Clagary, May 12, 2005
CalgaryHerald
The idea was spawned less than a year ago from within
Calgary's tightly-knit Sikh community.
Members of that community had wondered how they
could honour Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji -- the founder
of the Sikh faith.
The love of God and the love of his fellow man
were at the very core -- the heart and soul -- of
the guru's message.
So less than a year ago the Sikh community decided
there was no better way to spread that message of
love than to embark on an ambitious fundraising
initiative for the new Alberta Children's Hospital
in Calgary. That initiative was announced at the
annual Sikh parade last year in late May.
And during last year's Vaisakhi -- the Sikh community's
celebration of the birth of its nation -- organizers
said they wanted to raise $1 million over the next
three years for a vision clinic at the new health-care
facility.
On May 28, the community will receive an update
this year on how much money has been raised so far
in that campaign -- $850,000. It's a phenomenal
achievement; a sign of prosperity and generosity
in Calgary's Sikh community; and a sign of its love
for the community at large.
Manpreet Sidhu, one of the members of the fundraising
committee, says new money continues to come in and
organizers are busily getting together all the pledges
from two radiothons in November.
"I think the Sikh community is a very giving
community and they've been blessed with a lot of
hard working members," she says. "One
of the pillars of our faith is to earn an honest
living and then to share your blessings with others.
"Because it's a core principle of the Sikh
faith, a lot of people take any kind of charity
work or donating to heart. They truly do believe
that you should share whatever you've been blessed
with in your life. This is just one means to do
that."
Within Calgary this has been the biggest fundraising
initiative the Sikh community has sunk its teeth
into over the years.
The new vision clinic -- which will be the largest
in Western Canada -- is a great way of honouring
the name of the founder of the Sikh faith. It is
a testament to that community's strong belief in
the spirit of giving.
The new Alberta Children's Hospital, built on the
west campus at the University of Calgary, is scheduled
to be completed by August 2006 and opened to the
general public in September 2006.
The Calgary Sikh community's fundraising efforts
for that state-of-the-art facility is just one of
the many ways that community has contributed in
significant ways to the city over the years.
"We've always done smaller scale projects
and supported the children's hospital, the women's
shelter, the Canadian Cancer Society, Red Cross,
but we wanted to do a project that would leave a
lasting impression and something that would be kind
of challenging. It's been amazing," says Sidhu.
But the roughly 30,000 members within Calgary have
risen to the challenge. Actually, many family members
from beyond the city's boundaries have also chipped
in to help out on the campaign with money coming
from Edmonton and British Columbia as well to support
the million-dollar project.
