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Eric Rajah (born January 12, 1958) is a
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
n-born
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
businessman and
humanitarian Humanitarianism is an ideology centered on the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotiona ...
based in
Lacombe Lacombe may refer to: Places * Lacombe, Alberta, Canada * Lacombe County, Alberta, Canada * Lacombe, Louisiana, United States * Lacombe, Aude, France * Lacombe (provincial electoral district), Canada * Lacombe (territorial electoral district), ...
,
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
.


Early life and education

Eric Rajah was born in
Jaffna Jaffna (, ; , ) is the capital city of the Northern Province, Sri Lanka, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a Jaffna Peninsula, peninsula of the same name. With a population o ...
, Sri Lanka, on January 12, 1958, as the eldest out of three sons to M. S. and Florence Rajah. In 1974, he and his mother and brothers moved to
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, to join his father, who had immigrated earlier. Rajah graduated from Winston Churchill High School in Vancouver in 1976. He then enrolled in the business program at the
University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...
. In 1978, he transferred to Canadian Union College (CUC)—now
Burman University Burman University is an independent publicly funded university located in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada. It is sponsored by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education system, the world's second la ...
—in Lacombe,
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Theology The Bachelor of Theology degree (BTh, ThB, or BTheol) is a two- to five-year undergraduate degree or graduate degree in theological disciplines and is typically (but not exclusively) pursued by those seeking ordination for ministry in a church, de ...
in 1981.


Career

After graduating from college, Rajah served as the student finance officer at CUC and later worked in
Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...
as an
accountant An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certif ...
aiming to qualify as a chartered accountant. Rajah launched his business venture, 'The Computer Training Centre Inc' (CTC), later known as Advanced Systems (AS), in 1986, providing training on computer operating systems and business software for organizations and non-profits. AS is currently located in
Lacombe Lacombe may refer to: Places * Lacombe, Alberta, Canada * Lacombe County, Alberta, Canada * Lacombe, Louisiana, United States * Lacombe, Aude, France * Lacombe (provincial electoral district), Canada * Lacombe (territorial electoral district), ...
and
Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...
,
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
. In 1990, Rajah co-founded A Better World (ABW), an organization focused on supporting development in developing countries.


Personal life

After becoming a
Canadian citizen Canadian nationality law details the conditions by which a person is a national of Canada. The primary law governing these regulations is the Citizenship Act, which came into force on February 15, 1977 and is applicable to all provinces and t ...
in 1985, Rajah married Candyce Schafer of Lacombe. They have two sons, Brenden and Jaden. He is a member of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...
.


Awards and honours


Alberta Order of Excellence

Rajah was inducted into the
Alberta Order of Excellence The Alberta Order of Excellence is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Alberta. Instituted in 1979 when Lieutenant Governor Frank C. Lynch-Staunton granted royal assent to the Alberta Order of Excellence Act, the order is admi ...
(AOE) in 2011, gaining the Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2022.


Meritorious Service Medal (Civil Division)

In 2021, Rajah and Leavitt were announced as recipients of the
Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: Singapore *Pingat Jasa Gemilang, or Meritorious Services Me ...
(Civil Division) SMfrom the
Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada () is the federal representative of the . The monarch of Canada is also sovereign and head of state of 14 other Commonwealth realms and resides in the United Kingdom. The monarch, on the Advice (constitutional la ...
for founding ABW Canada. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rajah and Leavitt did not officially receive the MSM until May 2024.


Honorary Doctor of Laws degree

In May 2014,
Andrews University Andrews University (Andrews) is a private Seventh-day Adventist university in Berrien Springs, Michigan. Founded in 1874 as Battle Creek College, it was the first higher education facility started by Seventh-day Adventists and is the flag ...
in
Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
conferred the honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) degree on Rajah. He was also the commencement speaker for two of the university's graduation ceremonies.


References


External links


Rajah speaking about ABW on YouTube

Rajah speaking at TEDx Red Deer

Rajah speaking at TEDx La Sierra University
1958 births Living people Canadian businesspeople People from Lacombe, Alberta Sri Lankan emigrants to Canada Place of birth missing (living people) University of British Columbia alumni Canadian Seventh-day Adventists Businesspeople from Alberta Canadian computer businesspeople Canadian people of Sri Lankan descent {{DEFAULTSORT:Rajah, Eric