Honour for volunteerism inspires busy teen to do more diversity work

An 18-year-old student in Calgary says he feels energized to volunteer even moreafter being honoured for his good work this week.

The city handed out its annual Calgary Awards on Wednesday night to 13 recipients, including Yuvraj Singh, who won the youth award.

"It was a humbling experience and it's truly ... amazing to know there's somebody watching, somebody recognizing your contributions, and it kind of inspired me to do more," Singh told the Calgary Eyeopeneron Thursday.

As a student at Sir Winston Churchill High School,he started the first high school Sikh Students Association in Alberta and started Langar Week, a Sikh tradition of serving free food, all with the goal of bridging cultures and fostering understanding.

The experience taught him "diversity and acceptance are things that don't come easy."Forming the club, he said, helped bring the students of the diverse school together to learn about each other.

'Togetherness and community'

His passion for volunteering started through his Sikh faith when, asa young child, he attended many langars.

"Seeing so many people rushing in the doors and feeding them regardless of who they were togetherness and community at a young age really prompted me to continue those notions in my life," he said.

Now an undergraduate university student, his eye is set on medical school. He also continues to run langars, volunteer at the Drop-In Centre and fundraisefor the Heart and Stroke Foundation and Canadian Diabetes Foundation.

Parents 'sculpted my path'

His ability to speak four languagesEnglish, Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu helps him connect with youth of many backgrounds, like during his interfaith tours with Christians and Muslims.

Singh said he received a "beautifully sculpted trophy of city hall," that, "as Mayor Nenshi said last night, it is very heavy."

His parents watched proudly from the crowd.

"I think they kind of sculpted my path to this award, and all credit goes to them," Singh said. "You could really see that in their eyes yesterday at the award ceremony."

Read more articlesfrom CBC Calgaryand like us onFacebookfor the latest updates.

• MORE ALBERTA NEWS |Humboldt Broncos player hurt in bus crash joins Red Deer team as assistant coach
• MORE ALBERTA NEWS |Family seeks missing green parakeet named Frootloop, greatly missed by best bud Bob
• MORE ALBERTA NEWS |Fort Calgary garden plowed over to make way for historic site redesign

With files fromLisa Robinson and theCalgary Eyeopener.