The body of Delphina Ngigi, a Kenyan asylum seeker in Canada who died last month has been repatriated to Kenya.
Ngigi who was a mother of four is reported to have died on February 18 from the cold after she was allegedly denied shelter.
Her body arrived in Kenya on Wednesday.
Ngigi left the country for Canada on February 15.
Two days later, she showed up at the shelter in search of a place to stay.
According to City News Toronto, she had just arrived in Canada on February 15 and went to the Shelter at 1 pm on Saturday but was not admitted until 8 pm
The Region of Peel confirmed the death and said the woman arrived at the shelter needing a place to stay on Saturday night.
She slept indoors at the shelter but suffered a medical emergency on Sunday.
She was stepping into the shower at the shelter on Sunday afternoon when Peel Regional Police say Ngigi experienced a "medical episode." Shortly after paramedics were called, police say she had a cardiac event and died.
"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," Delphine's sister Faith Wairimu reportedly told City News Toronto.
"She was the change she wanted, and I’ll always remember her for that, as well as her love of people and infectious laugh. I would also like to urge the Canadian government to reevaluate its spending plans and policies concerning the state of the refugees in the shelters."
According to the Toronto Star, advocates say Ngigi's death is a tragic consequence of multiple levels of governments refusing to take responsibility to fully shelter newcomers to the GTA, along with a lack of support for the grassroots organizations that have taken on much of the work for providing safe, warm places for people to sleep since the summer.
They are calling for shelter for all newcomers in the GTA, an investigation into Ngigi's death, and funding for African community groups who have led efforts to aid newcomers since June 2023.
