\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
![\"Supplied](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/4103344_web1_22.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
Supplied<\/p>\n
Khalid Mahmood received the Lieutenant Governor\u2019s Award for the Advancement of Interreligious Understanding on March 26 from Lt.-Gov. Anita Neville.<\/p>\n
When Mahmood immigrated to Canada in 1974, he became one of the first Pakistanis and one of the first Ahmadiyya Muslims to choose Winnipeg as home. His activism on the part of Ahmadiyya Muslims, who, he explains, are discriminated against in Pakistan, and his interest in interfaith initiatives began soon after he was settled. Building relationships between different groups and service to humanity are, he explains, essential elements of the Ahmadiyya Muslim faith.<\/p>\n
Most of Mahmood\u2019s activism has been channelled through the Ahmadiyya Muslim Centre and Mosque, which he helped found in the Lord Roberts neighbourhood 33 years ago. His involvement with the centre has including serving as its interim president, treasurer and secretary, and, currently, as its community outreach co-ordinator.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn its early days, members of our community would gather weekly in one another\u2019s homes to pray and plan outreach activities,\u201d Mahmood says, in explaining the origins of the centre. \u201cAs the community grew, we recognized the need for a dedicated space \u2014 a centre where we could come together regularly for worship, connection and service.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Muslim centre,\u201d he continues, \u201cwas established to serve as a hub for spiritual, cultural and social engagement, not only for congregants but for the broader Winnipeg community. It provides a space for prayer, as well as programs such as community events, information sessions and initiatives that promote civic engagement and social responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA key focus of the centre,\u201d he continued, \u201chas been fostering interfaith dialogue and building relationships across different communities. Through open houses, interfaith events and outreach activities, we aim to create understanding, reduce misconceptions and strengthen social cohesion.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to his involvement with the centre, Mahmood served as co-founder and president of the Pakistan-Canada Cultural Equation, a non-profit organization focused on race relations and multi-culturalism, while supporting and promoting the specific language and culture of Pakistani Canadians. He also served as a representative on the Manitoba Ethnocultural Advisory and Advocacy Council and has frequently lent his support to newcomers to Canada, helping them navigate the asylum-seeking process and access to housing, education and employment opportunities.<\/p>\n
\u201cKhalid has been very engaged, over the last 30 years, in interfaith work,\u201d explains Rocky Baronins, chair of the Manitoba Multifaith Council\u2019s community relations committee that nominated Mahmood for the award.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has co-ordinated interfaith symposiums, organized Muslim youth groups to visit churches, Hindu temples, Sikh temple and synagogues in Winnipeg. He also hosted events to make community members aware of Muslim practices during Ramadan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Through those and numerous other initiatives, Mahmood has brought together Manitobans from Indigenous, Bahai, Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu, Jewish, Christian, Spiritualist and, of course, Muslim backgrounds, to share with one another, learn from one another and gain respect for one another.<\/p>\n
The Lieutenant Governor\u2019s Award for the Advancement of Interreligious Understanding is not the first official recognition that Mahmood has received for his volunteerism, optimism and repeated efforts to make his adopted home of Winnipeg a more caring, more compassionate and more tolerant place. Way back in 2002, Mahmood also stood in Government House as a different Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, the Honourable Peter. M. Liba, awarded him the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal for his outstanding and exemplary contribution to his community.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\tSunday Passages<\/p>\n
Sundays<\/p>\n
Kevin Rollason\u2019s Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba.<\/p>\n