The White Rock property developer has been making generous donations to various BC hospitals and charitable societies. Recently he donated $400,000 on his 73rd birthday
Manjit Lit was a little boy when he saw the big dream of going to London from his small village near Jalandhar. With limited resources but unlimited aspirations and determination, he moved to London in 1967, against the wishes of his father. Lit’s father wanted him to serve his own country and serve the people around him. He was clear in his goal – he could serve society better if he had resources.
Lit first fulfilled his own goal to establish himself in a foreign land. He started by working in a factory. But doing business was where his heart was. From a humble beginning of owning a small corner shop in London’s Southhall market, he eventually became a successful property developer of London. It was now time to give back to society and make his father’s wish come true. In an interview with LINK newspaper, Lit told that Sikhi teaches everyone to give back to society. “I was always busy with my work, I could not give my time to serve people. I made sure I could contribute. Me and my wife started donating to religious organizations and charitable trusts.” And there was no looking back.
After helping with many famous religious and charitable projects of London like the construction of the biggest Gurudwara in London in 2003, Lit continued serving where ever he went. He moved to Canada in 2010 to tap Canada’s real estate market potential. He is the owner of Litco Investments Corporation, a property development company in the Lower Mainland.
Ever since he has been contributing to the BC community. Lit has supported many charities over the years, including the B.C. Cancer Society, Global Village Foundation, and KidsPlay Foundation.
Recently he made a total of $400,000 donation to four different hospitals and organizations. He gave $100,000 each to PAHF, Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation, BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, and Progressive Intercultural Community Services (PICS) for Guru Nanak Diversity Village on his 73rd birthday.
On being asked what inspires him to donate to hospitals, his answer was “the pandemic.”
“It was last year during the peak covid times, I was watching the world news and felt that there are so many people donating ambulances, hospital beds, oxygen cylinders, and many other needed things to those who were affected during those times. This inspired me to help our local organizations like Surrey Memorial Hospital, Peace Arch Hospital who were dealing the most with covid patients. I also wanted to encourage our local community to join others in donating for the good cause, so we did dollar to dollar matchup for both the foundations and we collected more than two hundred thousand each and collectively since last year has collected close to $1M.”
PICS was chosen as they were building Guru Nanak Diversity Village with 125-bedroom Senior Homes.
Last year, Lit helped raise funds to purchase a special cleaning robot for the Peace Arch Hospital. This year Peace Arch Hospital’s donation was earmarked for mental health services.
“When I talked to the hospital’s Foundation, they told me a lot of people were facing mental health challenges due to Covid restrictions. Last week I met with a doctor dealing with mental health at Peach Arch Hospital, who was very happy, and said that it was very much a needed donation in this area as after COVID times, the percentage of (people who have been) mentally affected has gone up,” he said.
Lit is of the view that it is time we all make some small contribution to schools and hospitals. “These are the places, where you know you are making a direct impact in the society.”
He says through his story he wants to spread awareness in the local community. “I wanted to encourage our local community to join others for donating for the good cause, so we did dollar to dollar matchup for both the foundations and we collected more than two hundred thousand each and collectively since last year has collected close to $1M.”
He is urging more and more people to come forward and help such organizations. “My main idea behind this is to encourage and inspire more and more local community to donate to our local charities and foundations like Surrey Memorial and Peace Arch Hospital which are the most in need. So, I request at the end, to everybody to donate and support our local hospitals who need the most to help the local community.”
Lit, who has seen many ups and downs in his life, feels that giving back to society has made him survive through difficult times. He lost his wife a few years ago. “It was a rough time for me. I could have gone into depression. But serving my community kept me going every time I came across a personal or business challenge.”
On being asked what advice does he have for those speculating about the future of BC’s real estate market. According to him, there is never a bad time to buy a property. “Many people think that Vancouver’s housing market bubble is going to burst soon. But I do not see that happening. There is so much demand and less supply. Also, till the time interest rates are low, the graph will go up. It is only when the interest rates go up, the market may slow down, but I do not see it crash anytime. Owing your property is always better than paying rent. So make a beginning even if it is a small condo. You will never go wrong,” he says.
