilton article and video here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/mazenah-mouhrat-first-day-of-school

You can also watch the full documentary here: https://www.cbc.ca/kidsnews/post/watch-back-to-school-with-4-kids-across-canada