“I don’t think my mom could have imagined what things would come from this.”
Anish Kirpalani is referring to the $60,000 gift that the Sheila Kirpalani Foundation is making to Visions of Science, an organization that offers equitable access to STEM education for youth. For Anish, his wife Pooja and their family, it's a chance to create a big impact in memory of Sheila’s life's work as a passionate science educator. It’s the largest amount the Kirpalanis have ever granted, made possible via the fund set up with Sheila before she passed away from pancreatic cancer 15 years ago.
Anish: As I learned more about Visions of Science, it seemed to be this near perfect fit with my mom’s career, teaching TDSB students from lower socio-economic neighbourhoods, many of whom were recent immigrants. I remember stories of students who would fall asleep in class because they were up late at night working to make some money so that their families could pay rent—students who could have been Visions of Science participants before its existence.
Pooja: Eugenia, the CEO has so much passion and dedication. Their staff is equally impressive and I love that people from the communities are the ones teaching in those communities and involved in leadership. That seemed like a very important learning for them that led to success.
How it started
Anish, whose own career was influenced by his mother Sheila’s enthusiasm for science, is now Chief of the Department of Medical Imaging at St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto. In a heart-wrenching twist for a radiologist, he diagnosed his mom with pancreatic cancer on a CT scan. In the final stages of her life, he proposed philanthropy as a way to honour her legacy.
Anish: My mom was my hero and the start of my philanthropic journey was to find a way to turn an awful thing into something a little bit better. A way to have her name and her ideas to live on.
Sheila liked the idea of leaving a philanthropic legacy, but the family didn't know where to begin. It was in speaking with their estate lawyer Elena Hoffstein, that they came to learn about the benefits of working with a community foundation.
Anish: I was not from a wealthy family and didn’t have any experience with philanthropy. Elena recommended I contact Toronto Foundation and I literally cold called them. The Foundation told me about donor advised funds and their experience administering them. It was so special that my mom was there when the fund was signed into existence.
Celebrating Sheila through the years
Anish and his family have granted a portion of the fund’s interest earned each year (the disbursement rate for funds in 2024 was 5%) while growing the overall fund. For the past 15 years, Anish and his wife Pooja have been celebrating Sheila’s legacy by hosting events and fundraisers to top off the fund and thoughtfully making grants that reflected Sheila’s three guiding pillars for the fund: education, music and health.
Anish: My mom was a lecturer at the University of Toronto in the 1970s and then she became a high school science teacher with the TDSB for 20 years inspiring kids to love science. She’d have students come back to tell her they were applying to dental school or their masters or medical school.
Through the fund, the Kirpalanis created an annual biology scholarship for a graduating student from Sheila’s old high school. The fund has also supported and sponsored multiple Indian classical music (one of Sheila’s loves) concert series. Finally, the fund has supported health initiatives highlighted by pancreatic cancer research.
The Kirpalani's philanthropic evolution
Anish and Pooja have also grown into seasoned philanthropists: opening their own permanently endowed family fund, while taking part in the Foundation's learning curriculum.
Pooja: I was new to Toronto and while finishing my MBA, I was really excited about all of these things I was learning through the Vital Signs Report and the Toronto Foundation. I wanted to be a part of it and help Toronto.
It’s through Toronto Foundation that they were introduced to Visions of Science, an organization whose work seemingly connected the dots between Sheila’s life work with Anish and Pooja’s own philanthropic learnings.
Looking forward, Anish and Pooja want to broaden the impact of their family fund.
Anish: The Sheila Kirpalani Foundation’s pillars were reflective of my mom’s views and life, and that’s what gave me some comfort as I went through that loss. Now, with our family fund, we feel we can start to engage our own children, while looking at new areas of importance, such as Indigenous causes and libraries
Philanthropy has seen the Kirpalanis through loss, deepening their relationship with Toronto and building a legacy that will touch generations to come. Anish offers this reflection: In philanthropy and giving, donors benefit too by feeling good about making an impact. We also feel gratitude to the many dozens of people who’ve helped us, those who’ve given to the fund. Our philanthropic journey has been a central part of our life for the past 15 years.