Purpose of India Club

India club was formed with the objective to provide an opportunity for Indo Canadians to do charitable work for the Canadian community, organize cultural events for occasions like Holi and Diwali, and create opportunities for young people to meet at picnics, parties etc.

To arrange and conduct public lectures symposia and such other intellectual activities

To provide for and give instructions in music, singing, physical culture and other subjects tending to advance these objects of the club

To sponsor literary, musical and other cultural events, concerts, plays, theatre, cinema and Indian national festivals

To undertake such activities as well provide suitable Indian cultural environment for children by establishing schools of Indian languages, courses of education, courses of information in citizenship, libraries and reading- rooms

To undertake and execute any trusts which may be conducive to any of these objects, and in particular to establish, undertake, superintend and administer a fund for scholarship for the purpose of assisting persons from India and Canada in such manners as the club may determine

Thursday, June 26, 2014

SUNDAY, JULY 20TH

FROM 6PM-9PM

AT

VANDUSEN BOTANICAL GARDEN

5251 OAK ST., VANCOUVER

the President's Message

Dear Members and Friends

of

INDIA CLUB

I feel very proud and honoured that I have been bestowed the reigns of one of the most prestigious clubs of Canada ‘The India Club of British Columbia’. As I take over as the 45th President, let me wholeheartedly thank my illustrious predecessors for having laid the foundation of this club pouring their hearts, minds and souls and for having set so high standards of ‘Service above Self’ that will take herculean efforts from me and my team to come true to expectations. All of us have realised over the years that the greatest happiness derived by a man is in ‘giving’.It may be gift of money, time or service.

I thank our beloved past presidents for posing their faith and trust in my capabilities. Our hard working Board of Directors (see their details below) and our energetic members, Trustees and all respected past Presidents are continually looking for ways to strengthen our organization and to better serve our members. I assure you that we shall do our level best and will leave no stone unturned and make India Club fly higher and higher in days to come.

We are confident that this year India Club is going to be bigger, bolder, better and brighter. On behalf of the Board, I wish to say that we have taken the responsibility of running the Club at this turning point, is our tryst with destiny, and time to perform our experiments with truth, humility and gratitude and we will try our level best to reinvent the horizons of India Club.

It is my honor and pleasure to invite and welcome you to India Club’s activities and events for this year 2014-15. As you know, India Club is a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to promotion and understanding of the cultures and traditions of India and Canada. The activities of the Club are geared towards strengthening the multicultural mosaic of the Canadian Society by undertaking projects that are charitable, community service, cultural and educational in nature.

To aid in fund raising and reinforcing the club’s charitable focus to the members, the club holds Annual Wine and Cheese party which is totally funded from membership fees and ticket sales and this provides a platform to highlight the club’s charitable work and to reinforce the goals and values of India Club to maintain the focus on Charitable and Educational activities. Note this is really not a social function per say but a necessary part of the club activity to provide information to the members about the charitable activities of the club.

In keeping with the above focus you are invited to this year’s Wine and Cheese Event scheduled to for Sunday, July 20, 2014 at VanDusen Botanical Garden at 5251 Oak St, Vancouver, BC from 6 pm to 9 pm.

We are happy to share that this year we have planned to undertake following activities that are being carried out in India Club since its inception in 1969:

1. Scholarship to schools and university: Scholarships will be given to Langara College, John Oliver School, Killarney School, and two scholarships to UBC School of Music and Asian studies.

2. Academic Achievement Award (AAA) Scholarships: Three to seven scholarships (depending on donations received) will be given to honour and encourage top grade 12 students based purely on their academic achievement.

3. Gandhi Jayanti: In order to foster message of peace, conflict resolution without violence in the steps of Mahatma Gandhi, India club joins with Simon Fraser Institute of humanities and Thakore Charitable foundation to organize an event that recognizes a person who has done significant work towards social justice, conflict resolution without violence, and human rights. At this event India club and Thakore charitable foundation jointly will provide a $1,500 scholarship to a Simon Fraser University student (administered by the university awards office) who has made significant contribution locally towards the principles of social justice, conflict resolution without violence, and human rights.

4. Fundraiser Events /Musical Night/Walkathon for Donation for Humanitarian Cause: India Club will organize a fundraiser event in keeping with the past tradition since 1969 when the club has come forward and raised funds to donate for various humanitarian causesfor instanceWalkathon for Operation Eyesight Universal for much needed eye care and cataract operation and other disaster relief causes in the developing countries like Africa, India, South America and South east Asia. The money collected at this event is donated to Operation Eyesight Universal a CRA registered charity/ Red Cross and or others organizations that work relentlessly in the countries mentioned to improve eye care and other relief work.

