The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday June 7, 2006 - 3 Father wants to die in Canada Ocean of red tape separates family By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF While Oakville's Carole Lawer still harbours slim hope that her terminally ill father will be allowed to come to Canada to die close to his loved ones, any faith in the immigration system to make that happen has all but evaporated. After all, following years of red tape, medical dereliction, Catch 22like absurdities and even a humanitarian appeal to Citizenship and Immigration Minister Monte Solberg himself, Carole and husband Wayne fear time has run out. "We have such a small window of time," said Carol, the only child of Ken and Irene Staton of Bolton, England. "He may not even be able to fly soon." With the clock ticking, the Lawers have been frustrated at every turn by a wall of silence and what Wayne calls a black hole of bureaucracy in which the couple has been left to negotiate blind without benefit of anyone in the know pointing the way. The latest blow is the apparent loss by Immigration of the form authorizing Carole to inquire about her father's case. "We've done everything above board but they won't give you an hour of anyone's time," said Wayne. Carole agrees: "You have a certain trust in the system that it's going to work ... but they're not giving us any options." This includes the scenario the Lawers want most: to have Ken, 74, who has finished his cancer treatments in England, come to Canada for palliative care only and die near his only daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter Imogen, 11. "He's had all the treatments he's going to have," said Carole, a perma- basement into a separate flat where the Statons lived and became fixtures in the their new southwest Oakville community ­ so much so, some neighbours are flying to England to visit the ailing Ken. The couple enjoyed frequenting the greenspace near the house and Ken was free to pursue his artistic endeavours, like drawing and especially painting his beloved, hand-cast military miniatures while cocooned in classical music played through headphones. Today, the American Civil War figures Ken was working on when he returned to England repose on the desk exactly where he left them. "He spent hours every day doing that," said Wayne. "He hasn't been able to do that back in England. Now, that's one more thing taken away from him." The Lawers describe Ken ­ a retired molder in a foundry ­ as a quiet, honest and gentle man with a cheeky side who met his wife of 52 years after she threw a trifle at another man who ducked and it hit Ken. RON KUZYK/ OAKVILLE BEAVER No one is more distraught over his BRING HIM HOME: Carole and Wayne Lawer at their oakville hoime with a picture of Carole's father, Ken Staton absence than Imogen. "She's very upset," said Carole. and his beloved American Civil War figures in the foreground. "All she's ever known is them living with us." The circumstances are painful for Wayne too, especially since his own parents died while he was in England. "Separation is hard to deal with," "Time is running out and my parents, after 52 years of marriage, already facing a great personal he said. tragedy, are living in highly stressful conditions, away from their family (I am an only child and our By April 2003 the Lawers had daughter is their only grandchild) and what they consider to be their home. reached the required income threshI am seeking your help and, quite literally, begging for your sympathetic review of our case. All that old and applied once again for the remains for him is palliative care and, eventually, treatment to make him comfortable in the late stages Statons' entry. The application of his illness. We are asking you for your humane and compassionate support to provide his and my process moved slowly through to mother's long-awaited landed immigrant status and, in conjunction, immediate healthcare coverage June 2005, when it reached the medunder a program such as Interim Federal Health (IFH). ical stage. (Throughout this time, the I was raised to be independent and self-supporting, but this situation is beyond our control. We want family paid for private travel insurto bring my father home and allow him to pass away with dignity, surrounded by his family, and allow ance and regularly renewed the us to provide the support that my mother will need, over the next few months and after my father passStatons' visitor status.) es away. The designated doctor who perPlease, please help us." formed the Statons' medicals assured --- Part of letter from Carole Lawer to Citizenship and Immigration Minister Monte Solberg. the family that if anything in their nent resident of Canada since 1998. standard of living. in Canada, prior to submitting the tests revealed a problem or required "We just want to make him comfortIn 2002, the family decided to application. Since the Statons had further investigation, they would be able, that's all." return to live in Canada. nowhere else to live, the Lawers had informed within two weeks - otherWhen Wayne's business took the Unfortunately, Canadian immigra- no choice but to bring them along as wise, they should wait to hear back family to England in 1999, the tion law did not allow the Lawers to visitors, with the intention of apply- from Immigration. As it turns out, the x-rays taken in Statons were invited to live with apply for Carole's parents to come ing for their immigration from withJune showed a mass in Ken's lung, them the following spring in order to with them, since they had to earn a in Canada. See Family page 5 provide Carole's folks with a better minimum threshold family income, Wayne and Carole finished their Family's cry for help goes unanswered Our Best Sale Incredible Savings on EVER! 125 Cross Ave. (across from Home Depot) Oakville all Lenses COMPLETE PACKAGES include Selected frames Thin lenses Anti-reflective Anti-scratch INCREDIBLE DEALS ON ALL BIFOCALS Our experts can show you hundreds of options Doctor's appointments arranged $ SPACE OPTICAL 905-842-2821 Single Vision from Call for details 193 Limited time offer based on availability