From EngInEEr to EntrEprEnEur:

H Ow A C Algary Dad B Uilt H Imself A S Chedule That Puts Family First

with father’s day around the corner, what better time to highlight some of the dads who have dedicated themselves to not only improving their own families’ lives but also those of their fellow community members.

One such example of a local father who went above and beyond in this pursuit is edward choufi, a father of four and the owner of engineering for Kids of calgary, an out-of-school sTeM education provider for children aged 4-14.

edward was born in canada but spent the majority of his childhood growing up in Lebanon, until he returned to his home country to attend university. here is where he discovered his passion for not only engineering but also education. h is University of alberta degree allowed him to pursue a successful career in engineering for the next 14 years. although he was continuously climbing up the ranks in a field that he enjoyed, edward still felt like there was a missing piece.

Finding Fulfillment

as edward started his own family and became accustomed to the monotonous routine of his current job, he realized that there was more he had to offer. he began looking for other creative outlets within his community that would still allow him to flex his sTeM know-how, which is how he first came across engineering for Kids. First attracted to the business’ name alone, edward started as a basic educator with the brand before moving into full-time ownership and leaving his previous position behind. as his own boss, he now had the freedom to be more present in the lives of his four young children, as well as having complete creative control over how he could introduce sTeM into the lives of local youths, which he felt was a much more meaningful contribution to society than the previous work he was doing.

Moving From Corporate To Community

Owning a community-facing business also allowed edward to realize a major area of interest that was neglected in his role as a traditional engineer: the opportunity to meet others and form genuine connections. While he was regularly exposed to new faces with his previous companies, he was never able to really “know” them. Once he realized how this aspect of his career was neglected up until now, he immediately took action to compensate for the connections he was always missing out on.

Firstly, he launched community based partnerships meaning that edward and his business would be working in tandem with the community’s schools, rec centers, and other public facilities. i n his very first meeting with one of these community stakeholders, his children were right there with him in the room. Fast forward seven years later, and there isn’t a community center in calgary that hasn’t partnered with edward. aside from his commitment to putting kids first, these stakeholders are also drawn to edward thanks to the mutually beneficial community-centered deals that he emphasizes in all of his local partnerships. i nherently, a sTeM educator for children is intended to better the surrounding community, but edward dials this to eleven by offering reduced rates to the centers he works with in exchange for them putting his business in front of more calgary parents.

For the parents that have financial limitations in terms of their children’s education, edward goes even further out of his way to offer reduced rates or even sometimes free lessons to low-income families. even though his engineering for Kids franchise sees no financial gain from these deals, edward takes immense pride in knowing that he is offering genuinely beneficial services to those around him.

an educator’s mindset

Less than a decade ago, edward was following a very different walk of life. every day was dictated by a rigid schedule of seemingly endless to-do’s that offered little personal gratification. Today, edward enjoys being at the helm of a business that not only provides him family time and flexibility, but also a greater sense of pride and accomplishment.

seeing fellow parents take pride in their children’s work while the children themselves achieve new things has taught edward that he was always a father, an educator, and an entrepreneur at heart. as edward says himself, “Profit matters, but money isn’t everything. enjoying what you do while enriching others is what it really means to succeed.”