Vancouver and Lower Mainland Multicultural Family Services Society (VLMFSS)  founding executive director Shashi Assanand, who  retired a few years ago after 26 years at the helm of the immigrant services organization, is among a group that includes revered politician Carole Taylor, businessman and philanthropist Ryan Beedie and music superstar Michael Bublé.

By R. Paul Dhillon – DESIBUZZCanada Editor-Founder

VICTORIA – A tireless fighter for immigrant women’s rights and domestic violence is among 13 exceptional people who will be appointed to the Order of British Columbia, the Province's highest form of recognition, Lt. Gov. Janet Austin, chancellor of the order, announced Monday.

"As the representative of the Crown in British Columbia and chancellor of the Order of British Columbia, I am delighted to welcome 13 new members to the order," Austin said. "They have helped us to grow as a province, taught us to care for our environment, enriched our lives with literature and art, helped us to address past injustices and inspired us to become a more caring and inclusive society. To recognize these remarkable people, who are changing our communities for the better in many ways, is an honour of great personal significance to me."

Vancouver and Lower Mainland Multicultural Family Services Society (VLMFSS)  founding executive director Shashi Assanand, who  retired a few years ago after 26 years at the helm of the immigrant services organization, is among a group that includes revered politician Carole Taylor, businessman and philanthropist Ryan Beedie and music superstar Michael Bublé.

This year, 160 British Columbians were nominated. The deadline for nominations was March 6, 2020. Since its inception, 460 British Columbians have been appointed to the Order of B.C. Members have been appointed from all regions of the province and in numbers generally proportionate to a region's population.

"As we celebrate B.C. Day, I want to recognize the efforts, achievements and accomplishments of this year's Order of British Columbia recipients," said Premier John Horgan. "Congratulations on receiving this well-deserved honour. Your many contributions have enriched the lives of British Columbians and helped make our province an even better place."

This year's recipients are:

* Shashi Assanand of Richmond

* Ryan Beedie of West Vancouver

* Michael Bublé of Burnaby

* Shirley Chan of Vancouver

* Neil Cook, MGC, of Cranbrook

* Paul George of Gibsons

* Rusty Goepel of Vancouver

* John Malcolm Horton of Delta

* Mel Krajden, PhD, of Vancouver

* Janet Nadine Mort, PhD, of Brentwood Bay

* Tracy Porteous of Vancouver

* Carole Taylor, OC, of Vancouver

* Ruth Williams of Kamloops

Over the years, the B.C. government has worked to increase awareness of the Province's highest honour to ensure that outstanding people from all walks of life and from all parts of the province have an opportunity to be honoured. The Province has received more than 5,900 public nominations for the Order of B.C. over the past 31 years.

Recipients of the Order of B.C. are selected by an independent advisory council. 

ABOUT ASSANAND

Assanand left Uganda as a refugee in 1972 when military dictator Idi Amin ordered all individuals of South Asian descent to leave the country. She experienced first-hand the unique challenges refugee, immigrant women and their families face in their new communities as she built a new life first in the UK and then in Canada. Ms. Assanand made it her career’s work to support and empower immigrant families and facilitate cultural awareness and competency amongst professionals to better serve and/or work with immigrant and refugee families.

Assanand founded the VLMFSS in 1991 to provide counselling and support to immigrant and refugee women and children experiencing family violence, and to advocate to address some of the factors that put immigrant and refugee families at greater risk of violence. The organization revolutionized the delivery of family support services in the province.

The VLMFSS embodies  Assanand’s vision of a truly multicultural Canada where women of all ethnic backgrounds use the same services side by side. This vision inspired her to veer away from ethno-specific versions of existing programs. Instead, she created an agency that operates as a satellite service that provides culturally and linguistically responsive support and counselling in over 24 languages enabling refugee and immigrant women as well as women without immigration status to access the services already available in their communities. As a result, they gain confidence in navigating the Canadian system and more importantly, see themselves as equal members of their communities.

“I’m very proud of the organization we have built,” Assanand said during retirement. “The VLMFSS is a source of support, empowerment and courage for so many immigrant women who come to our doors at a time of great personal crisis.”

“When the VLMFSS first opened its doors, domestic violence was a taboo topic in some immigrant communities and openly tolerated in others,” says Fiona York, VLMFSS Board Chair. “Ms. Assanand’s courageous leadership helped bring the issues into the open, educate her own Indo-Canadian community and other ethnic communities and challenge them to work together to end violence. Thanks to her, we are one step closer to ending violence against women in our increasingly multicultural city.”

Assanand’s legacy continues as VLMFSS strives to open spaces for dialogues and facilitate processes for racialized women and children to rebuild their lives from violence to non-violence.