Becoming a better Canadian, thanks to a temporary foreign worker

As a journalist, my job is to meet and talk withpeople about their interesting lives. Sometimes it's a happy moment.Other times it's theworst moment of their lives.

Each and every conversation has an effect, but there are certain people you talk withwho will have a profound impact.

Mowen Kambo is thatperson for me.

Central Morning6:53The Inspirational Story of Mowen Kambo

Filipino Mowen Kambo moved to Gander back in 2012 to work at McDonald's. But troubles with his employer left him without a job and without a work permit. A lot has changed since we first told you Mowen's story.

I first met Kamboin the fall of 2013. He moved to Gander as a temporary foreign worker (TFW) the previous year and wasa manager atthe local McDonald's. He was the same age as me, but our lives were very different.

He grew up in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao,a very poor village in the Philippines. He movedthousands of kilometres from his parents and six brothers and sisters, to build a better life for himselfand his family back home.

Kambo'sfirst year in Gander wasgood; he loved his job, hewas building friendships in town, hesaid hecould see himself staying here forever.

But his Canadian dream didn't come so easy.

Deadlines pass

Kambohad a one-year contract as a TFW, which expiredin April 2013. But hewas more than eager to do whatever he needed to do to stay here.

He reapplied for a Labour Market Opinion (LMO),a formal proposal from his employer saying it was unable to meetemployment demand within the area and had to seek outside help.

Thefirst application he sent was denied, with Citizenship and Immigration Canada saying the LMO had an invalid number.

No problem, said his boss, who sent in a second application. But the application was rejected a second time.

Kambohad until July 2013 to get the proper papers in order to stay in the country. After that deadline passed, hewas told by his employer to justkeep working, with his employer saying theywould figure out the paperwork.

Kamboput all his faith in his boss and just kept on keeping on, even though he knew he was working in the country illegally.

But Kambo,who didn't speak English very well, was in for a shock. In late November that year, he was calledinto the boss's office and essentially told he no longer worked there, and had to go back to the Philippines.

At first, hedidn't know what to do. Hewould be homeless, andwouldn't have anything to send to his sick father and the rest of his family.

Added to that, Kambohad health issues of his own. He needed surgery to fix holes in his ear drums, which caused constant headaches.

But because he was an illegal resident at that point, Kambocouldn't get access to any healthcare.

Getting a helping hand

That's when Kambocalled Ted Vickers, who had years of experience working with Canada's TFW program, specifically with the Filipino community.

Vickersstarted a crowd-funding campaign and got Kambo a lawyer.He then researched and wrote letters to Citizenship and Immigration,arguing Kambowas taken advantage of and should be able to stay in the country.

It was around this time I first spoke with Kambofor CBC'sCentral Morning Show andI'll never forget it.

Kambo's pain and desperation was clear when he spoke. We'd spoken before, but this was different. I left the interview wishing I could help, but all I could do was share his story.

Following his story

I kept in touch with Kamboover the years. While he wasn't able to work, he was always helping friends, whether it was in the garden ordecoratingfor a party.He was always positive, burning off anynegative energy at the gym.

Kambo stilldidn't know if he would be deported or not. Hemissedhis family, who he hadn't seen since 2011, but even in all the stress and worry,the hope never faded from hiseyes.

In the fall of last year, Kambofinally got some good news: he was a permanent resident of Canada.

He could work, go to school, go to the doctor, and most importantly,leave the country and visit his family without the fear of never getting back in.

He was so happy, and I couldn't help but feel happy for him.

A bittersweet goodbye

I met with Kamboone last time this past April in Witless Bay.

This time we talked about his move to Edmonton, his plans for school, his trip to the Philippines this Christmas to see his family for the first time in six years, and his hopeto bring his two youngest siblings to Canada.

He told me he was the onlyperson from his village of 3,000 people who moved to Canada. Many peopleback home think of him as a hero, Kambo told me, and lookto him as an example ofthe Canadian dream.

Mine was abittersweet goodbye to the interviewee turned friend who taught me about what it means to trulybe Canadian.