SITE STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Creating a Human Rights Park has been Fred Soofi's life-long dream. He started forming the idea into a concept over a decade ago. In 2017, Fred gathered a group of volunteers to help him in this endeavour.
Fred Soofi first landed in Saskatchewan in 1974 at the age of 22. He started working in restaurants to pay for his university education. But the restaurant business took hold, and, by 1981, he became chef of Lucci’s restaurant in Saskatoon and then reinvented Regina’s only French restaurant, Le Papillon.
He set out to own his own business, however, and eventually had a small empire of Italian restaurants called Alfredo’s. Soofi paid his good fortune forward by giving back to his community, volunteering with Amnesty International, food banks and refugee coalitions. In 1998, Soofi donated a five-storey office complex to South Saskatchewan Independent Living Centre.
His success and good works continued after he moved to British Columbia in 2001, with his wife, Mary, and daughter, Shireen. His two restaurants, Pasta Polo and Club Ilia at Simon Fraser’s UniverCity, are known for fresh, locally sourced organic meals. He also quickly became an important community leader in the Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Moody and Port Coquitlam).
He has served as director of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, and has volunteered with many local non-profits. Soofi even made a run for Coquitlam City Council, with items like affordable housing and heritage preservation key to his platform.
Although he lost the election in a tight race, he continues to advocate on important civic issues. “In B.C., affordable housing is becoming a huge challenge especially for seniors,” he says. “I have an agreement for purchasing land and building a 55-unit affordable apartment for seniors in need.” At 66 years old, some might wonder why Soofi doesn’t focus more on planning a restful retirement rather than taking on such a big new project. “The average life for a man in Canada is 80 years, so I probably have 14 years in this world (maybe shorter or maybe longer). I ask myself every day, when I die, how will the community and people who work for me remember me? A businessman who died a millionaire? Or a businessman who contributed and helped his community?”
Fred Soofi first landed in Saskatchewan in 1974 at the age of 22. He started working in restaurants to pay for his university education. But the restaurant business took hold, and, by 1981, he became chef of Lucci’s restaurant in Saskatoon and then reinvented Regina’s only French restaurant, Le Papillon.
He set out to own his own business, however, and eventually had a small empire of Italian restaurants called Alfredo’s. Soofi paid his good fortune forward by giving back to his community, volunteering with Amnesty International, food banks and refugee coalitions. In 1998, Soofi donated a five-storey office complex to South Saskatchewan Independent Living Centre.
His success and good works continued after he moved to British Columbia in 2001, with his wife, Mary, and daughter, Shireen. His two restaurants, Pasta Polo and Club Ilia at Simon Fraser’s UniverCity, are known for fresh, locally sourced organic meals. He also quickly became an important community leader in the Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Moody and Port Coquitlam).
He has served as director of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, and has volunteered with many local non-profits. Soofi even made a run for Coquitlam City Council, with items like affordable housing and heritage preservation key to his platform.
Although he lost the election in a tight race, he continues to advocate on important civic issues. “In B.C., affordable housing is becoming a huge challenge especially for seniors,” he says. “I have an agreement for purchasing land and building a 55-unit affordable apartment for seniors in need.” At 66 years old, some might wonder why Soofi doesn’t focus more on planning a restful retirement rather than taking on such a big new project. “The average life for a man in Canada is 80 years, so I probably have 14 years in this world (maybe shorter or maybe longer). I ask myself every day, when I die, how will the community and people who work for me remember me? A businessman who died a millionaire? Or a businessman who contributed and helped his community?”
Soudeh Jamshidian (B.Sc., M.Sc. in Natural Resources Engineering) is a social entrepreneur and environment expert, currently doing her PhD at the School of Resource and Environmental Management at Simon Fraser University. Soudeh’s professional life started at the age of 19 when she founded an environmental NGO called Daumoon in Iran, which continues to operate today. She has extensive experience working on co-management and community development, as well as policy making and awareness-raising programs for environmental management. She has worked as a project manager, designer and consultant for the United Nations Development Program’s Global Environment Facilities. She has also worked as a project manager and facilitator for various international projects, where her work has taken her to Iran, India, Afghanistan, Mali and Canada to collaborate on issues related to resource management.
Soudeh's passion for development work was sparked by her experience as the Environmental Education and Outreach Expert for the UN Environment Program in Afghanistan in 2009-2010. She is a co-founder of Peace Geeks Society and Peace Geeks International, a Vancouver-based NGO founded in 2011 that uses technology to support NGOs in post-conflict and developing countries who work on human rights, peace and accountability. She is the program designer and a moderator for Vancouver PeaceTalks. |
Melissa Chaun is an ecologist with a passion for all things sustainable. Her environmental consulting experience includes park master plans, natural resources planning and habitat restoration work.
Melissa obtained a certificate in Sustainable Community Development from Simon Fraser University to complement her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from McGill University and a Master of Arts in Marine Science from the College of William and Mary in Virginia. Melissa writes a ‘Living Green’ column for her community newspaper, where she has learned that true sustainability is based upon respect for human rights and all living things. She feels privileged to build relationships with indigenous communities and individuals in her non-profit work and volunteer capacities. She is an avid supporter of Raven Trust, (Respecting Aboriginal Values and Environmental Needs), an Indigenous Peoples legal defence fund, working to protect their Constitutional Rights. |
Gaëtan Royer graduated from l'école d’architecture at Université Laval and earned a Masters in Urban Planning from Queen's University. He served as peacekeeper with the United Nations.
Gaëtan was awarded a Governor General's Medal for his humanitarian work in Sarajevo, where he helped provide services to afflicted and displaced civilians; he contributed to international efforts to restore critical urban infrastructure and utilities during the war in Bosnia. Gaëtan started a second career in municipal management in 1995 as Parks Planner for the City of Surrey. During his term as City Manager in Port Moody, BC, the City received numerous awards including the International Liveable Communities Award. Gaëtan also served as Head of Planning & Regional Parks for Metro Vancouver. His firm, CityState, now undertakes a variety of urban planning and development projects. See CityState.ca |
Hazel Postma is Canadian by choice and appreciates the freedom she has to work, live, express herself and raise a family that can enjoy freedom of choice in all aspects of their lives. Since coming to Canada, she has worked as a journalist and editor for newspapers and magazines, and in health care and education.
She has reported from Zimbabwe, Hong Kong and Uganda, and believes that understanding and appreciating differences while making opportunity available for all, is the way to build peace and prosperity. Hazel earned a Masters in Graduated Liberal Studies from Simon Fraser University in 2005 and received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal for community service in 2013. She sits on the boards of several not-for-profit organisations and has been an activist for Amnesty International since 1985. |
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