Dr. Jaswinder S. Sidhu: Funeral service on Wed, Aug 10, 2016

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!!

Dr. Jaswinder S. Sidhu, a dedicated physician, selfless leader in the Sikh and Indian communities, and, above all, a loving husband, father, and grandfather, passed away peacefully on August 3, 2016. Dr. Sidhu was a good friend of Sikh Gurdwara DC and Sawhney family.
Dr Jaswinder Singh

Dr. Sidhu was born in Gilgit, India, on May 13, 1940, to Dr. Kartar Singh and Amar Kaur. In 1963, Dr. Sidhu obtained his medical degree from Amritsar Medical College. A scholar-athlete, Dr. Sidhu earned the 2nd highest grades in his entire state and he was captain of his medical school’s cricket team. In 1964, Dr. Sidhu married Satwinder K. Sidhu, and they had their first child, Patwinder, in Chandigarh, India.

The three moved to join Dr. Sidhu’s brother, Dr. Rajinder S. Sidhu, and his family, in Montreal. There, Dr. Sidhu completed training at McGill University. He received further training at Grasslands Hospital in New York and the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. In 1972, Dr. Sidhu and his family settled in Maryland, where Dr. Sidhu worked for over forty years as a nephrologist at local hospitals and in private practice. In 1978, Dr. Sidhu’s second son, Dawinder, was born in Cheverly, Maryland.

Dr. Sidhu helped build longstanding cultural and religious institutions in the Washington, DC area. For example, he helped found the Guru Nanak Foundation of America (GNFA) and he served as President of the Indian-American Medical Association.

Dr. Sidhu will be remembered not only for what he did: provide for his loving family, treat patients, mentor residents, and help establish community organizations. He also will be remembered for how he lived: with honesty, humility, and integrity. He will be deeply missed, but his impact and his example of a truthful life will live on.

The funeral service will take place on Wednesday, August 10, 2016, at the Donaldson Funeral Home & Crematory, P.A., 1411 Annapolis Road, Odenton, MD 21113. The service will be held from 12:00pm to 2:00pm.

The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations to the Thakur Singh Scholarship at GNFA be considered. This scholarship, named in honor of Dr. Sidhu’s grandfather, offers financial assistance to women pursuing graduate and professional education.

Langar on the Hill – 2016

SALDEF: Protecting Civil Rights since 1996
As the oldest Sikh American civil rights organization—commemorating 20 years of service—SALDEF continued creating history and sharing our Sikh values of service and equality this summer on Capitol Hill! More than 500 Congressional leaders, staff, neighbors, visitors, and community members gathered to learn about Sikh traditions, our beliefs, and our contributions to America at the third annual “Langar on the Hill.” The program was sponsored by Senator Harry Reid in conjunction with Congressman Mike Honda and organized by SALDEF’s largest SikhLEAD Internship class.
This year’s Langar once again became the largest Congressional and community gathering on Capitol Hill in Sikh American history, and reached thousands more through social and traditional media. Livestreamed on Facebook, Langar was also shared on Snapchat, Twitter and Instagram, and once again covered in NBC News, Roll Call and community media outlets including The Indian American Community News.
About SALDEF
Founded in 1996, SALDEF’s mission is to achieve equal access and opportunity for Sikh Americans by protecting civil rights, building dialogue, deepening understanding, promoting civic and political participation, and upholding social justice and religious freedom for all Americans.
Contact SALDEF
Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)
1730 M St NW, Suite 909
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-393-2700
Fax: 202-318-3344
Web: www.saldef.org
Email: info@saldef.org

12th Annual Unity Walk in Washington DC : Nominations by 30June2016

12th Annual Unity Walk in Washington DC: Nominations by 30June2016

On September 11th, 2016, the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington will lead the 12th annual Unity Walk as people of all faiths and cultures from around the Washington, DC region walk down Massachusetts Avenue and visit houses of worship and other religious centers in a public celebration of unity and support for everyone within our diverse community.

Get involved before the walk! This year, we will be holding a pre-Unity Walk art contest for children 18 years old and younger and a poetry contest for children 12 years old and older on the theme: Know Your Neighbor. Winners and their work, will be featured on our website as well as on various Unity Walk promotional materials. Questions about the contest and all submissions (due by June 30th)) should be sent to: unitywalk@ifcmw.org.

For more information about the walk or about the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington, please visit our website: www.ifcmw.org.

