Sunday November 11, 2018. Afternoon. Roxham Road, NYS, USA.
A very cold day. The first snow of the year.  A total of 10 people (five adults and five children) crossed into Canada while we were there. As we waited a car arrived carrying a journalist from Dutch TV who spoke to us for a while.  They were visiting North America for two days and interviewing people in Canada and the US.

Eventually two taxis arrived. In one taxi there was a  single man and a family (mother, father and two children) and in the second taxi there was only a single man. They were all from Pakistan.  They appreciated the warm clothes and welcome.

About 15 mins later another taxi  arrived with a Nigerian woman and her 3 children, six to twelve years old.   The mother was visibly very upset  and  it seemed her greatest fear was that she would be separated from her children (as was done at the southern border in the US earlier this year).  We felt it really made a difference that we were there, though she was still upset going over the border. She too accepted some warm things for herself and her children.

The RCMP were polite and respected the protocol.

Sunday November 4, 2018.  Afternoon. Roxham Road,  NYS.

A cold day in early November. Only six people crossed into Canada while we were there.  They came in a shared taxi from the Plattsburgh bus station: one woman and a family of five.

A woman in your 20's from Uganda was traveling on her own. She carried only a small backpack and was happy to take mittens and a hat. When we let her know she would be arrested she became terrified and started to cry. We were able to reassure her she would not be hurt and that this was temporary. She started to calm down and bravely stepped up to the border.

The family of five included a mother, father, teenage daughter and two small twin boys. They were originally from Nigeria but had been living in a state on the east coast of the US before deciding they needed to seek asylum in Canada. They all needed warm things.  They had a lot of luggage and as they were struggling to carry the twins and organize the luggage the RCMP officer asked the Ugandan woman to help them carry things across.  She was happy to do this. 

The RCMP officer explained the protocol briefly and everyone entered Canada.