A Syrian boy’s journey of hard work and success

He remembers fondly the peaceful, ancient retreat Aleppo once was.

As a boy, Mahran Nerses would walk to school every morning, wrapped in the warmth of the sun, a backpack full of books, collecting friends along his street as they joked and jostled each other on their way.

Evenings were spent playing soccer for hours; weekends meant sharing meals with extended family, huge gatherings with aunties, uncles and countless cousins.

Things began changing when the protests started, part of a wider wave of unrest ignited by the 2011 Arab Spring. Growing discontent led to government crackdowns, which led to shootings, which led to unimaginable violence, destruction and now the most horrific civil war the region has seen.

"I was about 14, or 15, when my dad said it was time for me to go, that I had to get out," he recalls. "Everyone could feel it; there was just too much government corruption. No matter how hard you worked, you could see there was no future."

Nerses went to Beirut, Lebanon, to live with his aunt, his mother's younger sister. He completed high school, much of it in English, to prepare for his journey west.

He arrived in Calgary in January 2016, sponsored privately by a second aunt, his mother's older sister. He continued English lessons and found work at McDonald's within months.

He was able to enrol in open studies at the University of Calgary, studying a range of liberal arts courses, from economics to history.

"I learned very quickly that it was important to work hard here in Canada. And, that it would benefit me, that hard work will actually get you somewhere here."

Now 20, Nerses is still baffled by the open spaces of his new Alberta home, from the farmland the Rockies to the giant produce and bulk food sections of local grocery stores.

"Even the parking lot at Superstore, it's unbelievable," he smiles shyly. "Our entire malls are about that big in Aleppo."

After a full year of university, Nerses maintains an impressive work ethic, maintaining a full-time night shift at a 24-hour grocery store, stocking shelves or minding the cash register. By day, he attends a spring class at U of C, a 19th-century history course. He travels by bus or LRT and helps his parents pay the bills.

His mother, father, and even his little sister have been able to join him in Calgary over the last several months, thanks to another private sponsor.

While his mother attends English classes and his sister finishes high school, his father has found work cutting steel for a roofing company.

"He is lucky because his work doesn't need him to speak that much English," Nerses says.

Everyone in the family takes transit to work and school, saving every penny possible to help pay for rent once their private sponsorship ends next fall.

"My dad is so careful with his money. Even though he has a good job, and I do too, he puts as much money away as he can. And we know that taking the bus is way cheaper than having a car."

Christian in faith, Nerses'roots can be traced back to Armenia, just south of Turkey, meaning their transition to another country has happened before, making it a little easier for his parents.

But meeting new people and making new friends continue to be a challenge.

"The only hard part is the lifestyle here is so different," he says. "It was much easier to meet people back home; families are always getting together, introducing one another to new friends.

"Here, people like to keep to themselves."

Nerses hopes to be accepted into the international relations program by this fall, and look to meet new friends at some studentled clubs, maybe even a fun soccer league.

By then his life, he smiles, might come full circle, heading to school, a backpack full of books, and kicking around a soccer ball with friends.