On Saturday January 19, 2008 members of the Devi Mandir staged an Open House event at their Pickering temple to say thanks to the Ontario Trillium Foundation for a $72,700 grant received to undertake capital upgrades to its stage and auditorium facilities. The main purpose of the project was to undertake initiatives designed to enhance and advance South Asian and other communities’ culture.

Pramila Ramdahani, member of OTF’s Durham, Haliburton, Pine Ridge & Kawartha local Grant Review Team acknowledged the funding was for renovation to the Mandir’s auditorium and stage area to create a collaborative space where the richness of the city’s diverse cultures can be celebrated.

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“Through our investment in communities we have become one of Canada’s leading granting foundations and we are incredibly proud of that.
Vishnu Sookar, chairman of the board of directors termed the night a special one not only for the Devi Mandir and all the communities of the Durham region. He called it a long awaited opportunity to show off the facility which would not have been possible so early in the organization’s growth without the support of the Trillium Foundation. "We are more than a place of worship. This facility improvement is a goal for which we have worked, planned and sacrificed.

"It is an honour to share our facility with other cultural groups in the Durham region and we welcome them as part of the Devi Mandir family."

Shawn Binda, a youth director of the organization said it was a landmark event. He attested to the fact the Mandir is more than a place of worship. “With so many influences in today’s society it is a challenge to keep youth grounded. Scanning the news headlines on a daily basis you’ll see the problems facing today’s youth. There’s an increase in crime. There’s violence and generally there is a decrease in moral values,” he observed.

Admitting there isn’t a simple answer to this complex problem, Binda believed that establishing a caring and nurturing community is one step in the right direction.”
Binda reported that through Trillium’s generosity, the youth of the Mandir have benefitted and will continue to benefit from the investment in the auditorium. “It has given us hope for the future,” he stressed.

The auditorium is home to dance classes where youths of all ages are taught traditional Indian and modern dance forms and for youths it serves as a meeting place for friends to catch up on the week’s events. It serves as a hub where family and friends get together to celebrate various festivals. And right after Sunday service it provides members a chance to share a meal. Binda noted that through these simple acts youth are brought together. "By bringing the youths inside the walls of the Mandir we are ensuring that we are giving them the necessary foundations to build a better life."

Bas Balkisson MPP hoped the Trillium Foundation’s grant to the Mandir is not the last because of its policy of not funding religious organizations. He informed the gathering that the Ontario Government faced the same challenge when it was dealing with problems and youths in the Greater Toronto Area. However it was realized that the only place it could really address the issue and its root cause as well as find solutions was through religious organizations in the 13 affected neighbourhoods.

“We invested some money in those communities and I got to tell you it’s already paying gains. So I hope that governments in Canada as a whole are realizing that some of the multicultural communities that are coming here, our culture, our religion and our communities are so tied in together that you cannot differentiate the three and you cannot separate it,” Balkissoon added.
Armanath Binda, president of the Mandir who has been with the organization from its inception 20 years ago recalled the little house in the valley where it started. However he noted that through sincerity and honesty prosperity came.

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