Regina as a Destination for Newcomers

Regina — Capital of Saskatchewan

Regina is called The Queen City in Canada, named in honour of Queen Victoria at its founding about 1880.

Regina is the provincial capital for Saskatchewan, a city of approximately 220,000.  People call it a government town due to the concentrations here of various ministry services for the province.

Regionally, it serves an agricultural community of grain farming and ranching.  It is also known for natural resource extraction of oil/gas and potash (used for fertilizers).

Regina is second in size to Saskatoon, located farther to the north (2.5 hours by car) and more centrally positioned to serve a more diverse economy which includes lumber, diamonds, uranium, high-tech developments including vaccine development (initially for the agricultural industry) in addition to resources already cited.

We are known for our pleasant summers and cold winters (but made more pleasant by having much winter sun).

Community Services

There is a strong community spirit in Regina and good local government.  The city is known for its parks and recreational activities.  A centre-piece of beauty is Wascana Lake which stands next to the provincial legislature building.

Schools are of good quality and are adequately funded with options that cater to both ethnic and religious minorities.  In addition to the University of Regina we also have Sask Polytech which provides technical training of priority to provincial economic development.

We have a new huge stadium which will host the national play-offs this year for the Canadian Football League (CFL).  We have soccer and ball leagues, and in winter hockey and skating.  For those of lower income, registrations costs are subsidized by the city.

Nearby we have provincial parks and lakes for added recreational enjoyment.

Our Native People

We have a high percentage of indigenous people, approximately 15% of the population, about half of whom continue to live on dozens of reserves throughout the province.  First Nations University is the first of its kind in Canada and has developed alongside the University of Regina (which first brought me to the city as a teacher almost 50 years ago.)  The transition to modern urban city life is not without a variety of social problems.  (My wife and I have a particular interest in these people and related issues, having adopted Angela as a our third daughter forty-seven years ago.  Much of our life in retirement is committed to the support and welfare of this part of our family.)

While Toronto and Vancouver are often first choices for new immigrants, Regina has its own reasons to attract and hold immigrants from different parts of the world.  Our housing costs are lower, and the smaller size of our community is often recognized as more friendly than life in larger cities.  Nevertheless, the different ethnic communities here are smaller which is considered a disadvantage to some ethnic groups.

Schools are typically multi-ethnic and adapt to the realities of integrating children from around the world.  The Regina Open Door Society is a major community service centre for welcoming newcomers, providing language instruction for parents, and information services in support of social integration.

Personally, Roberta and I have enjoyed relating to different ethnic newcomers over the years including settlement support for Burmese, Congolese, Syrian, and Chinese.

Regina Open Door Society (RODS)

For forty years, RODS has actively welcomed newcomers to our city.  There is a range of services here that will compliment the personal commitments of our Settlement Group (G5), including services for assessing needs of children for appropriate placement in our school systems.  We may well work with RODS to find appropriate housing, etc.  Start by exploring tabs for About, Settlement, Housing.

Start your life in Regina « Regina Open Door Society (RODS)   [https://rods.sk.ca/]

More Images of Regina…

A few personal photo albums of Regina are included below.  Some of these are of our beautiful Wascana Park in the heart of Regina.  It includes the provincial legislative building (our “provincial parliament”) as well as the University of Regina.  (I will add to this collection in coming days.)

Wascana Lake with English Class friends (2013)…

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AnDJ7WWiU_STiGOPJe0VcB0ZDrVs?e=X99Wb3

Some winter views (2012)…

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AnDJ7WWiU_STg7Rg-x-c_Py8UMHh9Q?e=asTJwb

Interesting facts about Saskatchewan…

Interesting facts about Saskatchewan | Just Fun Facts

Just more of some interest…