Desi Today Magazine
The Surrey Board of Trade recently organized the 7th annual Surrey’s Top 25 Under 25 Awards. They were given to Surrey’s youth who are 25 years old or younger for their incredible initiatives. The 25 winners were chosen based upon their business or community achievements, leadership ability, community involvement, professional achievements and uniqueness of their business or community projects. Desi Today congratulates all the winners. We are featuring a few of them. Read in their own words what inspired them to achieve their goals.
Nadia Gill : 23 years
Co-founder Knowledge Builders
I recently graduated with my Bachelor’s of Science from the University of British Columbia. Upon graduating I quickly realized that I enjoy passion for mentorship, education, and helping others. After having tutored previously for many years I noticed the large number of youth who were seeking advice, guidance, and help with their academic and post-secondary life. Our inspiration stemmed from the fact that very few students are able to receive the help and attention they may need. With that in mind, my partner, Sukhman and I, began planning our new venture of opening a unique tutoring company called Knowledge Builders.
We provide one-on-one in home tutoring to students in Kindergarten to grade 12 to ensure each student achieves maximal growth. Knowledge Builders seeks to provide students with a network of tutors aka “Knowledge Builders.” These tutors will foster our values through academic coaching and mentoring. The value of mentorship is commonly overlooked when tutoring is involved and we want all our students to be paired up with tutors who are well-rounded, motivated, and can provide guidance about both academic and non-academic endeavours.
In the next ten years, I hope to be a physician with my own clinic that seeks to provide patients with holistic care.
Joban Bal : 18 years
President & founder: One Blood For Life Foundation
One Blood For Life Foundation is an organization that has made leaps and strides in blood and stem cell donation across BC. I have recruited over 160 volunteers into my organization, and I have run programs and clinics, through which we have recruited over 680 blood donors and over 350 stem cell donors through our events and campaigns.
I graduated from Tamanawis Secondary school at the top of my graduating class as I was awarded the Top Academic Student Award in Math/Science. Now I am going into my second year as an undergraduate student in the faculty of science at UBC.
I was inspired to make a difference when I saw the impact that blood donations and stem cell donations made on the lives of so many, especially when receiving a donation can mean the difference between life and death. I believe in inspiring others, and initiating a ripple effect; through collective efforts we can overcome many of the largest obstacles our generation will face in the future. I am humbled to also have been awarded the National [Honouring Our Lifeblood] Service Award by Canadian Blood Services. Along with this, I am currently a researcher with BC Children’s Hospital where I am working on identifying brain networks using MRIs and EEGs, to better understand neurocognition, specifically to help children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Ten years from now, I hope to be helping improve the lives of others through medical research and philanthropic projects at a national and global scale.
By combining my passion for science, innovation, and business, I hope to bring new technologies and advancements to healthcare for Canadians, and help bring more accessible and affordable basic necessities to improve the health of those across the world.
Simren Boyal : 21 years
Director of Program Development, Enactus SFU
My parents came to Canada at a young age and struggled immensely to get where they are today and to ensure that their kids have an easy life. It is because of them I have my great work ethic and I hope to one day follow in their footsteps and build something of value here in Canada.
I graduated from Tamanawis Secondary School in 2014 and currently I am a third-year Business student at SFU Beedie School of Business.
The reason I joined Enactus was because I’ve always had an entrepreneurial mindset and believe that as a business owner you have the freedom and creative control to do whatever you want.
Enactus is a global organization that focuses on entrepreneurship and bringing young minds together to create innovative projects that help solve issues in our world. Enactus SFU
currently has 8 different projects that each tackle different problems in the lower mainland. The program that I was most closely involved with was Refresh, a program that collects and utilizes excess food products from local grocery stores and upcycles them into a variety of enjoyable culinary delights.
Ten years down the line I see myself as a successful business owner in the urban development industry. I hope to eventually start my own business post graduation and hopefully utilize the skills I’ve developed through Enactus and my other ventures. I also hope to continue my charitable work by starting an organization that focuses on youth and enables them to connect with various volunteer opportunities.
