‘She was the change she wanted:’ Kenyan asylum seeker who died in shelter memorialized in North York

A memorial service was held Saturday for a Kenyan asylum seeker who died at a Mississauga shelter after waiting hours in the cold to get a space.

Delphina Ngigi, a 46-year-old mother of four, came to Canada on February 15 seeking a better life for her family following the death of her husband last December. She arrived at the shelter at 1767 Dundas Street East two days later looking for a place to stay but was not admitted until 8 p.m. that night after spending seven hours in -8 temperatures. On February 18 she suffered a medical emergency inside the shelter and was taken to a hospital where she later died.

Ngigi was the second migrant to die in Peel Region within three months.

“She always said be the change you want, if there was something wrong in the community, she didn’t wait for the leaders to come and solve it,” said Delphina’s sister Wairimu Faith, recalling an instance where her sister started repairing a flooded road in her neighbourhood, on her own, out of concern for pregnant women and the elderly who lived in the area.

“She was the change she wanted, and I’ll always remember her for that, as well as her love of people and infectious laugh.”

Faith says while her sister was not the first person to die due to a lack of accommodation at a shelter, she called on the government to reconsider their policies and budget allocations when it comes to the refugee situation at the shelters. A call that was echoed by other community members.

“We are calling on the government to step up, find out how to help these refugees because they need to be helped,” said Rev. Susan Karanja. “Somebody standing outside waiting for a shelter, it’s inhuman. We are asking can they be treated better. As much as our government is trying, they should do better.”

Following Saturday’s memorial service in North York, Delphina’s body will be repatriated back to Kenya.