After 19 years in Canada, Nike Okafor was nearly ripped from her Canadian husband and family after a surprise deportation order threatened to upend her life entirely.
Now her nightmare is over.
Six months after CBC Toronto first reported on the story of the personal support worker facing a sudden and forced return to Nigeria — the country she fled nearly two decades ago — Okafor says she can finally breathe after being granted permanent residence this week.
“I thank God for where I am today,” she said. “This is where I’ve been longing to be.”
Her Nigerian-born son, Sydney, 21, who also faced deportation, can now envision a life not teetering on the edge of collapse.
“I’m just so happy my mother and I can stay in Canada with no worries after waiting so long,” he told CBC Toronto. “It’s been a long struggle.”
With his permanent residence status, Sydney says he can qualify for student loans, afford to continue schooling and finally do simple things like travel with his friends without fear it might impact his status.
As their deportation date approached, Okafor’s Nigerian-born son Sydney, now 21, tried to make sense of what it would mean to leave behind the only country he’s called home. Now he’s breathing a sigh of relief. (Paul Borkwood/CBC)
Okafor, 39, has had to fight for her survival before. She arrived in Canada as an asylum seeker alone in 2003 with her son in tow and pregnant with another child.
Being Muslim, she’d had a son with a Christian man and feared if she stayed, he would be taken from her — or worse.
In the years that followed, Okafor put herself through school, found employment as a personal support worker, had two Canadian-born children, met the man she would marry and built a future she never thought possible.
‘Don’t split us,’ Canadian husband pleaded
It was a future that nearly came crashing down. After her refugee claim was denied, Okafor appealed and was told to stay in close touch with the Canadian Border Services Agency.
She did, and in the meantime, life went on.
Then, this past April, Okafor and her son, who were now in Canada without status, received a sudden deportation order from the CBSA. That’s despite her husband filing a spousal sponsorship application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada more than two years ago.
Had the deportation gone ahead, her two Canadian-born children would have had to say goodbye to their mother and her husband would have been separated from his wife of five years.
“My whole life is here,” Okafor told CBC Toronto in an emotional interview in July.
‘Please let me stay here,’ says mother facing deportation after 19 years in Canada
After nearly two decades in Canada, Nike Okafor is facing deportation to Nigeria despite having a Canadian husband and two Canadian children, amid delays in processing her spousal sponsorship application. The mother of three speaks to CBC Toronto about her wish to stay in the country.
“We’re a family,” her husband, Rotimi Odunaiya said. “Don’t split us,” he urged the government.
Though spousal sponsorship wait times are now 10 to 12 months, Okafor and her family had been waiting 28 months when they decided to speak out, saying they would have long been permanent residents if not for the delays.
Advocates told CBC Toronto it was confounding that someone could be slapped with a deportation order while such an application was under review.
The CBSA said at the time that having a Canadian-born child does not prevent someone from being deported, but the agency “always considers the best interest of the child before removing someone.”
‘People get sick in this process, lose hope’
Within hours of CBC Toronto’s reporting, the family’s lawyer received a letter from the CBSA granting their request to defer the deportation, while he continued their fight to stay.
Then, this past Monday came the news they had been praying for: a letter from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada stating their applications for permanent residence had been approved.
“My hope was revived,” Okafor said, recalling the darkness she felt when she thought she would have to leave the country she calls home.
Vakkas Bilsin, Okafor’s lawyer, told CBC Toronto his client only heard from the IRCC about her sponsorship application after her story made the news.
“They had not taken our requests for expedited process seriously by the time you covered Nike’s story.”
As for Okafor, if there’s one thing she would ask the government for now, it’s compassion for those whose immigration applications are ongoing.
“People get sick in this process, lose hope,” she said. “They should be given a chance to make sure the process is done.”
The Northern Super League has fleshed out its front office with four appointments.
Jose Maria Celestino da Costa was named vice-president and head of soccer operations while Marianne Brooks was appointed vice-president of partnerships, Kelly Shouldice as vice-president of brand and content and Joyce Sou as vice-president of finance and business operations.
The new six-team women’s pro league is set to kick off in April.
“Their unique expertise and leadership are crucial as we lay the foundation for not just a successful league in Canada, but one that stands among the top sports leagues in the world,” NSL president Christina Litz said in a statement. “By investing in top-tier talent and infrastructure, the Northern Super League is committed to creating a league that will elevate the game and set new standards for women’s professional soccer globally.”
Da Costa will oversee all on-field matters, including officiating. His resume includes stints with Estoril Praia, a men’s first-division team in Portugal, and the Portuguese Soccer Federation, where he helped develop the Portuguese women’s league.
Brooks spent a decade with Canucks Sports & Entertainment, working in “partnership sales and retention efforts” for the Vancouver Canucks, Vancouver Warriors, and Rogers Arena. Most recently, she served as senior director of account management at StellarAlgo, a software company that helps pro sports teams connect with their fans
Shouldice has worked for Corus Entertainment, the Canadian Football League, and most recently as vice-president of Content and Communications at True North Sports & Entertainment, where she managed original content as well as business and hockey communications.
