My “beyond boundaries family”: Ali’s journey with TBB

TBB candidate, Ali, shares his story in his own words.

First, let me introduce myself: I’m Ali, a Syrian refugee who was resettled in the small town of Harvey in Western Australia. I’m married with two little daughters (one is Aussie-born, here in Harvey!)

The story of how I got to Harvey is a long one, with many highs and lows. Today, I'm happy to share that story with you.

One of the hardest things in life is to be a refugee, especially in a country that doesn’t give you the right to live humanely - to work, to rent a home, and to have a legal residence. All of these critical things for life were denied to me

After the war started in Syria, my wife, daughter and I realised we had to flee. We went to live in Beirut in Lebanon for good. There, we tried to adapt to the situation as best we could - but life is very hard for refugees in Lebanon. Things were getting harder every day, so we knew that the best option for us was to search for a better life in a different country.

We started contacting embassies, and the UNHCR… but it looked like we were going to be stuck Lebanon for a long time - maybe forever.

One day, while I was browsing Facebook, I saw an ad that changed my life. It was for an organisation called Talent Beyond Boundaries that said they could find jobs for skilled refugees in countries like Australia, Canada and the UK. I clicked through and filled in the information about my skills, education, and work experience. Then, I eagerly waited for a reply! Amazingly, my phone rang and a whole new chapter in my life started. I didn’t know it then, but my life was about to change forever.

Ali and his family exploring Perth, along with TBB staff, on their first night in Australia.

With a stable job, Ali is proud to be able to provide for his family and plan for their future.

It took a little while before my dream could finally come true - there were lots of interviews with my soon-to-be employer, Harvey Beef, who wanted to hire me as a butcher. And there was lots of paperwork and meetings with embassies before we could finally receive our visas and travel out of Lebanon.

As anyone who has traveled internationally knows, it’s best to have a trusted person waiting for you at the airport, but in my case, I knew no one in Australia. Luckily, when I stepped off the plane, I saw TBB founder John Cameron waiting for me - just like a father would. What this showed me, and what I continue to feel, is that TBB is not just a program or an organization; it is an extension of my family. I’m no longer a candidate; I'm a family member of the beyond boundaries family called TBB.

When my Aussie-born daughter arrived, the second person I sent her photo to was my TBB family.

Today, as a refugee living in Australia, I really have more time for my own family, which is so wonderful. I have a real life - a good lifestyle where we can plan for tomorrow and give my family a happy future.

If you are helping TBB, you are not only helping skilled refugees like me, but you are helping the family members of those refugees who travel with them - like my wife and my daughter. And those of us who have families back in Syria or in countries like Lebanon can help to financially support them, or even sponsor them to travel and reunite as a family - like what happened with me and my brother who arrived in Australia one year after me.

To me, TBB is not a job-matching or advocacy organization, it is a beyond boundaries family. For me, it meant not just a new lifestyle where I could work - but a chance to prove to the whole world that I am skilled and resourceful and don’t need to be dependant on others.

There were emotional scenes at the airport when the family was reunited, after Ali’s brother Hussein was also hired to work at Harvey Beef in Western Australia,