TORONTO, July 15, 2012 – More than seven hundred people enjoyed a warm meal at Toronto’s Vishnu Mandir Temple as they gathered to celebrate Indian culture and to recognize Canada’s first Indo-Canadian female Senator, Dr. Asha Seth.

“Our community has been blessed with great plenty; we are a generous people and we have a moral obligation to assist those who are suffering from poverty, disease, war and famine,” stated Senator Seth as she welcomed visitors.

Senator Seth and temple founder, Dr. Budhendranauth Doobay, provided a special lunch to thank the indo-Canadian community for thirty-one years of support. Since 1981 The Vishnu Madir Temple has run a variety of programs to promote and sustain the Hindu culture and its values.

The temple, which started as a little house in 1981, has grown to become an important community resource.

Since her appointment in January 2012, Senator Asha Seth has formed part of a conservative effort to reach out to minority communities in Canada. “I am so grateful to Prime Minister Stephen Harper for this generous honor, he did not forget us, he never forgets the importance of Indo-Canadians in Toronto and across the country,” expressed Senator Seth.