Hello Friends!
It is probably the busiest time of the year for most of us as the school year is coming to an end and summer break is around the corner! Spring cleaning, gardening, starting outdoor activities, vacation planning, AP exams, and graduation – lots of hectic things!
Several youth wing members will be heading to college after the break! After 12 years of grade school, they will be starting a more independent life as college students – the majority away from home. Years of preparation, AP classes, tests, ACTs, SATs, community service, several sports and arts lessons have finally paid off! And then to top it all off, navigating through the elusive college admissions process! Vijaya and I were going through this as Hrishikesh is graduating from high school this year. It is a big change for parents and the child; especially if the child is moving out of town. The journey so far has taught us some invaluable lessons.
We would like to publish information about graduating community members in next newsletter to recognize their achievements. All high school seniors, undergrads, grads and PhDs, please send us your information in the following format.
- Name
- Picture
- Parents names
- School/University you attended, GPA (optional), and achievements (optional)
- University/work that you will be joining and your major/minor.
- Career goals.
EC 2017
Professional Networking Event
The first of the two Professional Networking Events planned for this year took place on April 15th. The event was attended by over 50 people. The speakers Chetan and Guru shared their journey, experience, and learning’s with the audience who asked many questions to the speakers. The event was moderated by Hari Narayanswamy who did an outstanding job. The EC team would like to thank Hari, Chetan, Guru and all participants for making this event a huge success.
COMA Events planned for the rest of the year
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 17-Jun | Family Event (Picnic) |
| 9-Sep | Cultural Event (Onam) |
| 14-Oct | Professional Development (Kids or Business focused) |
| 2-Dec | Cultural Event (Christmas) |
Diversity and inclusion
By Aadhira Pramod
Diversity. A word used in many ways, with one true meaning. Each individual is unique, and being able to recognize those differences is what constitutes diversity. This served to be true on April 5th when I attended an Equity and Inclusion conference at Olentangy High School. It was great seeing numerous students in different fields of study who are so passionate and engaged. This opportunity gave me insight on various topics and helped me empathize by stepping in their shoes. The keynote speakers left me speechless because they had stories to express themselves. We all have stories that make us who we are.
What these keynote speakers had in common was the message of diversity. My message to you is that there is diversity within us, even if we don’t see it at first glance. We are different in a multitude of ways and that’s what makes us so special. This conference made me realize the true definition of identity and individuality. In the midst of our community, we even have various diverse clubs such as a soccer club hosted by Thomas Oommen (uncle) who leads a diverse group of individuals. I am sure if you meet them you will be enticed for a joyous ride of their own stories.
Together as a society, we can not only envision an inclusive society, but if we put our hearts to that goal we can make that dream come true. As Catherine Pulsifer, a famous author, once said, “We are all different, which is great because we are all unique. Without diversity, life would be very boring.”
Federation of Indian Association (FIA) Forum
- FIA organized a Town hall session with FBI, Department of Homeland Security and Franklin County Prosecutor on April 5 th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM. The discussion along with Q & A session focused on inclusiveness, safely and respect for all.
- FIA collaborated with Dublin residents to host the second Town hall at Dublin Recreation Center. Here is the link with details of that event. https://www.facebook.com/dublinohio/videos/10155342326939421/
- The Local Indian Groups met on April 22nd to discuss various volunteer opportunities to give back to the community. It was decided that we will participate in two events under the FIA umbrella.
- Field of Heroes: http://www.fieldofheroes.org/volunteer.html If you interested in participating, please sign up for any of the Saturday activities (May 27 th ) and send your name and T-shirt size to coma.officials@gmail.com. FIA will be providing T-shirt to all the volunteers. Sign up site: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0b44aca623aaf58-field1
- Mid-Ohio Food Bank. Once we have more details on volunteer opportunities, we’ll communicate to COMA patrons.
