Living under the maple leaf – 49th anniversary of the Canadian flag

TORONTO – Sam Barton came to Canada three years ago to study choral conducting at the University of Toronto. Barton grew up in Manchester, England. He really enjoys living in Toronto and has a fondness for the country that is Canada. Photo by Julia Karpiuk.

BELLEVILLE — Djeneba Ballo, 27, immigrated to Canada from Ivory Coast two months ago to reunite with her husband. Photo by Justin Chin

BOWMANVILLE- Rev. Anita Sipos, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, waves a Canadian flag in the nave of the church. Sipos immigrated to Canada in 2007 from Hungary where she grew up. “I feel like the community here is not as together as it was back home, but I do like it,” said Sipos. Photo by Justin Greaves

TORONTO- Lilibeth Lacorte, 52, first moved to Canada from the Philippines in 2009 to work as a nanny. Lacorte left her four daughters and her husband in Tacurong City in southern Mindano to find a better job. “Employment is scarce in the Philippines,” says Lacorte. She plans to sponsor her family to move to Canada to be with her once her permanent status application is processed. Lacorte has been waiting over two years for her permanent status approval. Photo by Emily Cumming

BELLEVILLE – Tetiana “Tanya” Volobuieva came to Canada in 2006. She came here while travelling, but stayed because she fell in love. She is waiting to do her citizenship test, and is excited about the prospect of becomeing a Canadian. She loves maple syrup and is proud when the Canadian hockey teams do well. Photo by Sarah Vissers

BELLEVILLE – Born in Manila, Philippines, Paulina Uy moved to Canada for school in August 2012 when she was 21-years-old. She will be graduating the photojournalism program at Loyalist College in Belleville this spring, and she has enrolled in the accounting program at Loyalist for the fall. While she misses her family and the traditional foods her mother cooks, she is happy here and loves Canadian weather. “Winter can be crazy but compared to the heat in the Philippines, I love it here. I don’t want to go home,” she said. Uy and her family, which includes her mom, dad and two brothers have all applied for permanent residence and are in the fifth year of waiting for approval. Photo by Solana Cain

BELLEVILLE – Alicia Vives, 64, from El Salvador, has been in Canada for a year and three months and is living with her daughter in Belleville. She also has a son living in Foxboro with his sponsor. Vives says security is the most important thing to her. “My country is very dangerous. Canada is quiet and more comfortable for me,” she says. Photo by Sarah Taylor

BELLEVILLE – Hannah Eden, 20, from London, United Kingdom, poses for a picture on the Loyalist College grounds. Eden is attending the college, studying photojournalism. She moved to Canada in March 2013 to work, before going to school. Eden has no plans to return to her home country. “England is dying. There is no job security, health insurance, health care is all going down,” she says. “In my last couple years there, I had a really tough time and I don’t think I’d want to relive that. Canada is new and shiny, so I would prefer to be here. I think it’s a very well-rounded country.” Photo by Mitch Ward

BELLEVILLE – Holding a Canadian flag againest the wind, Umamg Patel runs along the sidewalk on Dundas Street West. Since coming to Canada three years ago, Patel has grown to love his adopted country, and has applied for permanent residence. He debated moving to the United States, but settled on Canada, because of the “people being nicer.” Photo by James Wood

BELLEVILLE — Farishtah Abdul Jabar, 26, holds up a Canadian flag at her English class in Belleville, Ont. on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2014. Jabar came to Canda eight months ago from the United States where she had fled from Afghanistan. Jabar was the director of a women’s organization in Afghanistan but left because her life was in danger. She is currently a protected person under Canadian law. Photo by Hannah Yoon

BELLEVILLE – Hee Ok Kim stands outside his English-as-a-second-language class at Loyola Adult High School. Kim immigrated to Canada from South Korea in 2012 with his wife, son and daughter. Kim used to work at a financial securities firm in Seoul. “Canadians are very kind,” Kim says. “Koreans are kind too but my country is so competitive and crowded,” he added. Photo by Jonathan King

TRENTON – Yvonne Beytell immigrated to Canada from South Africa in 2003, after she met her husband, Craig, who is a member of the Armed Forces, while working in Dubai. Beytell became a permanent resident of Canada in January 2014 after a four-year process, and is currently in process of becoming a Canadian citizen. “The qualification process was difficult, as well as being away from everyone that you know,” Beytell explains. “But the opportunities here… even being safe in your house… that’s something South African’s don’t know.” Beytell has no interest in keeping her South African citizenship. “It gives me nothing. With a South African passport, you still need to apply for a Visa while travelling to other countries. It’s not a nice place. This sounds bad, but I have no attachment to it.” Photograph by Dayna Lefebvre

KINGSTON – Mark Button and his wife Summer Li pose with the Canadian flag on the step of MacKenzie Building at the Royal Military College in Kingston where both are employed as researchers. Originally from the U.K., they have lived in Canada for the last four years. Button is in the final stage of his permanent residency application, while Li, from China, was granted permanent residency in 2012, after living in the country for eight years. “It could be a long and stressful process, but Canada is the best place on earth to live; space, seasons, kind people, beautiful varied landscapes with diversity and tolerance,” says Button, who will know in the next week if he is granted permanent residency. Photo by Guillaume Nolet

BELLEVILLE – Hisen Wu poses at his piano at the Quinte Ballet School of Canada. Wu moved to Canada five years ago to be with loved ones, and recently, in January, went to Ottawa to become an official Canadian citizen. “My favorite part about being Canadian is the prosperity,” says Wu. “Being here, I have more opportunities in my life.” Photo by Samantha Quinn