India Association of Virginia (www.IAVA.us) Volume 20, Issue 7 - December 2014

President’s Message I wish all of you a happy holiday season and a joyous New Year! Next months, my term of office will be draw-ing to its close. In writing this, my final President's Col-umn for the Darpan, I take the opportunity to say it has been my pleasure and honor to serve as IAVA’s presi-dent for the year 2014. I thank the current executive committee, board of trustees, community partners, sponsors, advertisers, patrons, and numerous volun-teers, whose help was indispensable during the year of 2014. Their dedicated hard work and support have been crucial in planning and organizing IAVA’s programs that will come to full fruition during the remainder of 2014 at the New Year Eve Celebration on Wednesday, De-cember 31st, 2014 at the Wingate by Wyndham Rich-mond Short Pump and is expected to be one of the best. I invite each one of you to attend the celebration. Since the seats are limited, I request each one of you to reserve your family tickets on or before Saturday, Dec 20th, 2014.

I am delighted to report that this year our membership reached the 600 mark and we were able achieve our goals by increasing the association membership, in-creasing the members participation, doing more volun-tary work in our society, and making IAVA more socio-political visible in USA. This is an apparent reflection of the hard work of our EC directors and a testament to the quality of the various social and cultural programs that IAVA held. Let it be the Republic or Independent day celebration, the attending patrons have enjoyed the hard work of our social and cultural directors. The outdoor activities, like picnic and various sports like ten-nis, cricket, and golf, have been the favorites of many of our younger members, while Richmond’s ever evolving, Kavi Sammelan was enjoyed by the audience of all ages.

On November 4, 2014, we were sadden by the sudden

death of the Mrs. Merlin Tiwari, founding member of IAVA, who served as president of IAVA for four terms (74, 76, 83, and 2008). Furthermore, she served several community organization in various capacity within the central Virginia. On behalf of IAVA community, we con-vey our sincere condolences to her loved ones. She will be missed by all of us.

Last month, the IAVA’s presidential election was held during the general body meeting. I wish all the best to president-elect Mr. Milind Pendse for the year 2015. I ensure you all that Milind is committed to work with the Indian community and various organizations, and has a vision for IAVA’s role in the socio-political arena of the Richmond tri-city area and Virginia. He brings skills, creativity, and energy, which will take IAVA to the next stage. Next year, I look forward to working with you all as an IAVA board member and continue my coopera-tion, friendship, and support to IAVA ventures and goals in the forthcoming years. I thank each one of you for your support and trust in me.

This last presidential column will not be complete with-out the mention of Mr. Ashok Gupta (Gupta Uncle), who over the year, as cultural director, has helped IAVA in ensuring that the adequate supply of hot food at the various events were available. Without his help I don’t think I was capable of pulling through the year. I wish I will be as active as he is when I achieve his current age. Thank you Gupta Uncle.

Finally, I urge each one of you to become member and show active participation in programs, thereby improv-ing our socio-political visibility. The association is look-ing for volunteers who can join the team for event plan-ning. If you would like to get involved please let us know. To learn more about the IAVA’s activities and goals please visit HTTP://WWW.IAVA.US.

Rajendra R Dubey, Ph.D.

A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

Gone but never forgotten. One of our dearest members of India As-

sociation of Virginia (IAVA), Mrs. Merlin Tiwari, passed away on No-

vember 4, 2014. She was active in many charitable societies and was

past president of the IAVA for four terms (1974 1976 1983 and 2008),

as well as an active member and past president of the Virginia South

Asian Christian Association; was a member of St. Andrew's United

Methodist Church. She continued to participate and contribute to the

growth of IAVA in any capacity, she could. Migrated to USA with her

son in late 1960, was one of the early settlers, former teacher, a Ful-

bright scholar in England in 1986, and a world traveler, who never

shied away from helping anyone in need.

She was the widow of Dr. Christopher Maya Tiwari; and was preceded in death by her parents, Babu Singh

and Angelina Benson; brother, Archie Benson (Elfrida); sister, Myrtle Gideon (Julius). She is survived by her

son, Ajit Tiwari (Seema); sisters, Marjorie Gangwani (Victor) and Myra Lall (Ajit); grandchildren, Rajeev, Ash-

ish and Rohit Tiwari. She will be sorely missed by all of us.

A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

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Website Design Contest To provide a challenging forum to our members, IAVA is planning to hold a "website design contest" early into 2015 to revamp the existing IAVA website. This contest is intended to provide enthusiasts, youth and tech geeks, an opportunity to showcase their amazing talents to our col-lective community betterment. The contest will be inviting teams of between 3 to 6 mem-bers, while also being open to individual entries. There will be awards for the winner and 1st runner up, and cer-tificates of merit for all participating teams that complete the contest. So, to give a head start to all your creative abilities, here's a list of basic features that MUST be part of your designs: Dashboard * Pages and Menus * Blog Features * Image Management * Side Column Management * Contacts * Roles * Assets * Calendaring Further details will be announced soon.

IAVA 10K Training Camp

IAVA is commencing its 3rd Annual IAVA 10K Training Camp starting in January 2015 - for the 16th Annual Monument Avenue 10K **RACE DAY is SATURDAY MARCH 28th 2015** We organize separate groups for walkers/joggers and run-ners across all fitness levels; first-time participants are welcome !! This complimentary 12-week long training camp leading up to race day made available to the community - thanks to a team of spirited volunteers. Information Session: Date: 9:00am Sat, Dec 13th 2014, Venue: Twin Hickory Park (behind Twin Hickory Library.) Duration: 1 hour Look forward to seeing you there - go Team IAVA!!

Join the Team! The IAVA Committee-2015 is soliciting volunteers! Next year, we will be expanding and diversifying the portfolio of our activities and no matter how much time you can devote and in what area, we will find a fit. And it is an excellent way to stay connected with your roots, and make the fabric of our community in central Virginia richer and stronger. Please call Milind Pendse: 1-804-803-1380 Or Email: darpan@iava.us

IAVA 2015 Activities

Save The Date and Get Ready for Republic Day 2015 Celebrations! Drawing/Art/Collage Competitions: Saturday, 01/24/2015

Cultural Program: Saturday, 01/31/2015, Venue: TBD

A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

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A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

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A Reflection of Indian Community Activities

The Editor, DARPAN India Association of VA 2629 Gayton Grove Road Richmond, VA 23233

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