On May 23, 2026, families, alumni, friends, and supporters gathered to celebrate 30 years of Third Academy. We honoured our late founder, Dr. S. Lal Mattu, and three decades of giving families hope and students a different path forward. It was a night to look back on how far Dr. Mattu’s dream has come as well as to look at the path ahead.
From the cocktail reception and plated dinner to the program, music, and dancing with the fantastic 10-piece Supersonic Hearts band, the evening felt like Third Academy at its best: warm, heartfelt, a little playful, and full of people who care deeply about our shared mission.
We were especially proud to introduce the Dr. S. Lal Mattu Memorial Fund at the Gala, created to help future students access the specialized education and therapeutic support they need.
The photos below capture some of the evening’s special moments and the joy of a community that has spent three decades opening doors.
| Thirty years of hope and the community that built it, surrounded by the warm neon and vintage charm of Heritage Park’s Gasoline Alley. We returned to the same room that held our 20th anniversary, for a night another 10 years in the making.
| The evening opens with a cocktail reception, where Marek Foff (far right), a supporter of the Dr. S. Lal Mattu Memorial Fund, gathers with guests over The Blue Hope, the signature cocktail designed for the event.
| Ryan Kropfmuller (far right), another supporter of the Memorial Fund, with guests at the reception.
| Board member Yash Mattu (second from left) enjoys the evening with family and friends.
| Teacher Hailey Commet (second from right) and Instructional Assistant Emma Lawlor (second from left) celebrate with guests.
| Kayla Kondics (second from left), Music Specialist, being shot by Instructional Assistant Sue Choy (second from right) as the reception gives way to the evening ahead.
| Christos Kazyas (left), Associate Principal Elementary, delivers the evening’s opening address, with Master of Ceremonies Baruch Laskin (right) guiding the night. Kazyas connected Dr. Mattu’s founding vision with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, showing how Third Academy’s growth continues to create new hope for students and families.
| John Crosser (second from left), former school board member and Memorial Fund supporter, with fellow Rotarians from Dr. Mattu’s own club and other guests.
| Nashrin Mitha (fourth from left), Gala Chair and Instructional Assistant, celebrates a job well done with family and friends.
| Speech and Language Therapist Rosanne Murynka (far left), with other guests at the dinner.
| It takes every role to make a school: Victoria Ranallo, School Custodian (third from left), Wayne Capper, Bus Driver (fourth from right), and Shawn Coupland, Teacher (third from right), with other guests.
| Omkar Nath Channan, a childhood friend of Dr. Mattu, speaks in his remembrance. A longtime Calgary public figure, Channan served as the city’s Chief Controller of Prosecutions for two decades.
| Mrs. Deep Mattu (third from left) cuts the anniversary cake marking 30 years of the school her husband founded, joined by Head of Schools Sunil Mattu (far right), Principal Rehana Mattu (second from right), and family.
| Sunil Mattu, Head of Schools, offers the evening’s closing remarks and reflects on the school’s growth and the road ahead.
| Ten pieces strong, the Supersonic Hearts take the stage and bring the night to its feet.
| Teachers and staff catch the joy of the evening at the photo booth, a favourite stop of the night where guests picked their props, posed against the backdrop, and walked away with an instant printed photo.
| Teachers Scott Finney and Jenna Hickling find their rhythm on the dance floor.
| Associate Principal Peter Lu (left) and Educational Technology Lead Dean Ingram hit the dance floor as the band plays on.
| Instructional Assistant Martha Neher (right) and a friend send the evening off with one last photo, a keepsake from 30 years of hope.