Choreographer Wen Wei Wang, and physician Izzeldin Abuelaish are among the winners of the fifth annual 2013 RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant awards.

The awards are presented by Canadian Immigrant Magazine.

The awards celebrate the inspiring stories and achievements of immigrants to Canada.

Over 600 nominations were received in just two months, from which 75 finalists were shortlisted by a panel of judges comprised of past winners and dignitaries. More than 30,000 votes were cast online, the highest number received in the award’s history.

The Top 25 winners will be honoured at awards ceremonies on June 20 in Toronto and on June 26 in Vancouver. The program is proudly supported by title sponsor RBC Royal Bank and associate sponsor Chevrolet.

The award winners will receive a commemorative plaque and a $500 donation towards a registered Canadian charity of their choice. Winners will be featured on canadianimmigrant.ca/rbctop25 and in the July print edition of Canadian Immigrant Magazine.

This year, Associate sponsor Chevrolet will recognize one of the 25 winners with the Chevrolet Ingenuity Award for showing exceptional creativity and skill on his or her road to success. The winner, Toronto entrepreneur Sukhdev Toor, was announced at the Toronto ceremony on June 20.

The RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award winners of 2013 are (in alphabetical order):

 

Sing Lim Yeo

 

Though he worked as a banker in his native Singapore, Sing Lim Yeo had no firm career plans when he first arrived in Vancouver.

“I first began by purchasing lots, then building and flipping homes. That eventually led me to take the real estate exam and become an agent.”

Yeo went on to build an internationally recognized residential and commercial real estate firm.

“Royal Pacific Realty Group is the largest independent real estate brokerage in Western Canada. I overlook daily operations as well as the long-term strategic planning for the growth of the company.”

An impressive leader, he is also passionate coach and mentor to other realtors on his team, who affectionately call him “Uncle Sing.”

Over the past 14 years, Yeo has also devoted significant time, energy and financial support to promoting enhanced health care, social programs, multiculturalism and international disaster relief.

Perhaps most notably, Yeo established the Realtors Care Endowment Fund to provide funding for genetic and oncology research at BC Children’s Hospital. To date, more than $750,000 has been raised for this purpose. As a result of Sing’s work, the “Realtors Care” brand went national in 2006.

“Business and philanthropy go hand in hand,” says Yeo. “I live by this mission to always give back … This is my legacy as an immigrant to a country that I now call home.”

 

Wen Wei Wang

 

Wen Wei Wang left his native China in 1991 to attend a summer dance program at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C. The trip, meant to be temporary, turned into a seven-year stint with Ballet BC; despite knowing very little English at the time, the 26-year-old dancer’s talent spoke loudly enough.

“I was lucky because dance is a universal language,” Wang says, adding that the lack of opportunity to fulfill his dream in China — to start his own dance company — was a large factor in his decision to stay in Vancouver. Today, as artistic director and principal choreographer of Wen Wei Dance, his immigration journey, from his past life in China to his settlement in Canada, often inspires his work, such as his recent piece 7th Sense.

“[After immigrating] I had to act happy, but, secretly, I was in a very dark place, not understanding the people around me. So I had to learn to read people.”

To do so, Wang says he developed a sort of “seventh sense,” which he describes as “what we mean when we say we have a gut feeling. You can’t explain it, but you know anyway.”

“I am an example of someone who has immigrated to a new country, who has been able to continue his chosen career as a professional dance artist in the mainstream of Canadian culture,” he says.

 

Anar Popatia

 

Anar Popatia came to Canada as an international student seeking what so many other newcomers desire: a better education and a better life.

Her intention, however, was to obtain her bachelor’s degree in business and economics and return to her home in Kenya — but fate had a different plan in store.

“I met and married my husband, and we made our way [from Ontario] to Vancouver. Twenty-seven years later, here we are still,” says Popatia who translated her education into a successful career with Dun & Bradstreet and now as a partner in a family wealth management practice under Assante Wealth Management.

Popatia describes her settlement journey as “an extremely amazing experience.” 

“I focused on the many gifts I received as a newcomer: so much kindness and generosity from my peers and professors, and a host family that took me in as their own,” she says. “These things were precious to me; they made me feel like I belonged.”

Popatia also credits her commitment to community engagement — a quality instilled in her by her parents from a young age — with smoothing the immigration process. As the first ethno-cultural female president of the Canadian Club of Vancouver, which fosters Canadian identity and diversity, she encourages other newcomers to start creating their lives in Canada as actively engaged citizens.

 

Luisa Marshall

 

As a little girl growing up in Manila, Luisa Marshall dreamed of becoming a star. From singing to acting, Marshall was at her best — and able to share a special connection with the audience — every time she took the stage.

