South Brunswick, N.J. School Board Member, Local Activist Azra Baig an 'Inspiration'

Everyday Inspirations is a series that features people in Patch communities who inspire others through their work, or people who have faced extraordinary situations and grown from them. They have been featured by other people in the community that have been inspired by the nominees.

Name: Azra Baig
Town: South Brunswick, NJ
Nominated by: Heba Macksoud

Why is this person an "Everyday Inspiration?" 
Azra is a caring and passionate individual, who is actively engaged in the South Brunswick Community and constantly asks me and all of her friends and neighbors to join her in volunteering—reminding all of us that this world is more than just about "me." 

I find her to be an “Everyday Inspiring” individual because as a wife, mother and a school nurse she still manages to volunteer her time and energy with numerous volunteer organizations.

She is a community activist serving on the South Brunswick School District Board of Education and on multiple South Brunswick Commissions which include the Municipal Alliance Commission, the Human Relations Commission, the Volunteer Nursing Corp. and the South Brunswick Commission on Women. She also serves as a Board member at her religious institution, the Trenton Food Kitchen, and the South Brunswick High School Viking Athletic Club. 

Has the nominee's life been changed in an extraordinary way? 

Yes, she recently ran for the South Brunswick Board of Education, as the only female of a nine-member male board, and won. I was extremely proud of her because she covers her hair with hijab and in this day of Islamophobia, it was a very bold thing to do but she never thought it was even an issue because of her faith in people to see past her clothing and to see her for who she truly was.

She is now the first ever female of South Asian descent, Muslim and with a veil,  to be on a school board in the state of New Jersey.

How does this person work to make others' lives better?

In the role of the South Brunswick Board of Education member, she has responsibilities and decisions that affect thousands of children in the South Brunswick Public School System.

In addition to this, working with various other volunteer organizations she is able to provide important input and be part of decisions to help the community grow and become successful in various ways. People don't understand the tremendous amount of unpaid time this takes.

Whenever she is not doing those things, she emails all her friends and asks us to join her to volunteer at the Trenton Soup Kitchen at 7 a.m. the next day!