PC THANKS YOU!

Greeting and Blessings!

My family and I are so grateful for all the overwhelming continued comments and thanks from our community and supporters towards the success of the event on September 9th. It was indeed a triumph for ICV, and our Canadian Pakistani Christian community to see how far we have come towards creating a solid relationship with our government, but also how far we must go together in order to carry forward the goals that Martyr Shahbaz Bhatti has set out for us; including freedom of religion, equality of human rights, and the economic and social development of religious minorities in Pakistan.

We want to extend our warmest thanks to all of our friends and family that helped us to make this a successful event for the ICV as well as our community as a whole.

Thanks to the diligent organizers who gave of their time and finances including:

Barnabas Peter, Eliza & Reuben Charles, Nasim & Naeem Akthar, Qamar Andreas, Wasim Iqbal, the ICV executives; and my beloved parents Phoebe & Vincent Samuel who I worked with day and night to ensure we did all we could to support ICV with this event.

Thanks to the incredible and thorough photographers Joanna Dass and specifically to Mr. Samson Shahbaz, whose pictures are used in this blog. You did a terrific job at capturing the meaning of the event in your pictures!

Special Thanks to the vital Financial Supporters of ICV including:

Asher Habib, Dr. Emmanuel Aziz, Pehlwan, Late Razzaq Mall, Sadraq Masih, Jamil Masih.

Especially those of our dear friends who supported this cause with our personal request: Bob & Sandy Mason, Edward Johnson Howell, Elie Assaf, Dr. Godwin Ifabiyi, Rafique Masih, Shaukat & Nazir Baksh, and Wayne Patterson.

Also, thanks to my partner in Master of Ceremony Tabassam Iqbal, for his efforts in making it a fantastic and successful evening; and for keeping things together on stage and behind the scenes with me and our "go-to-guy" stage manager Daud Bhatti.

I want to specifically take this time to once again, personally thank my father Vincent Samuel for his invaluable research and skills in creating the specific recommendations that were well received by Hon Minister Jason Kenney; including the repeal of Pakistan’s Blasphemy Law, Immigration Reforms and the Economic and Educational Development for religious minorities in Pakistan. I am extremely proud of his hard work and continued passion to do all he can for others. These recommendations were very well presented by Raheel Masih, who has my genuine appreciation for his efforts on behalf of International Christian Voice and fellow Canadians.

Furthermore, I’d like to thank all the Pastors, Reverends and Community Leaders of over 30 churches and other organizations in attendance including:

Nazeer (President of Canadian Coptics Association) and their guests, Ron Banerjee (President Canadian Hindu Advocacy), Catch the Fire Church (Toronto Airport), Central Methodist Church Hamilton, Christian Heritage Party, Evangelical Asian Church, One World International, the large group from Voice of the Martyrs Canada, and our friend Julie and her aunt Rev Shelley Clement (Revival Center Hamilton)

And most of all thanks to all you who attended and made this event a success!

If I have forgotten to mention anyone’s name please accept my regrets, your support is essential to the goals we presented and I sincerely value it. There’s a bigger picture here beyond the politics and long speeches; the picture of the families in fear, children taken from their mothers, women weeping without their husbands – it’s for them that I and my family strives to do what is right and we will support anyone and everyone who does the same!

God Bless

-- "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27