Raj Durga | REMAX - Naperville | Indian Children Cultural Association

Raj Durga’s passion for service is genuine. She’s committed to the success of our community, ardent about serving our families, and dedicated to promoting development of the highest quality in our city. The time is right for Raj to take her service to the next level – the Naperville City Council.

Excellence: Quality in the Naperville City Council

Without a doubt, the skills Raj brings to the Naperville City Council are unparalleled, but it’s her reach for excellence that truly sets her apart.

One look around her office and it’s obvious – Raj brings quality to everything she does. Dozens of awards and certificates adorn her desk and walls. Professionally, she is perhaps most proud to have earned the highly prestigious designation of Certified International Property Specialist. Only 500 Realtors worldwide share this distinction, and it required Raj’s significant commitment to a stringent educational program focusing on the international real estate business environment. She is also pleased to have received the esteemed Women of Accomplishment Award by the DeKalb Athena Society and the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce, which recognized her outstanding contributions to the community and her commitment to excellence.

It took 200% effort on her part to win those awards, and she brings that same determination to the City Council, where she will work tirelessly to find creative solutions for the city’s top priorities. But she won’t be doing it alone – she looks forward to working together with all of the citizens of Naperville.

“It’s a team effort,” she says, “and I really want to be a role model in reaching to the community and sharing my experience of the joy of giving, loving, and caring.”

Focus: Intimate knowledge of Naperville

Raj gets people excited about Naperville. Perhaps this comes naturally from her 13 years of working with local families as a realtor.

Raj knows Naperville intimately. She knows the subdivisions and neighborhoods. She knows the parks, the schools, the churches, the businesses. She knows the traffic patterns and the development trends. She knows what families here value, and she understands why they move here. She understands what makes our community great.

Even more important, Raj can turn that knowledge into action within the City Council. She understands how to work with people of all backgrounds to get them involved with the community, and she knows how to bring out the best in everyone she meets. Her long history of volunteerism – more than 35 years of service in her community – is central to her life story.
She has raised her family (her two daughters and two grandchildren live in Naperville), enjoyed a successful business career (achieving some of the highest certifications in her industry), and created a not-for-profit organization (the Indian Children’s Cultural Association) that adds flavor to the lives of hundreds of Naperville children and families.

She coordinated events in conjunction with the 175th anniversary of Naperville, and she’s received a Certificate of Appreciate for her volunteer work with the Naperville Public Library. She participated in the Naperville Fair Housing Forum, which sought to identify solutions to remedy the lack of affordable housing in Naperville. She’s even received a Certificate of Achievement from the Naperville Citizens Academy, where she gained hands-on experience with the city’s internal operations through interactive sessions with elected officials, department directors, and representatives from Naper Settlement, the Naperville Public Library, and the Naperville Park District.
But Raj is humble about her accomplishments. “Serving and sharing with the community I live in is my great pleasure,” she says.

Vision: A global perspective in Naperville

Raj brings a global perspective to the Naperville City Council. She represents the changing face of our city, and she has a track record of bringing people together. She makes people comfortable and motivates them to participate more fully in the community.
Her work on the Sister Cities Commission of Naperville is a bold example of that perspective. In 2008, Raj chaired the committee that coordinated the Young Artist Showcase. This international art competition for youths between the ages of 13 and 18 encouraged young teens to think creatively about the world and their place in it – an accomplishment close to Raj’s heart.
In 2007, she was a member of the committee that created Nitra Night, an event that brought together both local and international cultural groups to honor the international relationships the city of Naperville has so carefully fostered.

Raj also founded The Indian Children’s Cultural Association (ICCA) in 2004 to empower, educate, and encourage children of Indian descent here in Naperville to celebrate their heritage. The group’s first event, a celebration of India Independence Day held publicly at the 95th Street library, was a hit; nearly 200 families sang and danced, enjoyed Indian cuisine, and participated in an art competition.
Since that first success, the ICCA continues to grow and hold fabulous cultural events. Eventually, Raj would like to change the name to the International Children’s Cultural Association, to celebrate all of the cultures represented in our community.