The mass exodus of Ukrainians fleeing from their war torn country has prompted a global response to help those in need.
Some have given donations and money and now people are ready to open up their homes.
Now an innovative website called Ukraine Take Shelter is helping people from Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo and other parts of the country connect with refugees in need.
Cambridge retireee Colin Bee is opening up his home to a Ukrainian family of three after they contacted with him through the website.
“She found my number through the website and called me. At first I thought she was a telemarketer,” Bee said, adding the woman is currently living with two other Ukrainian women in Hespeler, but is waiting for her daughter and husband to come over from Poland.
The family is also waiting for a visa for the daughter.
When she came to visit his house and meet his family, Bee wanted her to know that they might not have money to offer but they can put a roof over their heads.
Bee has a history of helping new Canadians get back on their feet. His company used to work with many new immigrants, because the work was more physical and communication was not key to the job.
“We had waves of Koreans, Jamaicans and Chinese and they would come and work for a while until they got their English right, and then they would move on to better jobs,” he said. “So working with non-English speakers has its challenges, but it’s not impossible.”
As he watched the situation in Ukraine unfold, Bee felt the need to reach out and help in whatever way he could.
His father was a veteran of the Second World War and never spoke about the war. Bee said his father's silence was deafening and the toll it took on him made him understand that war is something no one should have to go through.
“I just think of all the poor people having their whole lives upturned and, you know, being put in such a desperate move that they have to leave their homes and leave their families, it's just heart wrenching,” Bee said, adding the daughter of the family coming to stay with him is a similar age to his own grandchildren.
“I would hope that if anything ever happened here in Canada where we had to leave, or my daughters and their girls would have to leave, then people around the world would help out them,” Bee said.
Ukraine Take Shelter adds to a growing list of resources being developed to help refugees when they come to Canada.
Other resources local to Cambridge include a similar website called, icanhelp.host and Facebook group, ‘Waterloo Region Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis.’
Last week in a press conference, Canada's federal immigration minister Sean Fraser said Canada has received more than 100,000 applications from Ukrainian refugees and has approved almost 30,000.
