About us
We help Iranian newcomers begin again — and thrive.
Ontario Immigrants Association (OIA) is a community organization serving all of Ontario, dedicated to empowering Iranian and Persian-speaking newcomers through mental health support, education, entrepreneurship and genuine belonging.
Our mission
To empower Iranian and Persian-speaking newcomers to rebuild their lives with confidence, independence and income — by removing the barriers of language, isolation and lost professional identity that so many newcomers face.
Our vision
An Ontario where every Iranian newcomer has the skills, the community and the self-belief to build the life and business they came here for.
Why we started
Why we started
Immigration is often described as an opportunity. It is also frequently an experience of loss — of language, of profession, of network, and of the confidence that comes with being understood.
OIA began with a simple observation: talented, capable people were arriving in Canada and slowly shrinking under the weight of starting from zero. The skills were there. The drive was there. What was missing was a bridge.
We built that bridge: a place where someone can learn English in the morning, learn to price their handmade products in the afternoon, and leave feeling they belong. Not a charity that hands out help — a community that builds capability.
About us
What we stand for
Dignity first
We meet every person as a capable adult with talent to grow, never as a problem to fix.
Practical over theoretical
Everything we teach can be used the same week — to speak, to sell, to earn, to belong.
Newcomers lifting newcomers
Our strength is a community where members become mentors and customers become friends.
Culturally rooted
We serve in Farsi because being understood in your own language changes everything.
About us
Who we serve
About us
The people behind OIA
OIA is built by a community, not by one person. Our programs are delivered by facilitators and instructors, supported by volunteers, and shaped every week by the members who take part.
Facilitators & instructors
The people who lead our English and French classes, business master classes, wellness sessions and creative workshops.
Volunteers
Community members who help run events, welcome newcomers and keep our programs going. Get Involved is always open.
Our members
The people who show up, learn, build and lift each other. They are the reason the organization exists, and the heart of every program.
A note from our founder
“I have sat across from too many brilliant people who had been told, in a hundred small ways, that they were starting over with nothing. They were not starting with nothing. They were starting with everything — they just needed a community that could see it. That is what we built.”