Matthew House is a small shelter in central Toronto that welcomes and assists newly arrived refugee claimants who have come to the end of a long journey on the refugee highway. Matthew House believes that God's call to "welcome the stranger" includes refugee claimants from all nations, irrespective of ethnicity, religion, political ideology, or sexual orientation. Matthew House strives to be a place where God's love is felt and communicated within an atmosphere of welcome and peace. Since opening as a permanent home in August 1998, Matthew House has provided shelter and assistance for hundreds of newly arrived refugees who would otherwise have been homeless in Toronto. They have come from more than 75 different countries including: Albania, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Angola, Burundi, Colombia, Congo, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iraq, Liberia, North Korea, Rwanda, Somalia, Turkey and Zimbabwe. Website: www.matthewhouse.ca
The award-winning documentary below entitled "Everybody's Children" includes the story of one young person that was helped by Matthew House. I promise that you will be blessed by taking the time to watch the hour-long film in its entirety.
Monika Delmos's documentary captures a year in the life of two teenage refugees, Joyce and Sallieu, who have left their own countries to make a new life in Ontario. Joyce, 17, left the Democratic Republic of Congo to avoid being forced into prostitution by her family. Sallieu, 16, had witnessed the murder of his mother as a young boy in war-torn Sierra Leone. Delmos follows them as they bear the normal pressures of being a teenager while simultaneously undergoing the refugee application process. She shows how the guidance and support of a handful of people make a real difference in the day-to-day lives of these children.
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