First Amritdhari Sikh Canadian made history by winning Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
Windsor - Saturday, August 25, 2012: A new history was made when a practicing (Amritdhari) turbaned Sikh Canadian Harjinder Singh Kandola, the president of the Sikh Cultural Society of Metropolitan Windsor, brought fame and grandeur to the Sikh Community locally and worldwide. By the command of the queen, the Governor General of Canada approved Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal award to Mr Kandola for his outstanding contribution to Canada through Community service. During a special community ceremony at Windsor Ciociaro Club on Saturday August 25, 2012, Ontario Finance Minister and Deputy Premiere Hon. Dwight Duncan presented this award to Mr. Kandola. Kandola humbly accepted the recognition but said it should be shared by his fellows, family, friends and community.
This well attended ceremony was emceed by Mansimran Singh Kahlon of United Sikhs and local Sikh youth Gursimran Kaur Virk.
Introducing Harjinder before inviting him to receive this national honour, the minister Duncan said, Harjinder Singh Kandola has made an extraordinary contribution to our community and made our province a better place to live. We are proud of him and his terrific accomplishment and we thank him for the difference he is making in the lives of not only just the Sikhs but all Ontarians. Indeed, he is a true reflection of her majesty's legacy. Earlier this year, I was pleased to nominate him for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Governor General of Canada has approved Mr. Harjinder Singh Kandola as recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal".
"Born in India and he immigrated here in 1994 to join his wife Kamaljit Kaur Kandola in Brampton. His pursuit to higher education brought him to Windsor, where he now lives with his wife, his parents and his two children Japman Kaur and Triman Singh. We are very lucky to have him in Windsor where he has devoted his spare time for educating youth and Sikh community on Sikh values, heritage, scripture and culture. And moreover, he has helped to educate the broader community about Sikh values to help foster greater understanding of the Sikh Culture that all of us have come to respect and admire", remarked Duncan
With his family.
Duncan said Harjinder Singh Kandola has worked particularly hard at bringing the Sikh community into the broader community, especially working with young Sikhs to help them understand the broader Canadian community. He said this ultimately heightens the understanding between Sikhs and non-Sikhs.
For Hon. Dwight Duncan, Kandola immediately stood out as a choice for the accolade, he said.
"This also pays tribute to the whole community. We're saying, look, this is an important community in Windsor - in Ontario," Duncan said. "And we need to recognize that. A lot of Canadians don't appreciate how Sikh values are similar to Canadian values."
Harjinder's longtime close friend Harminder Singh from Seattle WA said he could not even describe Harjinder's strong personality with his eyes, heart and soul. According to him Harjinder's character is like the two lines of a great poem “ਮੈਂ ਰਾਹਾਂ ਤੇ ਨਹੀਂ ਤੁਰਦਾ, ਮੈ ਤੁਰਾਂ ਤਾਂ ਰਾਹ ਬਣਦੇ” which means "he does not walk on the pathways. He walks and pathways are made". Sharing a story of his life, Harminder said, "There were dark times in Punjab when young people once they leave their home in the morning, till they come back in the evening, parents always thought something has gone wrong with them. A day came, when this happened to my parents also. Harjinder spent almost two months looking for me where ever he could, in each and every police station, meeting people in every place and corner of Punjab and Northern India. Harjinder left his studies in-between for two continuous months till I was found. I would say God gives you life, this brother of mine gave my parents their son". "So if he is being honored, he deserves it", he added.
For his brother-in-law Rampal Singh Dhillon who is a well-known Sikh leader in GTA, Harjinder has been a great asset to the family and he is proud of him. He remarked, "Adaptation and accommodation is part of the human need and personality. We opted for this country. This is our homeland and we are Canadians now. So I would like to thank the Mr. Duncan and liberal party of Canada for this special accommodation to Sikhs by honouring Harjinder's deeds in the community". Agreeing with Harminder Singh on Harjinder's personality, he added, "There are people who like to walk on the paths but there are people who make the ways. Once you make any way, you have to pay the price for that. But the civilizations and the communities develop only on the shoulders of those people who have such guts". He said, "Keep it up Harjinder!".
While praising Harjinder, Dr. Om Chandna, who is a professor at University of Windsor and a founder director of Canadian World Education Foundation (CWEF), remarked, "What always surprises me is the number of qualities that this one person has. We always see somebody has this quality, and does not have that quality. But he has the qualities that make a man totally perfect. He believes in truth, absolute truth. He looks for the benefit of all not just personal benefit. He is a role model for the coming generation. He shares, he cares, he loves, he is affectionate and he is giving. These are very rare qualities. We are very proud that Harjinder got this award. May he get many more awards because those awards will encourage the younger generation to work towards a better future for themselves, and making the society a better society".
While congratulating Harjinder, Gurbax Singh Wahid, the Secretary of Sikh Cultural Society of Metropolitan Windsor spoke, "I can tell you one thing about my friend Harjinder that he is dedicated to uplift the community and youth through education and sharing experiences. I am so proud that I have the opportunity to serve alongside with him".
