• In celebration of Guyana’s 60th Independence Diamond Jubilee

THE Guyana Independence Festival Committee last Saturday night recognised six outstanding Guyanese for their excellent contributions to Guyana and Canada during an extravagant gala, held at the Grand Cinnamon Banquet Hall and Convention Centre, Toronto, Canada, to mark Guyana’s 60th Independence Diamond Jubilee.

The six awards, styled GICC Excellence Awards, were for Global Academic Achievements, which went to Dr Narine Dat Sookram; the Business Excellence Award to Eric Rodrigues; the Outstanding Philanthropy Award to Dhaman Kissoon; the Education Excellence Award to Yolanda Marshall; the Entertainment Award to platinum singer-songwriter Anjulie Persaud and Sports Award to international cricketer Dilon Heyliger.

Four of the awardees were on hand to collect their plaques, while Eric Rodrigues’ son, Chris, collected on his behalf. Heyliger was unavoidably absent.

Today, we present abbreviated profiles on the prestigious awardees:

Dr Narine Sookram – Global Academic Excellence Award

Dr Narine Dat Sookram was born in Guyana as the son of a cane-cutter. From such humble beginnings, however, Dr Sookram went on to become the first in his family’s generation to complete university as an outstanding high achiever.

Academically, Dr Sookram holds over a dozen degrees, including a Doctor of Social Work (DSW) and a Master of Social Work (MSW). He also achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA in both programmes and received the highest honour from Brescia University while pursuing his MSW.

The very prestigious St Angela Award is also included among his very long list of outstanding academic achievements, made even more remarkable by the fact that he was the very first Guyanese to ever receive that honour. It is no surprise, then, that the Guyana-USA Embassy took pride in featuring it on its social media page. Dr Sookram’s doctoral research focused on best practices for inclusive hiring.

Named as one of Canada’s Top 25 Immigrants in 2013, Dr Sookram also holds the record of being the most decorated Guyanese, arguably even the most decorated Canadian in history. His community work is unmatched in his contributions to employment, mental health, equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) advocacy.

Eric Rodrigues – Business Excellence Award

For over four decades — 40-plus years, to be more precise — Eric Rodrigues was quietly, and without much public fanfare, directly involved in manufacturing many of the spices and hot sauces that Guyanese-Canadians currently use. Eric is the Founder and Owner of Exclussif Spices and Wholesalers Ltd., the Geeta and Irie Spices flagship brands of which have long since become household names within the Guyanese and Caribbean-Canadian communities. They are must-haves in the kitchens of any self-respecting “sweet hand” chefs, whether male or female.

Born in Georgetown, Guyana’s capital city, Eric spent his food-service apprenticeship working at the Albouystown headquarters of Rick’s alongside his father, the senior Eric, otherwise more familiarly known as the legendary “Rick” Rodrigues. The company was involved in manufacturing and distributing Rick’s Curry Powder and other spices, which were themselves perennial favourites among Guyanese consumers.

Eric migrated to Canada in 1974 and, within six relatively short years, in 1980, had started operating a business out of his apartment, selling hot sauces and spices. As the business grew, it was moved from his garage to his basement. After outgrowing its previous space, the business moved to its current location on Tiffield Road in Scarborough’s industrial area.

Dhaman Kissoon – Outstanding Philanthropy Award

Born in Beehive, Guyana, Dhaman Kissoon is an experienced Guyanese-Canadian lawyer and renowned philanthropist. Having migrated to Canada as a teenager, Dhaman began his studies at the University of Toronto but subsequently suspended them following his father’s passing. Instead, he used this time off to help his mother and siblings move to Canada. That objective duly accomplished, he continued his studies, culminating in his law degree from Queen’s University in 1989.

While at Queen’s, Dhaman also co-founded the MultiHeritage Collective, a student-run organisation that was instrumental in effecting changes to the university’s hiring and admission policies. Shortly after his graduation, Queen’s University’s Law Faculty Dean approached him to begin teaching at the college, and he immediately accepted, serving as an Adjunct Professor for more than 30 years.

During his teaching years, Dhaman received multiple awards, including the student-presented Teaching Excellence Award, which he received on at least three occasions. Now in its 35th year of operations, Dhaman’s law firm, Kissoon & Associates, was founded in March 1991 and, from its initial location on Toronto’s Bay Street, eventually moved to 8 Beamish Drive in Etobicoke, where it has remained since 1992. In addition to his professional accomplishments, Dhaman Kissoon has also been an active community leader and an outstanding philanthropist.

