2024 Newcomer Welcome Fair Draws a Thousand Attendees

The 2024 Newcomer Welcome Fair held on Saturday, June 15th, was a smashing success, drawing a thousand attendees to the open-air venue of Freight House Field at 200 Isabel Street. In the photo galleries below, right click on any picture and select ‘open image in new tab’ to view the larger version.

Co-organized by the Ethnocultural Council of Manitoba – Stronger Together and Immigration Partnership Winnipeg, in collaboration with other newcomer-serving organizations, the fair was also held in advance observance of Canada’s Multiculturalism Day on June 27. With the goal of welcoming newcomers, refugees, and immigrants to Winnipeg, the event drew an impressive turnout of over 1000 attendees representing various cultural backgrounds and communities. From 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., fairgoers, performers, and participating civic organizations embraced the opportunity to come together as a community and celebrate diversity. 

Event Highlights

Fairgoers enjoyed a wide array of activities and services designed to support and integrate newcomers into the community. Attendees were able to interact directly with representatives of city services. Most significantly, newcomers were able to be provided with essential information from various settlement agencies. They also enjoyed networking opportunities, a tipi set-up demonstration, delicious food, and captivating multicultural performances. Representatives from the three levels of government also came by to bring greetings. Well-known community figure Michael Champagne returned to emcee the program again this year. He was co-emceed by emerging youth leader Aweng Maciek.

above: video of Knowledge Keeper Clayton Sandy explaining the set-up process and significance of the tipi to IPW Executive Director Reuben Garang and IPW summer intern Ahmad Chebeeb.

History

The annual event has come a long way since it began in 2016 as a response to support the Syrian newcomers who came to Winnipeg then. The fair quickly grew to involve most of Winnipeg’s settlement agencies, social services and the City of Winnipeg. These agencies include Mosaic, the Winnipeg Newcomer Sports Academy, the Manitoba Association of Newcomer Serving Organizations (MANSO), and many others.

Impact

Based on attendees’ feedback, this year’s event once again made a significant positive impact. It not only provided practical support and information to newcomers but also fostered a sense of unity and celebration of multiculturalism. One attendee remarked, “This fair made me feel welcomed and part of a larger community. I found valuable information and met wonderful people.”

ECCM, along with IPW and all the co-organizers extend appreciation to everyone who contributed to the success of the fair. In addition to the attendees and event volunteers, the acknowledgments go out to the funders and sponsors such as The Winnipeg Foundation, The Government of Canada, The City of Winnipeg, Assiniboine Credit Union, and various community organizations who made the event possible.