Aaria Rahim, Inspired by the Aga Khan, wins MAJOR scholarship

It’s with a mixture of excitement and sadness that Port Moody secondary school student Aaria Rahim will accept a scholarship worth $60,000 from TD Canada Trust. She’s excited because she never dreamed she’d win such a prestigious award and sad because it means she’ll soon be leaving her close-knit family — mom, Shahinoor, dad, Hanif and brother Aarman — to go to school at the University of Toronto.

“It’s a little bit heart-breaking, my parents are my biggest fans and they always support me in what ever I do,” commented Rahim on her impending departure for university.

But right now Rahim just can’t believe her luck.

The 17-year-old International Baccalaureate student at PMSS was one of 20 Canadian students selected from 3,800 applicants for the TD Canada Trust 2007 Community Leadership scholarship.

She was selected by a panel of prominent Canadian senators, business professionals and past award recipients for the 2007 award, which includes $5,000 a year towards living expenses and an offer of summer employment at TD Canada for up to four years.

The award acknowledges students’ academic achievement as well as their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to their community. Rahim, who started the school’s global issues club called Teens Transforming Community (T3C), was encouraged to apply by her school vice-principal Nicoletta Ricci.

“She always finds it funny to nominate me for random awards and then she tells me there’s an awards ceremony the next day – I say, ‘oh really, OK,” said Rahim.

“I couldn’t believe it,” she said about the award. “I knew the chances were very slim.”

Rahim believes it’s her record of volunteer work with Amnesty International and fundraising campaigns for various causes, such as the Buswema AIDs Orphanage in Mbeya, Tanzania that earned her the award. Rahim also plays the alto saxophone and composes music. She has released “Mystic Melodies” and Escape,” two CDs of piano compositions she wrote.

Last week Rahim couldn’t go to the awards ceremony, which was held in Ottawa, because she had to write a dozen IB exams.

But she remembers what it was like the day she was interviewed for the award in TD Trust’s Vancouver offices. She was understandably nervous. “That was one of the things that was scaring me the most.” But the judges quickly put her at ease and she began to joke with them.

“Confidence really does go a long way,” Rahim said.

Next year she’ll take courses toward a Bachelor’s degree in ethics, society and law. Eventually, Rahim hopes to go into law and work in the international development field. All her life, Rahim has been putting her efforts towards big causes in the hopes of making a difference. She has been inspired in many ways by the Aga Khan, who is the spiritual and general leader of the Ismaili community. She attends the Tri-Cities Ismaili Jamatkhana, where she was a one-on-one caregiver for a visually-impaired child for five years. There she saw other youth involved in charitable projects and so she joined them.

Her mother, Shahinoor, would ask her “do you have that warm and fuzzy feeling?”

Rahim would always reply that yes she did. In fact, it’s never been a secret as to why she’s always been so involved in volunteer and community work.

It certainly isn’t to win awards, Rahim said. It’s “just because it felt so good.”

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