Sanghera has dedicated a vast majority of his life to community service.
There’s something to be said about a man who has dedicated a vast majority of his life to community service. What makes this even more remarkable is that he did so as an ethnic minority in a country which was initially foreign to him. This man is the honourable Balwant Sanghera – a retired School Psychologist, community activist, and President of Punjabi Language Education Association (PLEA).
Not only is he a highly decorated man in the form of numerous impressive awards and titles, Sanghera is also a humble individual who applies a simple and positive life philosophy. He holds the belief that intercommunity harmony can be achieved if we all just share a mutual respect for one another.
Sanghera’s journey began much like many others in his generation who immigrated here from India. He moved to Canada in 1966 at the age of 25. Roughly a year after that, he moved to Nelson, BC, where he obtained his teacher training certificate and began teaching at Hudson’s Hope, BC. It wasn’t long before his spectacular work ethic was recognized; within his first year of teaching, he was elected president of the teacher’s association.
The next phase of his life involved 17 years of teaching in Lillooet, BC. Here too, he was quite active in his local community - he served six terms as city councillor. When questioned if he ever experienced any prejudice or racism during his teaching career back then, he answers, “No. I was very fortunate in the sense that I was always well-respected. The main theme of my life is to focus on mutual respect amongst all cultures.”
After a teaching career, Sanghera received his Master of Education from UBC and in 1990 became a school psychologist with the Burnaby School District. Hard work, dedication, and perseverance served to be the key tenets with which he has been able to achieve such a successful and rewarding career. An average day in Sanghera’s life involves an immense amount of multi-tasking. He plays an active role in the Indo-Canadian community by serving on the boards of numerous organizations. He is part of the Richmond Multi-Cultural Community Services Organization, and the Gurdwara Nanak Niwas Indian Cultural Centre of Canada. He is a former member of the board of directors of the Sikh Alliance Against Youth Violence and a former member of City of Richmond Intercultural Advisory Committee. He served as vice-chairman of the board of Langara College, as a Senator at Simon Fraser University from 1994-2001, and as chairperson of the BC Teachers’ Federation Committee of Ombudspersons.
The Richmond-based community activist has played an active role in the fight against youth and gang violence in the South Asian community. He currently serves on the South Asian Community Coalition Against Youth Violence.
It was Sanghera’s desire to “promote his mother tongue – Punjabi” that led him to focus on the importance of keeping the language alive and prominent in BC. It gave birth to PLEA – an organization that aims to promote the use of Punjabi language. Sanghera shares that his interest in social work relevant to his community first began when he lived away from his family in Hudson’s Hope. “I was the only Indo-Canadian teacher in Hudson’s Hope. The two things I missed the most during my time there was my language Punjabi and roti,” he explains.
Sanghera’s work has got him great recognition and awards. In recognition of his efforts, he was appointed to the Order of British Columbia in 2004. He was awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002, Solicitor General Community Safety and Crime Prevention Lifetime Contribution Award in 2011, and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. Sanghera, who was named one of the 100 most influential Indo-Canadians by the Vancouver Sun, believes the awards to be “a bonus,” further elaborating that, “the true reward is to see the difference I have made in my community.”