Today, more than ever, our message of friendship and solidarity is critical. We hope you will join us and add your voice to this powerful event.

Unity Walk 2016Save the Date Unity Walk 2016

Lost Heritage Event – June 12, 2016

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!!

Amardeep Singh’s book event, Lost Heritage — the Sikh Legacy in Pakistan is planned at UMD on June 12, Sunday at 03:00PM.

PFA the flyer and visit our website for details.

URL: https://sikhgurdwaradc.org/ 

Invite for DC Sikhri small

Sikh American Identity Awareness Event – Apr 29 2016

Saadh Sangat Ji,

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!!

There is an event to increase the awareness of the Sikh American culture and identity, cultivate cultural sensitivity and widen the discussion around Montgomery County’s diverse communities. Come and join us to build stronger relationships in our community.

Date: 29-Apr-2016
Time: 11:30 AM to 01:00 PM
Venue: Executive Office Building, Auditorium,
101 Monroe Street, Rockville, MD, 20850

Sikh event_042916 flier
Sikh Gurdwara DC URL: http://sikhgurdwaradc.org/

Volunteers needed for Vaisakhi Celebration in Indian Embassy on 23-Apr-2016

We are pleased to announce that Indian Embassy is celebrating Vaisakhi on 23-Apr-2016. So, we need 40 volunteers to attend the celebration in the form of groups having two members each. If you are interested, then please drop me an email with details of both members as a team with below mentioned information for both before 11 AM of 03-Apr-2016.

Details required:                        Name, Age, Email and Cell
Planned Celebration Date:    23-Apr-2016
Last date to volunteer:            03-Apr-2016 (latest by 02:30PM)
Volunteer by:
Email at: 
          connect@sikhgurdwaradc.org OR
Message  at:           https://sikhgurdwaradc.org/contact/
Within Sikh Gurdwara DC:    Meet Sevadar Harjeet Singh Sachdeva (Media coordinator) on 03-Apr-2016, between 12:30pm to 2:30pm for last minute entry

If anyone misses the deadline but still is interested, then please drop me an email and I will put you on waitlist and you might get a chance for the same. There is no harm in sending details to try.

Note: Group of 2 members required and 20 couples/groups would be selected directly from the Indian embassy and will receive invitation directly from them without any role of Sikh Gurdwara DC. We can only forward these details to them.

Canada’s Justin Trudeau’s cabinet: Diverse with more Sikh ministers than PM Modi

The Sikh community in Canada is really strong and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has his share of men and women from the community that he really depends on. He recently boasted that he had more Sikhs in his cabinet than even Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi does (the latter has two). Trudeau’s cabinet is certainly more diverse than it has ever been — it has an equal number of men and women (15 each, excluding the PM), and there are four Sikh and two aboriginal ministers.

These Sikh ministers in Trudeau’s cabinet have fascinating back stories. Here’s a look at the Punjab brigade in Canada’s cabinet.

Navdeep Bains: Navdeep Singh Bains, minister of innovation, science, and economic development, with his mother Ajit Bains and his niece Rumeet Bains in Ajit’s home in Brampton.

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Amarjeet Sohi: Federal infrastructure minister Amarjeet Sohi’s success is an immigrant’s dream.

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Harjit Sajjan: Canadian Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan invented a gas mask he could wear with his turban.
Among Sajjan’s many achievements is his patent on a gas mask that can be used while wearing a turban.

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Bardish Chagger: Minister of tourism and small industries Bardish Chagger’s first entry to politics was when she was 13 years old.

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References:

http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2016/03/12/justin-trudeau-modi-sikhs_n_9445312.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/11/06/canada-cabinet-facebook-post-alana-phillips_n_8494752.html

Program by Bhai Harjeet Singh Ji in Sikh Gurdwara DC – Mar 27th 2016

Please join us in attending diwan on Sunday, 3/27/2016.

We will have Bhai Harjeet Singh Ji (nephew of Prof. Darshan Singh Ji) performing at DC Gurdwara from 11:00 am to 12:00 noon.

Program Schedule

Asa di vaar                                          –       8:00 am to 10:00 am
Sukhmani Sahib                                –       10:00 am to 11:00 am
Kirtan by Bhai Harjeet Singh Ji     –       11:00 am to 12:00 noon
Kirtan by Bhai Surinder Singh ji    –       12:00 noon to 1:15 pm
Langar                                                  –       1:45 pm