- INDIA FESTIVAL: FIA will host their premier event – “India Festival” on August 26th. They are looking for volunteers to help out with the planning and organizing of this prestigious event. If you are interested in helping out, please respond to coma.officials@gmail.com or reach out directly to one of the FIA office bearers -> http://fia-ohio.org/contact/
FIA Upcoming Events
| Month | Date | Day | Time | Group | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May | 6 | Sautrday | 4:00 | Dhvani | Carnatic Kutcheri by Archana and Aarathi | Gahanna West Middle School, 350 N Stygler Rd, Gahanna, OH 43230 |
| 6 | Sautrday | 7:00 | VCA | Purandarasa and Tyagaraja Musical Festival | Gahanna West Middle School, 350 N Stygler Rd, Gahanna, OH 43230 |
|
| 20 | Sautrday | 2:00 | NSF | College Planning Workship | TBD | |
| 20 | Sautrday | TBD | CTA | B-Dinner | TBD | |
| 21 | Sunday | TBD | CTA | Telanganam | Westerville North High School, 950 County Line Rd, Westerville, OH 43081 |
|
| 27 | Sautrday | 8:30 | All | Field of Heroes Volunteers 2017 | Westerville Sports Complex,325 N. Cleveland Ave. Westerville, Ohio 43082 | |
| 28 | Sunday | 10:30 | COMA | Meals on Wheels | Meals on Wheels, 670 Harmon Ave, Columbus, OH 43223 |
|
| June | TBD | TBD | TBD | COBCA | Bengali New Year Celebration | TBD |
| 10 | Saturday | TBD | GMOCO | Kite Flying and GMOCO Annual Picnic | Alum Creek Below Dam Area, 5905 Lewis Center Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035 |
|
| 17 | Saturday | 11:30 | COMA | Summer Picinc | Liberty TWP Park, 2845 Home Rd, Powell, OH 43065 | |
| 24 | Saturday | TBD | CTA | Cricket,Tournament | Anheuser Busch Sports Park, 4990 Olentangy River Rd, Columbus, OH 43214 |
|
| 24 | Saturday | TBD | GMOCO | 50 Year Celebration | Ohio Expo,Center | |
| 25 | Sunday | 10:30 | COMA | Meals on Wheels | Meals on Wheels, 670 Harmon Ave, Columbus, OH 43223 |
Community Service News
Nish Nishant
The COMA Meals on Wheels volunteers for the April event were Joseph Abraham, Manoj Thomas, and Melissa Thomas. Melissa Thomas is a COMA Youth Wing member and is incidentally the youngest COMA volunteer who has taken part in Meals on Wheels!
As a reminder, COMA does Meals on Wheels deliveries on the fourth Sunday of each month to roughly 16 homes. If you are interested in volunteering, please get in touch with the executive committee. We welcome young volunteers too, who are aged 12 or older.
TACO Badminton Tournament Winners!
Five men’s doubles teams, two mixed doubles team and one women’s doubles team participated in badminton tournament organized by Telugu Association on April 1st. It was a great feat by the team where women’s doubles team reached semi finals from nine teams and three of our men’s doubles team made to the quarter finals from a total of 33 teams! Men’s team of Dilin and Aslam reached the finals, and were runners up in the championship after losing the fiercely fought final match! Congratulations Dilin and Aslam!
Training Classes
COMA is planning on organizing three new classes this year and we need your input to plan them. The new classes are:
- Yoga for beginners: Yoga is great for your mind and body. This course will teach you the right ways to do it.
- Introduction to Python programming: This course will teach you the basics of creating computer programs using the Python language. Ideal for high school students but is open to all. https://www.python.org/
- Toastmasters: Are you interested in becoming a confident public speaker? If yes Toastmasters can help you learn through learn-by-doing training. https://www.toastmasters.org/
Please let us know if you will be interested in attending any of these courses by replying to coma.officials@gmail.com. When you respond, please include which course(s) you are interested in attending, along with your contact information (phone # and email id). Based on the number of response that is received, we will decide the date, location, duration, cost etc.
Request for Information:
Dr RajanBabu (rajanbabu.1@osu.edu) is trying to collect the names of local Keralites who are alumni of CMS College, Kottayam. For full disclosure, CMS College is celebrating its 200th anniversary and we are interested in seeing how we can help this venerable institution on this occasion. If you are willing to share your contact information, please get in touch with him.