Salmon Arm's lone Syrian not so alone anymore

It's been two months since Syrian refugee Mustafa Zakreet landed in Salmon Arm, and now, he's no longer the only Syrian in town. 

"We have here now two other Syrian families," said Zakreet.

"I'm just helping them [with] translation [because] they don't speak English."

Including Zakreet, community members in Salmon Arm have now privately sponsored eleven Syrian refugees, with more than two dozen others on the way. 

'They give me a hug like my mother'

During his first few days in Salmon Arm, Zakreet was still getting to know his sponsor Kari Dukeshire.

But over the last eight weeks, they've developed a bond. 

He said Dukeshire and her friends remind him a lot of his own mother, who was killed by a bomb in 2012.

"When my mother died, I didn't seen any nuclear relatives like my aunts because everybody was in different countries," said Zakreet.

"I didn't see anybody pay attention to me like my mother [used] to. Now I always go to their houses and have lunch and have dinner and [they] give me a hug like my mother [used to]. "

Zakreet, 24, is now enrolled in English classes and he's studying for his LPI (Language Proficiency Index) test, so he can apply to colleges.

He hopes to be a civil engineer, like he was back in Syria, before the war began.

'In spite of what he's been through, he's basically a happy man'

Community organizer Brian Ayotte said Zakreet's integration to Canada has been remarkable. 

"It's his generosity," said Ayotte.

"In spite of what he's been through, he's basically a happy man. I'm still not sure where that comes from but i think gratitude is part of it. He's having a bit of a struggle being the only one [but] i think it's helpful with these two other [Syrian] families. He gets to speak his own language and share more of his own culture but it will be wonderful when his own family gets here."