Mississauga Mandarin Business Association (MMBA), a subsidiary of the Mississauga Mandarin Association (MMA), the largest non-profit Chinese community organization in Mississauga, is organizing the Better Future Expo Education Fair on May 11 at John Fraser Secondary School in Mississauga.  In recent years, tens of thousands of newcomers have settled in the Peel Region, Halton Region and surrounding areas. Their continual search for a better future in Canada has generated a need for a full-scale education information fair. Newcomer parents want to upgrade and learn new skills to achieve better-paying jobs.  Newcomer children are seeking enhancement programs to...

Names: Rashpal and Rachna Suri Country of origin: India Year of arrival in Canada: 2008 Why we are Scotiabank customers: “Under the Scotiabank StartRight® Program1 for Newcomers, we were able to get a free day-to-day bank account for one year2, a wide range of credit card options3 and a number of other customized services and benefits – and I had no obligation to maintain a minimum balance. Scotiabank treated us like family, customizing packages to our specific needs. We felt valued.” When the Suris were ready to purchase a home, they went with Scotiabank. As first-time buyers, he says he expected some challenges, but again, the friendly people at Scotiabank...

Name: Mahinder Chawla Title: Financial Solutions Specialist, Hwy 10 and Kirwin Branch, Mississauga, Ontario. 905-276-2162 x 4504. Country of origin: India Year of arrival in Canada: 2009  How I became a Scotiabanker: Mahinder Chawla had moved from India to Kenya and then to the United Kingdom, but Canada beckoned. “Our friends told us that Canada welcomed immigrants and that life here would be systematic and the environment would be conducive to personal and professional growth.”  Mahinder came well prepared for the immigrant reality having done his research, reviewed community services and having his degrees assessed prior to arrival. In Canada, Mahinder went...

Imagine your first day of high school in a new country, with a new language and a new locker system.It’s always scary being the new kid. But at Greenwood Secondary school 40 students from 27 different home countries participated in the Newcomer Orientation Week Program (NOW), designed to give them a bit of an advantage in those critical first days.NOW is an innovative program funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), implemented by settlement agencies and delivered by school boards. Designed to help students achieve their full potential, NOW reaches new students through the help of peer leaders. For two weeks during the summer Alumni of the program volunteer to mentor the...

“The Scotiabank StartRight Program helped us settle in quickly”Names Amit and Mrinali ChauhanCountry of origin IndiaYear of arrival in Canada 2011Why we are Scotiabank customers The Chauhan family’s arrival was made easier by the fact that they had set up their Canadian bank account in India, so they could send funds safely to Canada before they landed. They heard about the Scotiabank StartRight® Program1 International Account Opening at an information session at a Scotiabank branch in Delhi. They were later connected with Syed Haider, a Scotiabank Personal Banking Officer in Calgary, who helped them with their bank account in Canada and obtain pre-approval for a credit card2. Amit...