Suki Choi
Nominated for the award: Philanthropy
Company: Autism in Mind Children's Charity
Position: Founder
Biography: Suki Choi, founded Autism in Mind Children's Charity in 2011, with the goal of giving children with autism an equal opportunity in life.
It started with just one child. When Suki first started her daycare business in Markham, she was approached by a family whose son had been on the government waitlist for autism therapy for 4 years. Moved by their situation, Suki organized a fundraiser. The response from the community and the daycare parents was so generous, Suki knew they could do even more.
Suki and a team of volunteers began fundraising on behalf of other local families, to help their children access professional therapy. They also began organizing free Social Saturdays for children with autism.
The momentum of these small acts of kindness gathered. Within just a few years, AIM became a Canadian registered charity and one of Markham’s leading service providers for children with autism.