Prince George, B.C. – A big honour for Baljit Sethi.

The executive director of the Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society (IMSS) in Prince George is a top 75 finalist for the 7th annual RBC Top 25 Immigrant Awards.

“I was surprised when I found out,” says Sethi. “I don’t know who nominated me, but when I got the call from Ottawa I was very happy.”

According to RBC’s website, a judging panel combed through close to 630 nominations across Canada before reaching their top 75 nominees.

“Judges rate each nominee based on a provided score based on a set of criteria including their achievements, how they have inspired others in Canada and the challenges they have overcome to do so,” reads the website.

As for Sethi’s background, she founded IMSS 40 years ago in Prince George, but is still modest about her accomplishments.

“I feel the contribution of the community is also responsible for making me what I am today.”

She also admits IMSS has done a wonderful job of welcoming people to Prince George.

“When I founded IMSS, many immigrants from India at that time needed help. People were coming to me with language issues, mill workers were calling me for HR interpretation. I was very much involved with the community.”

This isn’t the first time Sethi has been recognized for promoting racial harmony as she was awarded the Order of BC back in 2011.

She’s also won the Paul Yuzyk Award for Multicultarism which is given to individuals or organizations in Canada who have made exceptional contributions to multiculturalism and the integration of newcomers.

If you’d like to vote for Sethi you can do so by clicking here. The voting period ends May 11th.