Furniture Bank is dedicated to supporting newcomers and refugees, as they transition into their new Canadian lives.

In 2015, Furniture Bank saw a 60% increase in refugee and newcomer clients in need of furniture, referred to us through our existing partner agencies. Thus, when the government announced that the Greater Toronto Area was welcoming over 4,440 Syrian refugees, we saw it as our duty to help.

Furniture Bank has existing partnerships with 18 refugee and settlement agencies and has additionally partnered with Lifeline Syria and Sponsorship Agreement Holders to assist Syrian refugees with their immediate furniture needs.

Many of the Syrian refugees we have been seeing, are families upwards of 6, 8 and even 10 family members under one roof. Therefore, with the community’s support, our work is cut out for us to collect more gently used furniture so we can meet this demand.

To date, we’ve furnished homes for over 400 Syrian refugees settling in the Greater Toronto Area.

Anoush and her family are recent refugees from the war in Syria (pictured above). Here’s what she had to say about their Furniture Bank experience:

“I was amazed. Their showroom was spacious and the staff and volunteers let us choose what we liked. I couldn’t believe it…  Now we have a home again where we feel safe and secure. After all that has happened to us, this is a miracle. You have helped change our lives and restored our hope.”

For refugees, having a furnished home plays a critical role in the resettlement process. Providing furniture to these families allows them to have a place they can proudly call home with a sense of security and hope for a better quality life.

Thank you to our donors for helping refugees take a big step to comfortably settle here in Canada.