Sou, who was involved in the league’s initial launch, will oversee financial planning, analysis and the league’s expansion strategy in her new role.
—
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
MAYERTHORPE, Alta. – An emergency alert has been issued in an area west of Edmonton for two armed men.
RCMP say the men are on foot after a robbery.
They say people in the area of Mayerthorpe should not open their doors to strangers or pick up hitchhikers.
They say the suspects are dangerous and should not be approached.
One man is described as white, about 30 years-old, five feet 11 inches tall, 205 pounds with dark hair and dark eyes, who was last seen wearing a cowboy hat and black sweater.
The other man is six feet tall, about 220 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a black flat brim hat with red letters.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
“Communication is one of the most important skills you require for a successful life.” — Catherine Pulsifer, author.
I’m one hundred percent in agreement with Pulsifer, which is why my evaluation of candidates begins with their writing skills. If a candidate’s writing skills and verbal communication skills, which I’ll assess when interviewing, aren’t well above average, I’ll pass on them regardless of their skills and experience.
Why?
Because business is fundamentally about getting other people to do things—getting employees to be productive, getting customers to buy your products or services, and getting vendors to agree to a counteroffer price. In business, as in life in general, you can’t make anything happen without effective communication; this is especially true when job searching when your writing is often an employer’s first impression of you.
Think of all the writing you engage in during a job search (resumes, cover letters, emails, texts) and all your other writing (LinkedIn profile, as well as posts and comments, blogs, articles, tweets, etc.) employers will read when they Google you to determine if you’re interview-worthy.
With so much of our communication today taking place via writing (email, text, collaboration platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, ClickUp, WhatsApp and Rocket.Chat), the importance of proficient writing skills can’t be overstated.
When assessing a candidate’s writing skills, you probably think I’m looking for grammar and spelling errors. Although error-free writing is important—it shows professionalism and attention to detail—it’s not the primary reason I look at a candidate’s writing skills.
The way someone writes reveals how they think.
Clear writing = Clear thinking
Structured paragraphs = Structured mind
Impactful sentences = Impactful ideas
Effective writing isn’t about using sophisticated vocabulary. Hemingway demonstrated that deceptively simple, stripped-down prose can captivate readers. Effective writing takes intricate thoughts and presents them in a way that makes the reader think, “Damn! Why didn’t I see it that way?” A good writer is a dead giveaway for a good thinker. More than ever, the business world needs “good thinkers.”
Therefore, when I come across a candidate who’s a good writer, hence a good thinker, I know they’re likely to be able to write:
Emails that don’t get deleted immediately and are responded to
Simple, concise, and unambiguous instructions
Pitches that are likely to get read
Social media content that stops thumbs
Human-sounding website copy
Persuasively, while attuned to the reader’s possible sensitivities
Now, let’s talk about the elephant in the room: AI, which job seekers are using en masse. Earlier this year, I wrote that AI’s ability to hyper-increase an employee’s productivity—AI is still in its infancy; we’ve seen nothing yet—in certain professions, such as writing, sales and marketing, computer programming, office and admin, and customer service, makes it a “fewer employees needed” tool, which understandably greatly appeals to employers. In my opinion, the recent layoffs aren’t related to the economy; they’re due to employers adopting AI. Additionally, companies are trying to balance investing in AI with cost-cutting measures. CEOs who’ve previously said, “Our people are everything,” have arguably created today’s job market by obsessively focusing on AI to gain competitive advantages and reduce their largest expense, their payroll.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that most AI usage involves generating written content, content that’s obvious to me, and likely to you as well, to have been written by AI. However, here’s the twist: I don’t particularly care.
Why?
Because the fundamental skill I’m looking for is the ability to organize thoughts and communicate effectively. What I care about is whether the candidate can take AI-generated content and transform it into something uniquely valuable. If they can, they’re demonstrating the skills of being a good thinker and communicator. It’s like being a great DJ; anyone can push play, but it takes skill to read a room and mix music that gets people pumped.
Using AI requires prompting effectively, which requires good writing skills to write clear and precise instructions that guide the AI to produce desired outcomes. Prompting AI effectively requires understanding structure, flow and impact. You need to know how to shape raw information, such as milestones throughout your career when you achieved quantitative results, into a compelling narrative.
So, what’s the best way to gain and enhance your writing skills? As with any skill, you’ve got to work at it.
Two rules guide my writing:
Use strong verbs and nouns instead of relying on adverbs, such as “She dashed to the store.” instead of “She ran quickly to the store.” or “He whispered to the child.” instead of “He spoke softly to the child.”
Avoid using long words when a shorter one will do, such as “use” instead of “utilize” or “ask” instead of “inquire.” As attention spans get shorter, I aim for clarity, simplicity and, most importantly, brevity in my writing.
Don’t just string words together; learn to organize your thoughts, think critically, and communicate clearly. Solid writing skills will significantly set you apart from your competition, giving you an advantage in your job search and career.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.