Yolanda Marshall – Education Excellence Award

Yolanda Marshall is a celebrated Guyana-born, Bajan-heritage Canadian author renowned for her vibrant, inclusive, and culturally rich children’s literature. A passionate storyteller and literary trailblazer, she began her publishing journey in 2008 and secured a multi-book deal in 2019.

Yolanda is a traditionally published, agented author of 20 beloved titles, including Brown Girl in the Snow (one of The Globe and Mail’s and CBC’s best children’s books of 2025), Marching North (about Black Canadian WWI and WWII soldiers), A Piece of Black Cake for Santa, Miles Away in the Caribbean, Sweet Sorrel Stand, C is for Carnival (the only children’s book in print about Canada’s Carnival Festival), My Soca Birthday Party: with Jollof Rice and Steel Pans (recognised by CBC as one of the Best Canadian Picture Books of 2020 and featured on TD’s Top Recommended Reads for 2023), and Hot Cross Buns for Everyone (featured on TD’s Top Recommended Reads for 2025).

In 2023, she received the My People Award from the Blackhurst Cultural Centre for her outstanding contribution to Canadian literature. She was named Author of the Year by the Caribbean media Loop Awards in 2022, honoured among Canada’s 100 Accomplished Black Women the same year, listed on CBC’s 2020 Best Picture Books, and recognised as one of CIBWE’s Top 100 Black Women to Watch in 2017.

Anjulie Persaud – Entertainment Award

Anjulie Persaud is a Juno Award-winning, platinum-selling Guyanese-Canadian singer-songwriter whose work bridges global pop with diasporic identity, storytelling, and culture. She has written and collaborated with artistes including Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Kelly Clarkson, and Diplo, and recently co-wrote Nelly Furtado’s Gold-certified comeback single “Eat Your Man.”

Anjulie was born on May 21, 1983, in Oakville, Ontario. That’s also where she grew up. As the youngest of four siblings, Anjulie always felt a connection to music. When she was younger, she attended St Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Secondary School in Oakville.

The moment when Anjulie decided that maybe music was her vocation came after seeing one of Janet Jackson’s most prominent performances, namely, The Velvet Rope Tour. Anjulie was immensely impressed by the presentation of the show, as well as Janet’s talent as a singer. The Canadian star-to-be started writing songs in her spare time and recorded a few acoustic tracks. When she was a teenager, the young, talented girl wrote her very first song, Say Goodbye to Jr. High. Not long after, Anjulie signed up on MySpace and started uploading her projects there.

Dilon Heyliger – Sports Award

For his outstanding contributions to cricket in both Canada and his homeland, Guyana, Dilon Heyliger is a most worthy recipient of the Guyanese-Canadian Community’s Guyana 60th Independence Anniversary Sports Excellence Award.

He has made a name for himself as a Canadian national cricketer of outstanding all-round talent. Heyliger started his cricketing career on the Essequibo Coast, where he represented his village team, Santos. Before long, he became a member of the Essequibo Under-15 and Under-19 teams and subsequently represented Guyana at the Under-15 level in 2005.

His progression continued three years later, when he was selected to play for his country at the regional Under-19 tournaments in 2008 and 2009. Even earlier, in 2006, Heyliger had already become a member of the Essequibo senior team, and despite his sojourns in the Caribbean, United Kingdom, and Canada, he continued to be a member of the Cinderella County side, which he last played for in 2013.

In April 2019, he was named in Canada’s squad for the 2019 ICC World Cricket League Division Two tournament in Namibia. He made his T20I debut against the Cayman Islands in August 2019, finishing the tournament as the leading wicket-taker, with 11 dismissals in five matches.

In February 2022, he was named in Canada’s squad for the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Global Qualifier A tournament in Oman. In July 2022, Heyliger donned Canadian colours in the 2022 ICC Cricket World Cup Challenge League ‘A’ tournament and, in the opening match against Denmark, took his first five-wicket haul in List A cricket.

In April 2023, he made his One Day International (ODI) debut against Namibia in the Cricket World Cup Qualifier Playoff. In May 2024, he was named in Canada’s squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup tournament. He subsequently represented Canada with distinction at the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup, jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka.