Bradford West Gwillimbury was the first community in Canada to raise the Khalsa Day flag, said Coun. Raj Sandhu, and it was done again this past weekend for the eighth time to celebrate the Sikh holiday.
“Now you see it everywhere,” he said.
Members of the local and neighbouring Sikh communities, South Simcoe Police Service — including former chief Rick Beazley, now retired — and members of BWG council came out to raise the Khalsa banner marking the founding of the order of Khalsa and the birth of Sikhism.
“We celebrate this every year. We’ve been celebrating this day for the last eight years. We do it to show we’re so proud to be in this community,” said Sandhu at the event May 20.
The local celebration of Khalsa Day was originally planned for April 15, which was the weekend of a major ice storm that caused power outages and damage around Ontario.
The message of Sikhism is that “we are all one,” said Sandhu. The symbol on the banner represents “one creator. We are all one, and we stand with one another. That is the message we have to share.”
Inspector John Van Dyke brought greetings from South Simcoe Police.
“Our strength as a community, our strength as a province, our strength as a nation is because of our diversity,” Van Dyke said, thanking Sikhs “for what you bring to make this is a rich and vibrant community.”
“The Town of BWG has celebrated diversity for as long as I can remember,” said Mayor Keffer, noting BWG has been “a caring, understanding community because of the different nationalities that have made Bradford their home.”
