Malsha Amarasinghe (left) and Weitian George Li are the recipients of post-secondary bursaries from The Vernon & District Immigrant & Community Services Society. (Submitted photos / VDICSS)

By Pete McIntyre

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Aug 9, 2022 | 2:10 PM

Two newcomers to Vernon have received funding to help them further their education.

The Vernon & District Immigrant & Community Services Society (VDICSS) has awarded post-secondary immigrant bursaries of $2,000 to Malsha Amarasinghe and Weitian George Li.

Amarasinghe will be attending the University of Victoria this fall to study biomedical engineering.

Li will be studying mathematic and physical science at the University of Toronto, also this fall.

Both students are newcomers to Canada with Amarasinghe from Bermuda and LI from China.

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The society says the teens have a made a positive transition to Vernon by meeting new friends, learning to snowboard at Silver Star and performing in the school musical.

The two also share a connection with their immigration stories, as they both have a parent who has participated in the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot Program (RNIP). That program is designed to spread the benefits of economic immigration to smaller communities by creating a path to permanent residence for skilled foreign workers who want to work and live in one of the pilot’s 11 participating communities across Canada.

“We are thrilled to be able to offer not only one, but two bursaries this year to such deserving candidates,” said Amelia Sirianni, director of operations for VDICSS. “The outpouring of financial support from foundations, organizations and individuals truly shows how much our community cares about youth, especially those who are choosing to make Canada their new home.”

This year’s VDICSS Post-Secondary Immigrant Bursary Program is made possible by donations from The Willis Family Foundation and 100+ Women Who Care Vernon.

If you would like to donate to the society’s upcoming bursaries, or support other programing, go to https://www.vdicss.org/get-involved.