Speaking on this memorable and auspicious occasion, Mr. Kuldeep Singh, head of Sikh Youth Alliance of North America and former chairman of World Sikh Council AR congratulated Harjinder and remarked, "I want to say he definitely deserve it. What I have seen in him is that he kept on working, I have seen him working even though he did not have a job, but he had the job of taking care of Sikh community which he did with heart and soul. I want to share the lines of great Punjabi poet Bhai Veer Singh “ਸੀਨੇ ਖਿਚ ਜਿਨਾ ਨੇ ਖਾਦੀ, ਉਹ ਕਰ ਆਰਾਮ ਨਾ ਬਹਿੰਦੇ ! ਨੇਹੋੰ ਵਾਲੇ ਨੈਨਾ ਦੀ ਨੀਂਦਰ ਉਹ ਦਿਨੇ ਰਾਤ ਪਏ ਵਹਿੰਦੇ ! ਇੱਕੋ ਲਗਨ ਲੱਗੀ ਲਈ ਜਾਂਦੀ, ਹੈ ਤੋਰ ਅਨੰਤ ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦੀ ! ਵਸਲੋਂ ਉਰੇ ਮੁਕਾਮ ਨਾ ਕੋਈ, ਸੋ ਚਾਲ ਪਏ ਨਿਤ ਰਹਿੰਦੇ !” Although these lines are written for a water that flows by the name ਇਛਾਬਲ (Icchaabal) but are truly applicable to Harjinder because he kept on moving, kept on going without stopping, without sleeping, for the betterment of the community, educating the community to the Sikh way of life and also to educate the surrounding community, to make awareness about the Sikh community to the non-Sikhs which is needed so badly. All these incidents, 911 or the Wisconsin tragedy, give us only one message - create awareness and educate your surroundings. And that is the way Harjinder has done and so he very well deserve it and I am glad that Canadian government thought about it and gave him the honour that he rightfully deserves".
After humbly receiving this impressive national honour, Harjinder gave the statement,
"I'm absolutely delighted to receive this honor, and most genuinely grateful in all seriousness. It validates the importance of service and giving back to one's community. Although I'm accepting this award, I can't deserve this alone. I'm only one person. I'm mindful that it's really a tribute to the all of my fellows, my family, friends and all the community members who worked together with me and engaged the making a difference to improve the lives of everyone around us, our family, our neighbors and our communities to make our country a best place for all to live in peace, love, understanding and harmony. Again, I'm thankful to all of the people who support me wholeheartedly to make good things happen. I think this will encourage everyone. If we really want to make this world a better place to live in we really need to become active and become inspirations and role models and do what you want others to do. I want to invest my time and dedicate my life to uplift and develop the coming young generation to become inspirational activists. I hope that each of us will continue to contribute to our communities and it should not require us to expect any recognition or authority for doing service. We need courage in our character for sticking our neck out for the greater good that can be described as "grace under pressure" and sticking your neck out for the greater good. For this, we need to work hard and, at times, we will have pay a price, because we know in our heart of hearts it's the right thing to do. When we see a decline in the divine values in human characters in the society, the tragedy like Wisconsin happens. When we hear the news that someone robbed a bank, someone killed innocents, I believe those who do such things, missed good association to instill divine human values somehow in their lives during their childhood and as result went astray to hurt others instead of serving. I want to invest my time and dedicate my life to develop, uplift and empower the coming young generation to become inspirational activists. To be a public servant or a volunteer is to become a part of something greater than self. It may not make you wealthy, but it will enrich your life and the lives of those you serve. It will fulfill you and challenge you and as result, it will make our small corner of the world a better and safer place. I encourage everyone especially youth to serve the humanity and leave a lasting inheritance to those who follow you -A legacy that is worthy of upcoming generations."
More than 150 well-known prominent members of Sikh community and broader community joined this special community ceremony of Diamond Jubilee Medal Presentation. After the award presentation and keynote speeches, all guests took pictures with the star of the night and enjoyed the evening with a fancy Italian dinner.
About Harjinder Singh Kandola (Community Related Bio):
- Harjinder Singh Kandola was born in 1968, in New Delhi, India. He was raised in Chandigarh, India. After finishing high school and pre-university education in Chandigarh, he earned B.S. degree in engineering in 1992 at Guru Nanak Dev University in India. He worked as a teacher and as an engineer in India.
- Harjinder immigrated to Canada in 1994 and decided to move to Windsor to pursue higher education and did Masters of Science (MS) in Engineering at Wayne State University in Michigan. He has worked as a product design engineer in automotive and aerospace industry and currently work for MEDA Engineering on a special assignment at Chrysler Automotive Research and Development Centre.
- Harjinder is living is Windsor presently along with his wife (Kamaljit Kaur), kids (Japman Kaur and Triman Singh) and parents (Gurmeet Kaur and Mohinder Singh Kandola).
- Harjinder is extremely active in the community and he volunteers his time for the service of community on a regular basis. He has been a member of the Sikh Cultural Society of Metropolitan Windsor for many years and served on its executive committee on various roles including Education and Planning Coordinator, the Secretary and currently the President.
- Harjinder showed continuous commitment to basic Sikh tenets of charhdikala (high spirit), seva (selfless service) and sarbat daa bhalla (well being of all) in letter and spirit. He supports various charities by taking lead part in many drives to raise funds, food and clothes to help and positively impact the communities in need.
- Harjinder's passion in community activism is community development projects focused on education. He educates youth and Sikh community on Sikh values, heritage, scripture and history though various forums including regular religious classes, interactive digital media tools, summer and winter youth camps, seminars, interfaith conferences, interactive workshops, symposia and retreats at local, national and international level.
- Harjinder also leads youth and Sikh community to integrate with broader community to make a valuable contribution to Canadian values for bringing harmony and multi-cultureism in order to make Canada a best place to live in the world.
About Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
This year marks the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II accession to the throne as Queen of Canada. A new commemorative medal was created to mark this impressive milestone. The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal is a tangible way for Canada to honour Her Majesty for her service to this country. At the same time, it serves to honour exceptional contributions and achievements by Canadians that bring credit to Canada
News Story published in Windsor Star Newspaper
http://www.windsorstar.com/life/Jubilee+winners+humbled+honour/7148786/story.html