York student and father rescue elderly woman from fire

A York University student and his dad kicked in the door to rescue an elderly woman who collapsed as her lungs filled with smoke from a fire burning in her North York apartment kitchen, wrote the St. Catharines Standard Aug. 21.

Azhar Karodia, 20, said he and his father Farid knocked open the 17th-floor door after the senior was overcome by the smoke Wednesday evening.

But before the dramatic rescue, Karodia spotted smoke coming out of the York Mills Road apartment, near Victoria Park Avenue, so he left his parents’ home two storeys above to check it out. “I went downstairs and she said the fire was put out,” said Karodia.

He returned to his parents’ apartment but a few moments later, realized that it was not all right. “I saw more smoke and went back down and she said her apartment was on fire,” Karodia said. “The door was locked, so we kicked it in and went inside to find her collapsed and pinned underneath a cabinet.”

Program for skilled immigrants gets money from province

York University has received $5.2 million from the province for three training programs aimed at helping skilled immigrants get into professions commensurate with their education and work experience, wrote the Toronto Star Aug. 21.

The bridge training programs will target information technology and business professionals, and will complement an existing project for nurses, an official said.

  • CFRB Radio and OMNI-TV also reported on the funding award Aug. 20

CFUW awards seven scholarships to young women

Montana Paul, an All Saints High School graduate, was an active member in both the music and dramatic arts departments , wrote Kanata EMC Fri Aug 21 2009 in a story about a scholarship she was awarded by the Canadian Federation of University Women/Kanata.

In 2007 her portrayal of Helen Keller earned her a Cappies Award for the best Festival Actress. Consequently she won the All Saints graduation award for Outstanding Achievements in the Arts. Montana, an honour roll student all through high school, will be attending York University in September for a BA Honours program in theatre.