LET'S International Charitable Association
President
Layne Lafrance
Vice President
External
Saheel Mistry
Secretary
Matt Cammish
Vice President
Internal
Cheng Yee Seah
Financial Director
Mico Rudasingwa
Public Relations Director
Miriam Barry
Events Director
Victoria Lansdown
Volunteer Coordinator &
Community
Involvement
Corinna Jin
Sponsorship
Coordinator
Linda Zhu
Campaign
Manager
Karishma Shah
Webmaster
Daniel Hill
Fundraising
Director
Erin Fitz
Event Planner
Lucy Zhang
Gulipek Candan
Event Planner
Events Planner
Jyotika Dangwal
Campaign Team
Diana Parry
Claudia Chan
Campaign Team
Mimi Wei
Marketing Team
Mimi is a first year student studying in the Faculty of Sciences. Although she may be tall and intimidating, she fears the dark and little critters like spiders. During her spare time she enjoys eating her heart out, while watching dramas. In the future, Mimi hopes to travel around the world and assist LET’S on their journey to change the world!
Claudia Chan is a first year engineering student at UBC, and aspires to work in the fields of architecture and structural engineering. She believes that we are incredibly lucky to be born in the most prosperous time in history, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, with the almost guaranteed opportunity of education. With this knowledge, she thinks it is our utmost duty to use our resources to give the right of education to those in less fortunate circumstances. Through LET'S, this is entirely possible, as we help facilitate equal education, and in extension prosperity and economic growth in third world communities.
Diana Parry is a first year student at the University of British Columbia pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree and hoping to major in Film Production. She excited to work with LET’S, personally believing that education is the solution to numerous world issues. Her goal in life is to better the lives of others, whether that means helping those in her community or those on the other side of the globe.
Being brought up in a traditional Indian family, I quickly realized that education was an opportunity that not many children had the privilege to gain. With education comes the freedom to think and make decisions on your own. You are able to think in a way that will help the society around you. I am excited to work with Let's and give the opportunity to learn to children who are not as blessed as I am. My work as the President of the Amnesty International Club at my high school, and my position as a University Residence Floor Representative has prepared me to make this goal a reality.
Gulipek Candan started studying at University of British Columbia in 2013. She had been working closely with Autistic children and education methods that they are introduced to, as well as teaching Mathematics and Biology to 4th-6th grade students. She also participated in a community involvement project to support the families, especially children, of women with cancer. For her, children are the building stones of a productive, healthy and thinking society and education plays an important role in the process. She is involved with LET’S because she wants to make a change in the way education is provided and wants to re-establish the methods and curricula used in both developed and developing countries.
Lucy Zhang is a 1st year science student at the University of British Columbia. She believes that one of life’s greatest pleasures is the knowledge that a fellow human in need is living a better life because of your efforts to help them. In the past, Lucy has taught children of all ages and understands how children are like a fresh sheet of paper - young minds waiting to see the world and to soak in everything that they are taught. Through LET’S, she hopes to make education accessible to children all over the world, thus empowering them to create change and in turn, help others in need. In her spare time, Lucy finds joy in skating, volunteering for different events in the community and spending time with those who are important to her.
Erin is an undergraduate student at the University of British Columbia studying biology and human geography. She believes it is important to approach our world--both its miracles and conflicts-- with curiosity, an open mind, and passion. Only with these qualities can one hope to create real and effective change while appreciating the beauty and diversity of life on our planet.
Daniel is an enthusiastic computer science major who is passionate about combining technology with arts. He loves knowledge and truly believes that all of the world's problems can be solved by critical thinking. He always has something bright and something dark to say, so he could be likened to a dim room. He is delighted to be a part of the LET'S UBC team and is excited to see where this organization is headed next!
Email: webmaster.ubc.lets@gmail.com
Coming from a place where education is not as advanced and accessible as I would have hoped, being a part of LET'S has given me the opportunity to make the difference I have always wanted to make. I am passionate about giving children a chance to explore and learn as well as let them teach me things I have yet to discover. Education is an opportunity to not only teach but also an opportunity to learn and I believe that if we try hard enough, we can make the difference we have set out to make.
Ningxin (Linda) Zhu is a student at the University of British Columbia, studying biology and chemistry in the Faculty of Science. Linda’s passion for helping the disadvantaged has led her to volunteer extensively with organizations such as the Canucks Autism Network and with various community centres in Vancouver. Her other main passion in life is travel, having written travel articles for StudentUniverse.com about destinations such as China and Central America; through LET’S, Linda hopes to see more of the world and maybe even change it a little bit in the process. In her spare time, Linda enjoys listening to rock music, reading The Economist, watching James Bond movies, discussing dubious Hollywood casting decisions on Reddit, and complaining about the hiatus between seasons of the BBC television series Sherlock.
