By Balwant Sanghera

Our community has lost one of its prominent members recently. Jagjit Singh Sandhu,, Richmond resident and a good friend of mine passed away peacefully , on November 26 surrounded by his loved ones. Jagjit was born on April 16, 1934. His ancestral village is Jethuwal in district Amritsar in the Punjab. He was the eldest child of his parents-Major Pritam Singh Sandhu and Tej Kaur Sandhu. After studying economics at world famous Khalsa College Amritsar, Jagjit joined the Indian Army Signal Corp. Then he served asa police officer with the Himachal Police Service in Shimla before moving to Canada in 1970. His wife Balbir and children Bhagwant Singh and Nikki Kaur Sandhu joined him in 1972. 

After initially working as a taxi driver for a short period, Sandhu took up trade and apprenticed to be a welder and pipe fitter, working in various machine shops including a stint in Fort McMurray, Alberta. He retired from Shell Refinery in Burnaby after working there for several years. Jagjit was a very dedicated family man and community activist. I have had the privilege of working with Sandhu on various community organizations and projects. He was a very self less and sincere person. Jagjit Singh Sandhu was very generous. He helped many of his relatives and friends settle here in Canada. 

Sandhu was a tireless volunteer. He volunteered at Khalsa Diwan Society, 8000 Ross Street Vancouver for several years in various capacities. Including as treasurer and volunteer principal at the Gurdwara’s Punjabi School. I had the privilege of working with him on different organizations and projects. Both of us volunteered as directors at the Richmond Multicultural Community Services (RMCS) for several years. He was always willing to go the extra mile in helping not only RMCS but also many other organizations. Our time spent to-gether with the Yoga and Chai Chaupal Program jointly sponsored by RMCS ad India Cultural Centre of Canada Gurdwara Nanak Niwas   ,#5 Road Richmond was wonderful. All of us at these community settings looked forward to meeting and hearing from Jagjit. His loyalty to his family, relatives, friends and the community was exemplary. Be it as a seniors’ peer counsellor, member of the Federal Seniors’ Advisory Panel or as a fundraiser for the Cancer Society, Sandhu was always there leading the charge . He will be sorely missed not only by his family and relatives but also by his friends and the community. May his soul rest in peace!

Funeral Services for Jagjit Singh Sandhu will take place at Five Rivers Funeral Home, Hopkott Road in Delta on Sunday December 8 at 2PM followed by Sehaj PaathBhog and Antim Ardas at Gurdwara Nanak Niwas, 8600 # 5 Road, Richmond at 3:30 PM. 

 Balwant Sanghera is a retired School Psychologist and Community Activist.