Welcome to our Advocates Page for the #BringWidleneHome campaign. You will notice that this page is quite different from many other upstart sites that you have visited.

Numerous people have asked about donating to the cause and we are truly moved by your generosity. We decided, however, that we did not want to set up a standard “donation” style crowdfund page. We felt strongly that we wanted you to also receive value for your contribution. That is what this page is all about.

Products

Although more will be added, we are launching this page initially, with three products:

The #BringWidleneHome decal ($10)

Ahmed Hussen Action Cards ($25 for 50)

ONE: A Face Behind The Numbers - Book by Vaden Earle ($25).

*If you simply want to use this site as an online store and buy products, you can select either of these.

Donations

You will notice, however, that there are other options. For example, if you are primarily here to make a donation to the cause, you can select the $50 book rather than the $25 one. In this case, you still receive the book and you make a $25 donation.

Partner Packages

These packages are set up for those that want to partner with the #BringWidleneHome cause by donating as well as advocating. In each of these, you will receive multiples of each product. The idea here is that you will pass the extra copies around to other people that you believe may become partners of the cause. For example, taking 50 Action Cards to work or school could really have an impact on the number of cards that Minister Hussen receives.

The Story

If you have landed on this site and do not know Widlene’s story, here is a little summary. Also feel free to visit the website and sign the petition at www.bringwidlenehome.com

Widlene is like any normal Canadian 12-year-old girl. She loves dancing, soccer and Justin Bieber. Widlene, however, has one thing different from most young Canadian girls: she has never been to Canada.

Born to a Haitian refugee single mother in Dominican Republic, Widlene spent the first four years of her life living on the edge of a garbage dump. In 2008, Widlene's mom died and her future did not look very bright.

In 2009, Widlene's adoption process was initiated. Everything came to a dead stop when the 2010 earthquake rocked Haiti. All paperwork and the case working were lost. After starting from the beginning once again, things came to a halt when there were numerous changes to laws and legislation, both in Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Through these changes, Widlene has been stripped of all her basic human rights as she is now deemed stateless. No country will claim her as their own citizen.

Widlene lives with her Canadian family in Dominican Republic but the situation is not good. The Dominican government is aggressively deporting everyone who does not possess the proper documentation to be in the country. Widlene is faced with this dangerous situation on a daily basis and has no access to protection. 

"In 2016, more than 1200 unaccompanied children were dropped at the Haitian border with no family or means of survival."

 After 8 years of fighting, the Earle's are lobbying the government to grant Widlene a Temporary Residence Permit to get her access to Canada. Once there, in safety, the legal adoption can be completed.

As one can only imagine, fees have been adding up rapidly. This platform extended the opportunity to reach out to you to help ease the financial burden.

My name is Vaden Earle and Widlene is my daughter. It is time we were able to give our daughter the life that we have been promising - a life as a Canadian.