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Medal of Good Citizenship for Surrey woman who helps inner-city students

Shawna Narayan among 19 B.C. residents to receive medal
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Shawna Narayan. (File photo)

Surrey’s Shawna Narayan is among 19 British Columbians to receive the province’s Medal of Good Citizenship.

Launched in 2015, the award recognizes individuals who, “through exceptional long-term service, have made outstanding contributions to their communities without expectation of remuneration or reward. The medal reflects their generosity, service, acts of selflessness and contributions to community life.”

The list of 2018 medal winners, selected from more than 100 nominations, was made public Tuesday.

Narayan created Empower The Future (empowerthefuture.info), a non-profit organization that connects inner-city students with post-secondary students to encourage personal and academic growth.

“As a young woman from a diverse city, (Narayan) showcases what the next generation is capable of by helping inner-city students with similar difficulties that she overcame,” says a bio posted to the provincial government’s website, among other award winners.

• RELATED STORY: UBC student’s work helps empower inner-city students in Surrey, from April 2018.

Premier John Horgan offered his congratulations to the medal-winning “community leaders,” whose work “helps strengthen our society.

“The Medal of Good Citizenship awards recognize these individuals and their remarkable contributions to our communities and our province as a whole.”

In addition to Narayan, the recipients announced Tuesday are:

Selen Alpay of Prince George

Alberta (Wadzeed) Billy of Quathiaski Cove

Joan (Bays) Blackhall (posthumous) of Langley

Suzanne Bolton of Vancouver

Edward Dickins of Kelowna

Stephanie Fischer of Nelson

Fran Fowler of Queen Charlotte

Joyce H. Fraser of Princeton

Ronald Allen Greene of Oak Bay

Michael O. Langridge of Saanich

Beth Laur of Langford

Brandon Laur of Langford

Darren Laur of Langford

Peggy Lee of Vancouver

Stan McCarthy of 150 Mile House

Lois Nahirney of North Vancouver

Sylvie (Silvakantie) Pather of North Vancouver

Kris Patterson of Port Alberni



Tom Zillich

About the Author: Tom Zillich

I cover entertainment, sports and news stories for the Surrey Now-Leader, where I've worked for more than half of my 30-plus years in the newspaper business.
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