Attendees of Sports Day, presented by CARE for Newcomers, play cornhole on July 4, 2024. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall | @Vancan19

getting to know people

Community connects at CARE for Newcomers Sports Day, with Meet Me at the Park

Jul 5, 2024 | 12:08 PM

The splendidly-paired combo of the City’s Meet Me at the Park program, and CARE for Newcomers’ annual Sports Day made for a great afternoon of community connection in Red Deer’s Eastview area Thursday.

The event, which started years ago as a youth group initiative, featured sports of all kinds, with equipment provided by the City, plus a free BBQ.

A couple hundred people, many of them youth, were in attendance.

“Regardless of whether you’ve come here as a refugee or by choice, for youth especially, it’s so difficult to mingle, and make friends with Canadian youth because they have such different cultures. So what you often find is that immigrant youth are lonely, and they become isolated,” explains Frank Bauer, executive director, CARE for Newcomers.

“What’s really beautiful about this event is that it’s combined with Meet Me at the Park, so you’ll see neighbours from the area come around, plus staff from CARE, volunteers, clients, and everybody is having a good time. It shows that life is good here in Red Deer.”

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CARE has about 200 active volunteers, 90 per cent of which are people who were at one point newcomers and who likely utilized CARE services.

Married couple Stephany Mendoza and Pablo Madera arrived in Red Deer from Ecuador in August 2023, with the latter studying software development at RDP.

Married couple Pablo Madera and Stephany Mendoza, who arrived in Canada from Ecuador in summer 2023, volunteered for Sports Day on July 4, 2024. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

A CARE event was one of their first experiences in Red Deer, and on Thursday the pair, donning Ecuador football jerseys, were volunteering for the organization.

“The job CARE does in the community is really important,” says Mendoza, who’s had the chance to share her culture and experience in Red Deer schools. “As newcomers, it can be tricky when you leave everything in your home country, and come here to build a new life.”

Madera adds that newcomers can feel empowered in their new community by stepping outside their own home and neighbourhood.

“Getting in touch with new people who already live here and who can teach us about Red Deer is quite important, and exposing ourselves to the language is also helpful,” he says. “Especially at these types of events where you have so many different people of so many backgrounds, you feel welcome.”

Red Deer City Councillor and current Deputy Mayor, Lawrence Lee, was born in Red Deer, but he knows very well the power of sport in bringing people of different backgrounds together.

Deputy Mayor Lawrence Lee welcomes attendees to CARE for Newcomers’ annual Sports Day in Eastview on July 4, 2024. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

“I’m born and raised in Red Deer, but it was tough when I was younger because we were the only Chinese family in Fairview, in 400 homes. It was tough because my parents didn’t speak English when they first came here, but they wanted us to learn it and integrate,” says Lawrence, who played hockey as a youngster.

Lawrence recalls a summer sports program outside Fairview Elementary that brought the community’s children together.

“Our differences kind of just melted away in those smaller circles. We were all just interested in learning this game or playing against each other,” he says.

“These events give you an opportunity to see people for more than just what they look like. It becomes more about how we all act in community settings and how we engage with each other.”

(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

Bauer, meantime, encourages Red Deerians to stay up-to-date with CARE for Newcomers on social media.

He says that while it’s amazing so many CARE users, who are newcomers, make up their volunteer base, they’d love to get more locals engaged in that capacity.

One way people can do so is through the Canada Connects program, which matches newcomers up with local families, who then meet on a regular basis over about a six-month period.

“We as a settlement agency can do all we want to help newcomers find their way,” says Bauer. “But how someone will really feel at home is by connecting with and getting to know people.”

Learn more by contacting CARE for Newcomers and by visiting carefornewcomers.ca.

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