What is OCRA?

Welcome to Ottawa Centre Refugee Action (OCRA). We are a grassroots group of volunteers that helps refugees settle in Ottawa.

Since December 2015, we have helped settle 12 families (37 people, from 75 years to 18 months) in our wonderful city. As we enter our 2nd operating year, we hope to continue reuniting families torn apart by conflict.

OCRA members have implemented detailed settlement plans for each family. Learn more about our settlement activities.

What are we working on now?

We are now focusing our efforts on helping the close relatives of our settled families. Our families are extremely worried about their close family members who were left behind. These family members are still living in vulnerable circumstances in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq.

Our goal is to raise enough money to privately sponsor these family members and bring them to Ottawa to reunite with their loved ones.

We are grateful to be partnering again with First United Church Ottawa and the United Church of Canada to sponsor OCRA family members. The Church also advises and directs our settlement activities, administers refugee support payments after arrival, and accepts monetary donations for our sponsorships.

We invite you to get involved, whether by donating now or helping once the families arrive.