After performing in several musicals in the Philippines, Marshall formed a band with her sisters and started touring the world. During a show in Dubai, a fan asked her to don a Tina Turner-style wig for her rendition of “Proud Mary.” Marshall obliged, and her new career as an award-winning Tina Turner tribute artist was born.

Another life-altering change took place when Marshall moved to Canada on a temporary work visa to continue doing what she loved most: entertaining. Since then she’s reached many milestones, playing her idol in the hit musical Tina: A Rock ’n Roll Journey, appearing on the Oprah Winfrey Show and hosting her own TV program, called Simply the Best after one of Turner’s famous tunes.

The show, which airs on the Shaw Multicultural Channel in Vancouver, aims to inspire, educate and entertain Filipino and mainstream viewers alike.

She says, “We’re all living here in our beautiful adopted country where we can embrace diversity and multiculturalism without prejudice … and where we can excel and make our dreams come true. The opportunities are overflowing, the possibilities are endless for a better future.”

 

Izzeldin Abuelaish (Toronto / Palestine) is a physician, professor and author of the book I Shall Not Hate. He established the Daughters for Life Foundation, in memory of his daughters killed in war.

 

Zahra Al-Harazi (Calgary / Yemen) is CEO and creative director of Foundry Communications. She has been recognized with many awards including being named one of the most powerful women in Canada.

 

Sara Eftekhar (Vancouver / Iran) is the B.C Youth Ambassador for the Canadian Council for Refugees (CCR), and is an avid activist and volunteer, all while being a nursing student at UBC.

 

Luis Guillermo Guerra (Vancouver / Mexico) has helped more than 10,000 newcomers in the last five years transition into careers in Canada through the Skills Connect Program for Immigrants.

Steve Gupta (Toronto / India) is president and CEO of Easton’s Group of Companies, which has a hotel portfolio that spans across Ontario and Quebec.

 

Rany Ibrahim (Halifax, Nova Scotia / Egypt) is the marketing manager with the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration, promoting immigration to the Atlantic province.

 

Jawahar (Jay) Kalra (Saskatoon / India) is a clinical researcher, educator, and health care provider. He is involved in Saskatoon Folkfest and the Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan.

 

Sharifa Khan (Toronto / Hong Kong) is a pioneer in the field of multicultural marketing. She established and is currently president and CEO of Balmoral Marketing.

 

Leticia La Rosa (Charlottetown / Philippines) is one of the founding members of the National Organization of Immigrants and Visible Minority Women’s Organization of Canada.

  

Steve Nash (Vancouver / South Africa) is two-time NBA MVP, entrepreneur of fitness clubs and philanthropist behind the Steve Nash Foundation.

 

Aleksandra Nasteska (Montreal / Macedonia) co-founded the We Canada campaign for Canadian leadership at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20).

 

Indira Samarasekera (Edmonton / Sri Lanka) is the 12th president and vice-chancellor of the University of Alberta, and is recognized as one of Canada’s leading metallurgical engineers for her groundbreaking work on process engineering of materials.

 

Ginni Sethi (Toronto / India) is president of the Grand Victorian Convention Centre and Radisson Plaza Mississauga, and chairperson of Black Diamond Entertainments. She has supported numerous charities through the Sethi Foundation.

 

Mamdouh Shoukri (Toronto / Egypt) is president and vice-chancellor of York University. In addition, he is a member of the board of directors of the Ontario Centres of Excellence, Cancer Care Ontario and the Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation.

 

Aminata Sillah (Winnipeg / Sierra Leone) ran a sewing factory in Africa. After fleeing to Canada, she began sewing clothes and volunteering with inner-city women in Winnipeg, teaching them how to sew through the Multicultural Sewing Program.

 

Sukhjit Singh (Mississauga / India) arrived only three years ago but has achieved career success working in a constituency office.

 

Narine Dat Sookram (Kitchener / Guyana) is the founder and president of Active Vision Charity Association, which provides books and school supplies to Guyanese youth.

 

Srinivasan Suppiramaniam (Markham / Sri Lanka) is CEO of Ceylon Broadcasting Inc. and has guided programming that promotes Southeast Asian art and culture.

 

Sukhdev Toor (Mississauga / India) is president and CEO of Manga Hotels. He has supported many sports teams, donated to many causes and contributed thousands to hospitals. He also developed Toronto’s first LEED Certified hotel.

 

Michael Tulloch (Richmond Hill / Jamaica)  was the first black judge appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2012, just 15 years after being called to the bar. He has also mentored students across Ontario, including at underprivileged schools in Toronto.