Chicago IL: The Punjabi Cultural Society of Chicago (PCS) hosted its annual â€œPunjabi Youth Graduation and Scholarships Awards Nightâ€ on Sunday, June 11 at Viceroy of India Banquets in Lombard, Illinois. More than 250 people attended. Dr. Jasvinder Singh Chawla was the keynote speaker. Mr. Parwinder Singh Nanua introduced the program, setting the agenda for the evening and congratulated all the participants as well as the high school graduates.

It was a treat for the graduates and the â€œRangla Punjab 2017â€ program participants. The celebration included keynote address, recognition awards, scholarship, cake-cutting ceremony, DJ music, dancing, socializing, networking, and sharing delicious dinner.

Mr. Vik Singh started the first segment and the trophies were awarded by Mr. Dhaliwal and Mr. Hardial Singh Deol, Mr. Amolak Singh, Mr. Sahota, Mr. Nandra, Mr. Amrit Mittal along with the PCS president Mr. Sukhmel Atwal. Mr. Rajinder Singh Mago hosted the second segment of the evening and asked PCS president Mr. Sukhmel Atwal and Chairman Mr. Hardial Singh Deol to interact with the Rangla Punjab participants and 2017 graduates. Mr. Atwal and Mr. Deol praised the energy and enthusiasm of the Rangla Punjab participants and appreciated the efforts put in by board members, volunteers and coordinators. A very talented singer from Cincinnati, Mr. Nimma Daliwal entertained the audience with renditions of beautiful Punjabi songs.

The evening continued by inviting all the high school graduates Gurpreet Singh, Harpal Singh, Simran Kaur Bhalla, Surpreet Kaur, Anmol Kaur Dhaliwal onto the stage and accompanied by their brief introductions and accomplishments. The finalists were handpicked from the graduating Class of 2017 from within the Punjabi community. An independent panel of judges selected the winners from the applicants according to a grading criterion established by PCS, based on academic achievements, extracurricular activities, and volunteer community service. Surpreet Kaur and Harpal Singh were awarded with scholarships by the guest of honor. Simran Kaur Bhalla was recognized at the evening for being the recipient of the Youth of the Year award representing the entire state of Illinois. This in turn qualifies her for consideration for the Youth of the Year Award at the national level to represent the United States of America.

Student speaker Dilraj Singh Sekhon shared his experiences and advice with the graduates. A rousing speech by the Keynote speaker Dr Jasvinder Singh Chawla resonated with the new graduates. Dr. Jasvinder Singh Chawla, Professor of Neurology at Loyola University Medical Center since 2002, and Chairman, Department of Neurology at Hines Veterans Affairs Hospital, Hines Illinois from last 8 years. He also has MBA from Loyola's Graduate School of Business. He is author of numerous publications and reviewer of various journals. He spoke about his views on what success meant to him and what was message for the youth of today. Dr. Chawla stressed five 'S's of success; Society; Support, Sacrifice; Setting goals & Self- discipline and Sikhism. Such depth and magnitude from a speaker is rare in that it resonated with the youth, so that they could envision what he conveyed. Dr. Chawla explained the route to be successful in today's multifaceted world that the graduation class would encounter.

First, setting a goal, then having a backup plan, then having a second back up plan was his sure shot way to ensure success. He stressed being part of the system to change the system from within. The bedrock to such success as outlined by him are focus, making plans, seeing through each plan, hard work and sacrifice. He strictly believed and conveyed what in his vision 'No pain no gain' meant in the realm of success in today's world. Not only was the graduating class overwhelmed by his sharp intellect but the way he explained was a treat. Such a rousing and moving speech by Dr. Chawla earned him the title of one of the best guest speakers for PCS. Truly, his vision for the graduation class was a classic take on today's fluctuating and elusive world to ensure success in their lives. Truly, in the viewpoint of the editor, Prachi Jaitly, if one word, one sentence or one thought from Dr. Chawla's speech made an impression upon the class, it would ensure success in their lives; such were the power of the words by Dr. Chawla. Dr. Chawla was honored with a plaque and vote of thanks was given by Mr. Mago. Dinner was followed by music and dance.
The Punjabi Cultural Society of Chicago is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit community organization devoted to promoting Punjabi culture, language, performing arts, healthy lifestyle and sports, education, and good citizenship in the metropolitan Chicago area.

Five â€œSâ€s to success speech inspires youth at PCS graduation night

Five â€œSâ€s to success speech inspires youth at PCS graduation night