District of Mission City Councillor Ken Herar, who is currently serving as the acting Mayor for the District during the month of March, dedicating his short stint to a pioneering Indo-Canadian businessman-politician Naranjan Grewall.  “My father knew all the legendary people of our area during a magical time such as Herman Braich and Naranjan Grewall. Grewall, who was the first South Asian to be elected to public office within Canada as a Mission City Councillor in 1950. He was later appointed as the Mayor of Mission City in 1954 by his council peers. He was one of the very first minorities to be nominated as a candidate in 1956 when he ran in the provincial election in the Dewdney riding,” said acting Mayor Herar.

By DESIBUZZCanada Staff

MISSION – Proud Mission boy has finally made it to the Mayor’s Chair!

District of Mission City Councillor Ken Herar, who is currently serving as the acting Mayor for the District during the month of March, dedicating his short stint to a pioneering Indo-Canadian businessman-politician Naranjan Grewall.

Herar is fulfilling his duties as the previous mayor, Pam Alexis, won her seat in the last provincial election in the fall of 2020. 

The Herar family is a well-known pioneer family who have been involved in many areas of community life in Mission and Abbotsford. His father Tok Herar was a well respected community leader who arrived in Mission in 1952.

 “My father knew all the legendary people of our area during a magical time such as Herman Braich and Naranjan Grewall. Grewall, who was the first South Asian to be elected to public office within Canada as a Mission City Councillor in 1950. He was later appointed as the Mayor of Mission City in 1954 by his council peers. He was one of the very first minorities to be nominated as a candidate in 1956 when he ran in the provincial election in the Dewdney riding,” said acting Mayor Herar.

Herar has written extensively about Grewall’s life and is a regular speaker on his community achievements. 

“Grewall was a larger than life figure in our community and will always be remembered as one of our great political pioneers. I never imagined that I would have the opportunity to serve in this very capacity alike Grewall or many of our other great leaders that have represented us in this office. One of the very first days that I occupied this office I bought Grewall’s office chair and a framed photo to honour him and other South Asian pioneers in our community,“ Herar said 

“I have enjoyed my role as a councillor and as acting mayor. I take my responsibilities very seriously to help those who require assistance. The common theme I find in my role(s) is there are many misconceptions about our duties. I very much enjoy speaking with people of all ages about what we do at city hall in building trust within the very people we serve. “

“Even though my time is brief in the mayor’s office, it has been a learning experience that will be with me in the next local election of 2022. I’m seriously considering seeking the mayor’s chair as our community is growing and needs strong leadership,” said Herar.

Herar can be reached at kherar@mission.ca