A Family Affair: Giving Back Through Love, Art, and Food 

A Family Affair: Giving Back Through Love, Art, and Food 

There are few families you’ll meet like the Alshamaly’s. The five-member family, who fled their home country of Syria, when the war broke out in 2012, arrived in Canada four years later. They first settled in Toronto for four years before settling in Milton, Ontario where they live today.  In the short amount of time that they’ve been in Canada, the Alshamaly’s have grown to become an accomplished, multifaceted, and multi-business family. From the tech company, owned and operated by Ahmad, the father; to the local catering company, Jasmine Kitchen, founded and run by his wife Nour; to the plantable postcard and art nonprofit founded in early 2019 by their two daughters, Shahd and Sedra (who were just 11 and nine respectively at the time), business acumen sits firmly at the family’s very core. Their son, Firas, was only just born here in Canada in 2018. 

But it’s not just business for the Alshamaly’s; it’s also a deep-seated spirit of family and shared values that drives their shared desire to be active and positive contributors in the world today. 

“We are now in a safe country, and since we’ve arrived, we have wanted to give back to those we left behind in refugee camps,” says Ahmad highlighting the pride he feels towards his daughters’ and wife’s initiatives. 

Elegant Art was the brainchild of Sedra, now 16 years old, who has been drawing since she was a young child. She and her sister Shahd wanted a way to use the power of art – and particularly the images of children’s lives in refugee camps — to raise awareness about what was happening thousands of miles away. 

“We took what we had (art) and used our passion to transform this into a business,” says Sedra. “We started using wildflower seeds in our drawings to create a blend-able product that is plantable and sustainable.” 

The sustainability aspect is not just about being environmentally conscious, it’s also a way of reminding people that these are real scenarios lived by children every day in Syria and around the world. There is poverty, conflict, disease, and more that young kids are confronted with day-in and day-out, and art, as the Alshamaly daughters’ see it, can play a pivotal role. 

“The power of art is not just in its beauty, but also in its change-making impact,” says Sedra, who alongside Shahd, designs each and every one of the cards they sell. 

Since Sedra and Shahd started their business, in 2019, they have helped raise funds for nearly 120 children living in Syrian refugee camps. They’ve also organized nearly 10 community initiatives that allow youth to experiment with the power of art through community events. They’ve worked with over 30 youths, both locally and internationally, providing one-on-one mentorship to support them in their change-making journeys. They’ve also participated in over 40 speaking events, locally, nationally, and internationally including speaking at the 2023 Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, Switzerland.  

All this, on top of studying at school.  

Time management, as Sedra explains, is the secret behind balancing academics and business. The latter, however, has also been propped up within their own family unit.  

“A lot of our business work has been under the guidance of our dad,” says Sedra who explains that Ahmad, who has an MBA in technology and a marketing background, encouraged them to follow their passion for youth empowerment. “We were learning and navigating a lot with business classes and high school, and our dad played a huge role in helping us get where we are today.” 

And where they are today also includes the influence of their mother, Nour, whose own catering business is another flourishing example of how love and passion can drive a successful business forward. 

Jasmine Kitchen 

Jasmine Kitchen was also founded in 2019. Before embarking on her life as an entrepreneur in Canada, Nour had been a teacher in both Turkey (where they fled after Syria) and in her hometown of Damascus, a city famous for its incredible variety and quality of foods. 

“Nour always had a passion for cooking, especially Syrian dishes,” says Ahmad. “This business was a natural fit for Nour.” 

Since launching five years ago, Nour’s business has been steadily increasing from catering weddings and festivals, for picnics and private parties, and even large-scale corporate clients like Cineplex Media and others.   

“I just love sharing the traditional and scrumptious dishes from Damascus, especially Yalanji and Molokhia,” says Nour. “I cater these classic, homestyle Syrian dishes throughout Ontario and in the Greater Toronto Area.” 

Jasmine Kitchen is not just about the food, however. Nour also wants to ensure the entire atmosphere – from equipment and table settings to delivery, set up and serving — are all of the highest quality. The Alshamaly family single-handedly runs the whole operation.  

“I like to experiment with innovative presentation techniques, like the usage of nuts as garnishes and other ingredients that have a pop of color such as pomegranate seeds, to help make the food and drinks stand out and add to the overall aesthetic,” says Nour. “We’re always doing our best to ensure the events exceed our customers’ expectations – it’s about making a memorable and enjoyable experience for our clients. This is important to me because when people have a taste of my food and smile, it makes me feel overjoyed.” 

In December 2019, Nour partook in the Newcomers Entrepreneurship and Development Forum, a Toronto-based event that brought together a diverse group of newcomer entrepreneurs to Canada for business exchanges. Nour partook in the event as both a speaker and demonstrator.    

Future Plans 

Moving forward, the Alshamaly family is looking towards expansion and further development. 

“Our hope is to release more products that are not strictly related to postcards,” says Sedra. “We will still have sustainability and art at the core of our work, and we will look to host more international events, as well as release and promote programs within Canada that give us further opportunities to raise awareness about different problems around the world, including those of children living in refugee camps.” 

As for Nour, she too is eager to grow her own business.  

“We plan to scale our work, our food, and to increase our orders,” she says. “Eventually, our hope is to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant in the area.”

As Sedra explains:

“We want to come together as a family and encourage others to combine their business efforts too. It’s just so much more rewarding together than on our own… and this way we also can celebrate our achievements together!” 

By the sounds of it, and at this rate, it looks like the Alshamaly’s will have much more to celebrate in the years to come.  

___________

Elegant Art is one of the first vendors in the upcoming Refugee Marketplace, an online portal for supporting Refugee small business owners.

To learn more about Elegant Art, please visit their website and follow on social. 

Website: https://elegantcard.ca/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elegantart123/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Elegantartsyriancanadian/ 

To learn more about Jasmine Kitchen, please visit her website and follow on social. 

Website: http://www.jasminekitchen.ca/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasminekitchen2019/?hl=en 

Facebook:https://m.facebook.com/p/Jasminekitchen-100064793226237/ 

Shop the Refugee Marketplace, Canada’s first online platform showcasing products exclusively made by refugee entrepreneurs.