Sombrillo – Every week during the school year the Food 4 Kids program delivers 286 bags of food to three schools in the Valley for children to take home during the weekend. 
Guru Simran Kaur Khalsa, the program’s creator and primary organizer explained that it originally began as an effort to help some of the children who attend Sombrillo Elementary. Teachers and school staff knew some children did not have regular meals at home so Guru Simaran stepped up and volunteered to bring food for these children to take home as needed.

In cooperation with the school staff and the Santa Fe Food Pantry, the program became a structured system for supplying each identified child with a bag of easy to open and use foods that they can take home Friday so they will have food during the weekend.

VANCOUVER, CANADA - The World Sikh Organization of Canada has successfully assisted a Sikh student barred from wearing his kirpan into the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). 

Ishwer Singh Basra, an amritdhari (initiated) Sikh, was scheduled to write the LSAT on September 27, 2014. Upon arriving at the test centre in Burnaby BC, Ishwer Singh's kirpan was spotted by a proctor. Despite being explained its significance, the proctor said the kirpan would not be permitted in the test centre.

The proctor then proceeded to call the Law Society Admission Council (LSAC), the body that administers the LSAT, and said that there was a student carrying a "knife" and insisting it was for religious purposes. After a brief phone call, the proctor reiterated to Ishwer Singh that his "knife" would not be allowed.

NEW YORK - While welcoming the US President’s reminder to India about the importance of religious freedom, Sikh For Justice (SFJ), which recently campaigned asking Obama to raise the issue of Article 25 (b), commended his stance on chances of India being splintering on religious lines, if they continue to deny religious freedom to the minorities.

Obama’s advise to India to protect religious minorities comes at a time when controversy regarding Article 25(b) of the constitution which labels Sikhs as Hindus is already reignited and RSS-BJP run government is being criticized for launching “Home Coming” to forcibly convert Muslims and Christians to Hindus.

TALWANDI SABO (KP) - In yet another controversial move, the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee (SGPC) un-ceremoniously removed Jathedar Giani Balwant Singh Nandgarh from his post at Takht Sri Damdama Sahib as his did not agree to tow the Badal-SGPC-Sant Samaj stance regarding the Nanakshahi vs. Bikrami calendar debate.

Giani Nandgarh had been a non-salaried Jathedar of Takht Sri Damdama Sahib for the last twelve years and had often taken hard-line positions against various deras including the Sacha Sauda cult and often put the pro-Badal SGPC management and the ruling Akali-BJ regime in awkward quagmire due to his independent nature.

Giani Nandgarh had also taken a strong stance against SGPC’s rejection of the Nanakshahi calendar and the re-implementation of the Sanatani Bikrami Calendar and infuriated the SGPC and the self- styled union of the Sant-Samaj when he declared that he would observe Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s Parkash Purab on January instead of December 28th as Bikrami date oddities made it clash with the Younger Shahibzaday’s Martyrdom commemorations.

Several weeks earlier the Jathedar of Akal Takht Sahib had hurriedly instructed the Sikh community to observe Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s Parkash Purab on January 7th and then backtracked himself and then stated the Parkash Purab should be December 28th again.

HARVEY, ILLINOIS (KP) - During an open public meeting, the City of Harvey, Illinois, situated in Cook County, officially recognized the 1984 November anti-Sikh pogroms in India as “genocide” and codemned the violence against the Sikh Nation.

The motion for the resolution was forwarded and ratified by Shirley Drewenski, Alderman, First Ward, Joseph Whittington, Alderman, Second Ward, Daryl Crudup, Alderman, Third Ward, Donald Nesbit Alderman, Fifth Ward, and Keith Price, Alderman, Sixth Ward in the presence of the city council and Mayor Eric J. Kellogg. 

A large number of Sikh community members were also present during the proceedings, including members of the human rights organization, Sikhs for Justice, and local Gurdwara representatives.