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Balvinder Bajwa

$23,201.63 (raised so far)

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About Balvinder Bajwa

Balvinder Bajwa passed away in the embrace of her family on November 27, 2022 after a courageous battle with metastatic breast cancer.

Balvinder was born on September 7, 1971 in New Delhi, India and grew up with one older brother and two younger sisters. She completed her Bachelor’s of Business Administration (1993), Master’s of Economics (1995), and Bachelor’s of Education (1996) at the Guru Nanak Dev University in Jalandhar, India.

In October 1996, Balvinder and her husband, Gursharan, moved to Whitehorse, Canada. There, she began her career at the Bank of Montreal (BMO) and has been with the bank ever since. Later, they moved to Vancouver to start a family.

She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in September 2020 and undergone a mastectomy, surgical removal of seven lymph nodes, five rounds of chemotherapy and four weeks of radiation. In October 2021, a brain, liver, and bone tumour was discovered and a craniotomy was performed in December 2021. The surgery left her with a speech impediment and she was admitted to a rehabilitation centre for two weeks to improve her speech. In March 2022, Balvinder went through localized brain radiation, whole brain radiation, chemotherapy oral pills, and five different chemotherapy medicines via IV. In November 2022, she became critically ill and her oncology team decided to stop all treatments as it was doing more harm than good. She passed away within three weeks of her last chemotherapy session.

Balvinder loved to travel around the world, enjoyed leisurely walks with her husband, and was fond of dancing.

She will forever be remembered and loved by her husband, Gursharan; their children, Kabir and Simrin; and by the rest of her close family, friends, colleagues, and community. Though our sorrow is tremendous, we take solace in having known and loved this sweet, warm-hearted woman.

The impact of your support

Balvinder’s family and colleagues at BMO would like to honour Balvinder’s beautiful, short-lived life by creating a bursary to support UBC medical residents specializing in oncology. The family hopes her courage inspires others to pursue a career in oncology to help cancer patients all over the world.

If you are interested in making a Gift of Securities, please contact Sabrina Ting at Sabrina.ting@ubc.ca.

Messages of Remembrance

All Messages
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  • Bal was my colleague and my friend. We worked closely together for many years and over that time she was always supportive, kind, helpful and gracious. Our clients adored her and would often comment on how kind and professional she was. She had tremendous love for her family and was very proud of Kabir and Simrin. I will always remember her laugh.

    Tina Maltese, Colleague

  • Bal always had a smile on her face and was one of the first to offer help in the office should anyone need assistance. Bal's was known for her positive attitude and kindness. She was more than a co-work for many of us and her memory will live on through her beloved family and all those who were honored to know her.

    Evan Kalynchuk, co worker

  • Such a lovely person. I always looked forward to meeting with her, so pleasant and professional. She will sorely missed.

    Emile, Client

  • Lovely Bal was a courageous and graceful lady with a beautiful soul. Will always have fond memories of her!

    Sharon Gill, Friend

  • Have beautiful memories of Balli from high school and college days. She was a sweetheart!

    Gurpreet Kaur, Friend

  • My best memory with binder bhuaa g when she was come on my marriage with her daughter and mom in law . She fully enjoyed on my marriage

    RAJWINDER Aulakh, My bhuaa g

  • Had the pleasure of interacting with Bal many times to sort out issues i created - she was always so patient while helping me fix my problems. Thanks Bal

    Sharon &Garry Mutter, client of Tina Maltise-

  • Bal was Tina’s lovey assistant and we enjoyed knowing her mostly via telephone or emails. She left a lasting impression on us for her kindness and professionalism. This is such a fitting way to honour her. We send our condolences to Bal’s family and friends and thank Tina for making us aware of this touching way to keep Bal in our memories.

    Bill & Linda Clark, BMO clients of Tina Maltese

Photos of Remembrance

List of Donors
All Donors

  • Tina Maltese

  • Kerry Olohan

  • Nirmaljeet

  • Joanne Richardson, MNP

  • Mimie Tang

  • Anonymous Donation

  • Anonymous Donation

  • Bob Burke

  • Sharon Gill

  • Anonymous Donation

  • Ian and Lisa Chattell

  • Bob, Kabir & Simrin

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