5. Career-Fest: This event will be geared to bring successful professionals and entrepreneurs, grades 10 - 12 students, and first year university students together so that aspiring students have means and information to choose career options.

We have planned these as the main events of the club this year. As you can appreciate charitable society can only function through the volunteer work and generous donation from members. Without your support no charitable activities can be done. We therefore, invite you to join India Club events and activities to become part of a generous community to share ideas and provide mentorship.

Once again, I am honored to serve India Club as President, as it is a chance to give back to an organization that has given me invaluable training and most important, a group of incredible colleagues and friends. Please feel free to contact me or any of the Board members mentioned below with questions, ideas or suggestions through phone and emails provided.

We look forward to meeting each other at our Wine and Cheese Event on Sunday, July 20, 2014 at VanDusen Botanical Garden at 5251 Oak St, Vancouver, BC from 6 pm to 9 pm. Please do come with friends and family to enjoy the evening of information, fun and interaction.

Sincerely,

Dr Preeti Misra,

President, India Club

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India Club: History

India Club had a humble beginning, a vibrant growth, and has a promising future.

ORIGIN
Back in the 1960’s, a few individuals, who were residents of Vancouver and recently migrated to Canada from India felt the need for an organization which could provide an opportunity to fulfill their social, cultured, and sports related needs. After a few informal get-togethers over picnics, wine and cheese parties, dinner and card games, they decided to finally name the group as “India Club”; thus India Club was born. Later, they drafted a constitution and spelled over the clubs’ goals and objectives. In May 1969, India Club was registered as a charitable organization under the British Columbia Societies Act.

GROWTH
The first order of business of the new club was to organize a relief fund for Bangledesh under UNICIEF. Then, they embarked on a major project: installation of a bust of Mahatma Gandhi at the Simon Fraser University campus. This was an ambitious project which required enormous amount of money. This was beyond the resources available to the newly formed India Club. In addition, it also required collaborative efforts from the SFU Board of Government to get the approval of the project site on the campus. The club decided to go beyond their own group and extend their fundraising activities to Indo-Canadian communities of British Columbia. After gruel some efforts on behalf of some enthusiastic and committed club members the project was completed. Finally, the day arrived and on January 30, 1970, the structure of Mahatma Gandhi was unveiled, garland and handed over to Dr Strand, the then Resident of S.F.U. by Late Dr J. K. Pavri.
Other major activities of the period were celebration of Shi Aurbindo’s birthday and Shi Rabindranath Tagore Centenary. During this period, the club started to look at the service-oriented activities and one of the major projects they concluded was the organization of a “walk-a-thon” to raise funds for “Operation Eye-Sight International”. Also, they collected funds to award student scholarship at the U.B.C. and collection of toys for the sick children at the Vancouver General Hospital. In fundraising drive, the club also organized “Casino Night”, which generated funds to start the“Trust Fund” to award MSE scholarship to students of U.B.C. and secondary schools. In 1981, the club decided to invite ladies and youths to take a major role in the activities of the club. Ladies organized fashion shows, “Holi” and Christmas parties, which were attended by celebrities like Consul of India, Mayor of Vancouver, and the President of the University of British Columbia. The youth group became much more active and took over the role of organizing Walk-a-Thons, Picnics, and Halloween parties. Among the popular social activities, 2-3 days out of town picnics were a major attractions and Christmas dinner was a gala event which members, especially ladies, looked forward to.
Since 1970, India Club added few service oriented programs; such as “Career Fest” and “Triple A’s” (Academic, achievers, and sports A award). “Career Fest” aimed at facilitating a dialogue between the school students and the panel of career professionals and “technocrats” who were on the threshold by choosing a career of their choice. The “Triple A’s” focused on honoring the high school graduates of Indian origin who excelled in their academic achievements as well as sporting events. This event is organized in a “mini convocation” style where a reward of $600 is generally given to six deserving graduates in academic field and $500 award to best sportsman.
“Mehfil-E-Gharal” - a social evening of music, drama, and art who came about at the same time and it added a new leaf in the cultural activities of the club.

FUTURE
The future of India Club is very much secure. Like any organization, it has “ups”and”dows”, nonetheless it has a sound foundation. It is one club which has no territorial boundaries. Members comprise of all political beliefs, multi lingual ethenic origins, and has no “labels” like Hindus, Sikhs, Gujratis, Bengalees or the like. This feature of the club appeals to many. While addressing the students and members of the India Club, Mr Ujjal Dosanjh who is a well respected member of Indian community and a successful member of Canadian Parliament spoke which is summarized as follows: India Club is one organization which in true sense represents all ethenic groups. It has no borders, in fact it is open to all and because of this belief, he is attracted to this club activities.