Corinna Jin is a first year Arts student at UBC with an interest in pursuing naturopathy, because it focuses on treating the root cause of illnesses instead of just the symptoms. In a similar respect, her volunteering experience at Teach For China, an NGO, exposed her to the possibility that many of today’s core societal problems can be solved by improving global accessibility to education, rather than through temporary provisions of financial relief.
Email: vc.letscharity@gmail.com
Pursuing my passion for writing at a University level, I am currently studying for my Bachelor’s of Arts degree in English Language and Psychology. In addition to my classroom studies, my involvement in academic and extracurricular club writing has allowed me to expand my writing skills to a professional level. As a language-focused individual, I also enjoyed teaching English as a Second Language to international students, writing for my High School and University school newspaper (the Ubyssey), updating my personal music blog, and participating in various University of British Columbia’s submission- and discussion-based writing clubs ranging from Slam Poetry to Chapters. I also enjoy volunteering as the Events Director for UBC’s Chapter of LET’S International Charitable Association where we promote improving education in developing countries. In the future, I hope to use my education and my work with LET’S to open my own school for students with mental disabilities from Kindergarten to 12th Grade.
Email: events.ubc.lets@gmail.com
Mariam Barry is a second year student at the University of British Columbia. An international student of mixed heritage, Mariam has lived in multiple countries throughout her life and educational career. This has made her well aware of the role critical thinking and education plays in empowering communities today. A Faculty of Arts student, Mariam is double majoring in Acting and International Relations as her passion lies in narrating the human experience in international contexts. Mariam's past experiences working with Invisible Children, Amnesty International, Doctors without Borders, Project Possible and various other charity associations during high school, fuel her desire to continue pursuing her humanitarian interests at university with LET’S. Her networks across faculties, years, and extracurricular clubs at UBC, spanning Jumpstart to The Ubyssey, give Mariam the foundation needed to be LET’S PR Director.
Email: tbd
I am an Undergraduate Student at the University of British Columbia from Rwanda, planning to study Economics. I have lived in seven different countries, including Mali, Guinea, Kenya and Denmark. Throughout my time in these countries I have had the privilege of working with several organisations, some of them being: Me To We, Habitat for Humanity, and The Smile Organisation. All of these experiences have helped me develop a desire to strive towards providing support for communities, so as to allow them to perform at their potential and improve their quality of life. This desire is what drew me to LET'S. I believe that, through LET'S UBC Chapter's efforts we can provide communities, in the Vancouver area, the UBC Community and in the developing world with this support.
Cheng Yee is a first-year student at UBC aiming to pursue a BA in Economics. In 2009, she helped initiate a refugee-teaching program in Malaysia, which collaborated with several UNHCR refugee schools. During the 4 years, she was able to teach English to children from Myanmar and help them regain their confidence and critical thinking skills through workshops, arts and games. She also went on a reconnaissance trip to Kolkata, India in 2011, where she taught at a local community school. She has seen the extraordinary benefits of education and strives to reach her long-term goal of establishing affordable education systems around the world. She is an advocate for the importance of voluntary work but believes that one of the fundamental solutions to eradicating poverty is through education.
Email: vpi.ubc.lets@gmail.com
Matt is currently a first year student at the University of British Columbia studying in the Faculty of Arts, pursuing an undergraduate degree in Economics. Matt is a strong believer in not only the power of education, but also the need for critical thinking to address global issues in a non-destructive and efficient manner. He believes that LET’S can achieve something more than simply facilitating access to education. It can help to enhance an education system that encourages critical thinking and improvisation. These are skills that can be applied to a real-world setting, rather than just learning through regurgitation of text-book facts.
Email: secretary.ubc.lets@gmail.com
Saheel Mistry is a 1st Year student at UBC, pursuing the Bachelor of Commerce Degree. His passion lies within the fields of International Business and Marketing.He has been working on projects with several charities across the globe since 2008. Some of the charities he’s worked with include The Rotary Club of Dar-es-Salaam, Shining Stars and Initium Viridis. He’s strongly passionate about promoting education, specifically targeting children. He himself comes from an impoverished country, hence he’s well aware of the importance of a quality education system and strives to help those in need of it. Through LET’S he wishes to provide quality education opportunities to those who are in need of it and aspires to virtually eliminate illiteracy amongst children.
Email: vpe.ubc.lets@gmail.com
Layne Lafrance has been with LET’S since the beginning of her career at UBC. Originally from Calgary, she has spent multiple years living in London, England. After learning amongst a multicultural group and traveling often, Layne has come to thoroughly enjoy both the beauty of Vancouver and the international context of LET’S. She plans to continue studying economics at the Vancouver School of Economics, but remains open to furthering her education, work, and life experiences elsewhere in the world.
Education gives people the tools and confidence to transform their communities. It encourages critical thinking and a desire to correct the most deeply rooted and troubling issues that societies faces. Education can help provide the understanding and multiple perspectives necessary to best assess and correct an issue.
Email: pr.letscharity@gmail.com
LET'S UBC Chapter Team
