There was a line-up of nearly 40 vehicles at the rail crossing on Kerr Street in Oakville but only 21-year-old Rushad Bharda, an Armoured Reconnaissance crewman with the Governor General’s Horse Guards, a reserve regiment based in Toronto, got out of his car and sprinted towards the 18-wheel tractor-trailer that had got stuck on the tracks on February 28, 2017.
Whilst the tractor-trailer was crossing the tracks, the barrier had come down and got lodged between the tractor-trailer’s cab and exhaust pipe. In an attempt to free the vehicle, the driver desperately attempted to move forward and backward repeatedly. In the process, the arm of the barrier snapped off the pole. Bearing the weight of the pole, all further movement of the tractor-trailer became impossible. In a span of around 30 seconds, Bharda grabbed the barrier and hurled it to a side of the road giving the driver just enough time to clear the tracks from the approaching train that had slammed on its brakes and had halted just about 20 m from the scene of the action. The incident that was reported on CBC Toronto on March 1, 2017 was in circulation on WhatsApp groups within the community the same day.
A witness commended Bharda’s efforts: "I think that was really heroic… I thought it was just too dangerous at the time.” Humbled by the cheers and handshakes he got from those who saw the rescue unfold, Bharda responded to Parsiana’s queries saying, "My actions that day were no way heroic! Any Zoroastrian would have done what I did; acting out ‘good deeds.’ A quote that resonated with me was one by Ernest Hemingway: ‘A coward dies a thousand deaths before he dies; the brave but once.’”
Having joined the Canadian armed forces at the age of 18 years, Bharda explained his motivation for joining the military started at a very young age. Witnessing as a five-year-old the twin towers come down on September 11, 2001, he said, "I knew that I wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself and contribute to the safety of my country in any way I could.” While continuing his training with the army reserves, "I am now starting a new milestone in my life with the Peel Regional police as a cadet,” he mentioned.
Rushad Bharda with his family and father Khushroo (right)
Ordained as a navar in Udvada at the age of 11, Bharda declared, "I truly believe in the strength of the sudreh and kusti being stronger than my Kevlar bulletproof vest and wear it every single day. I also believe that the farohar is my guardian angel and wear it all the time.” Besides serving as a director of the Ontario Zoroastrian Community Foundation (OZCF) he officiates as a priest for jashans, on Gatha days and at navjotes. "I have put in innumerable volunteer hours serving the community in return for what they gave to me… In Canada our Zoroastrian community is very inclusive and tolerant. We truly live our doctrine and have proven time and again that ‘Parsi thy name is charity.’ I also believe in equality in the name of humanity. Good thoughts, good words and good deeds is the only way to live a fulfilled life… I truly believe that I will first be a good humanitarian and then a good Zoroastrian.”
Living in Canada for the last 19 years from the time his parents Khushroo and Havovi migrated in 1998, Rushad earned his secondary school certification from Erindale Secondary School and his post secondary education from Humber College in Protection, Security and Investigation. "I owe my upbringing to my parents, my teachers, my mentors at the Army Cadets and the priests, particulary Ervad Nozer Kotwal who has always believed in me and showed me the path of Asha (truth),” he stated.
Khushroo is an Auxiliary Police Officer with Peel Regional Police. He is also an Area Commissioner with Scouts Canada and runs the 100 Oakville Zoroastrian Scout Group with over 40 Zoroastrian scouts. He works full time as a purchase manager at Teknion Inc. "He is truly my role model and has inculcated the value of community service in me,” Rushad wrote. Havovi runs her own event management company and also works at the Royal Bank of Canada. She enjoys helping new immigrants settle in Canada and is very passionate about sharing success stories concerning the Zoroastrian community on their Canada Facebook page. Sister Tanya who has an undergraduate degree in Women and Gender Studies from the University of Toronto has spent years doing social work for underprivileged women and children in India through various nongovernmental organizations. She too is on the board of directors at OZCF.