Annual Report 2005 - 2006

submitted by Jyoti Chander

Before I elaborate on SHAMA’s activities for this fiscal year, I would like to express my gratitude and sincere thanks to the board of directors, executive committee members, and volunteers who work very hard throughout the year to make this organization flourish and grow.

We really appreciate Ron Strege’s help for providing a Home for SHAMA’s work. His generosity helps to pay the mailing and printing cost from his department budget. He has offered to pay for yard signs this year. We are grateful to him for the love in his heart for the less fortunate and for diversity education in this area.
Linda Pluke works very hard to make all programs of SHAMA successful. She is the driving force behind all the publicity work and drafting and printing all the brochures every one receives. Single-handedly she works on invitation letters; reserve the date postcards, and the festival program.
Richa Chander & Linda have worked together on the SHAMA WELL brochures and on volunteer recruitment.
The ShamaKids program has sponsors from many states in the USA besides three in the UK and one each in Canada, Australia & Spain. Jagdish Chander is shouldering the responsibility of this program and is doing much of the SHAMA’s communication work with different organizations in India and in US.
Steve Bartelt shoulders all of the responsibility of reminding sponsors about their payment due dates, sending out the children’s thank you notes, reports & pictures (over 700 mailings per year) and working on subcommittees for By-Laws and guidelines. Many Thanks, Steve.
We are grateful to Dr Kameshwar Razdan and Dr Robert Kreczner for their many hours of dedicated work. Many thanks also to Dr Ashok Bhargava, SHAMA’s outreach director, for expanding the horizons of SHAMA.
Dr Lynn Kirby designed and added the SHAMA WELL part to the website besides keeping the pages regularly and meticulously updated. We are highly thankful to her for her continued assistance and involvement.

The following items report the work done by volunteers for SHAMA, Inc. and its projects during the 2005-2006 fiscal year.

Jyoti and friends raised $585.05 (after expenses 835.17) for SHAMA at the Jazz Fest in Stevens Point on Labor Day weekend 2005. Redeemer Lutheran Church assisted with kitchen use.
The eighteenth annual Festival of India was a successful event with approximately 450 attendees, and 80 volunteers. The attendance was lower than in earlier years due to competing events the same evening. We raised $5,526 ($9837- $4411) at this Oct 8, 2005 event.
SHAMA celebrated a volunteer appreciation and lively Diwali festival in November 2005 at Redeemer Lutheran Church.
South Asia Society UWSP conducted a fundraising stall for SHAMA, Inc. at the University Center. Linda Pluke, Jyoti, Richa Chander and UWSP students Prakash Rai, Ellen Kuklinski & Satyam Patel helped at the Stall in February 2006.
Jackie Kolenko, a teacher at the Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School in Viroqua, WI organized a fundraiser for ShamaKids on Jan 14, 2006. The event was modeled after Stevens Point ‘Festival of India’ involving the school children and community with workshops and vegetarian lunch. Richa Chander gave a Bharat Natyam dance performance and workshop along with the gypsy dancers. UWSP student Prakash Rai, Linda Pluke from Multicultural Affairs, Jagdish, Jyoti & Richa Chander went there to give workshops, attend gift stalls and help celebrate the function. The school’s classes sent in a donation of $755. An additional amount of $846 they raised through lunch & other sales & donations was received by SHAMA at the end of January 2006.
Dr. Ashok Bhargava went to India from January to March 06 and visited SHAMA’s work in Mumbai and village Mhaskal. He gave a very good report about the administration of SHAMA’s work in India. He was instrumental in getting some computer keyboards donated for SHAMA’s work at P.N. Doshi College (PND).
SHAMA’s Heritage India Group celebrated Indian festival of colors ‘Holi’ on May 7, 2006. It was a great success. Devinder Sandhu helped in organizing the food and dance. Last year it was combined with Raakhi, the siblings’ day, which will be combined with the Festival of India this year.
Heritage India Day was celebrated in June 2006 by teaching adopted families ‘How to make Indian Chai’, by Raj Razdan, and Richa Chander taught the families of adopted Indian children, adopted Indian children, UWSP students and community members Indian Dancing, Bhangra, Dandia. Richa, Prathima Chembu and Raj Razdan taught the mothers “How to wear a Sari”. Devinder Sandhu organized the food.
SHAMA was fortunate to receive a large donation from a Pfizer employee (with employer matching) earmarked to start a department of graduate education & Research at P N Doshi College. A total of over $57,000 was sent to PND during spring of 2006.
SHAMA also received a donation of $12,000 from a Bay Area donor earmarked for PN Doshi College to start a Language Lab (similar to ESL) which will help bright and poor students increase their proficiency in English to become competitive in professional exams and to work in the modern world.
SHAMA Inc. gave money for two computers to assist poor students in learning computer skills. Instruction will be provided regularly at the PND College in Mumbai.
The micro-loan program SHAMA WELL approved at last year’s Board of Directors’ meeting was launched at the Festival. We have been successful in approving seventy three women’s projects to date, 45 in Ghat Kopar & Mhaskal, 15 in Jahangirabad near Cuttack in Orissa, 13 in Perambalur Dist of Tamil Nadu and one in Jhall near Malerkotla, Dist. Sangrur in Punjab. The program in Orissa is in collaboration with ADIRE (Alternative Development Initiative Renewable Energy). Shreemayee & Durga Prasad Kar of Green Bay, WI, are the directors of the program in Orissa. The program in Tamil Nadu is in collaboration with READ of Sahaya International, headquartered in the Bay Area. The program in the village of Jhall is supervised by Dr. Devinder Sandhu’s father who is the principal of the village school there.
Jyoti Chander spoke to a group of Natural Women on Feb 3, 2006, getting two SHAMA WELL micro-loans sponsored as a result.
Dr Ashok Bhargava was instrumental in introducing the work of SHAMA and collecting $747 of donations for “in Memoriam” to our common dear friend, Narayan Sankaran, in Madison. These donations are being used for SHAMA WELL projects.
Pat Reckrey, Richa & Jyoti Chander talked to the retirees of Midstate Technical & Vocational School on March 21, 2006. Six SHAMA WELL women were sponsored as a result of this meeting.
Many SHAMA volunteers including Steve Bartelt, Devinder Sandhu, Richa, Jagdish & Jyoti Chander and Tarina Swanson helped South Asia Society of UWSP to raise funds for SHAMA at the annual Portage County Culture Fest on April 22, 2006.
Ashok organized a meeting of his friends at his residence in Madison on July 22, 2006, to build support for SHAMA. A positive outcome of that meeting is that Ashok’s friend Dr G M Naidu and his friends are working with SHAMA for a village elementary school development project in Kotha Palle, Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh. This work is being carried out in cooperation with READ (Rural Education And Development) of Sahaya International 501 (c) (3) organization.
SHAMA received a donation of $2,000 earmarked for scholarships to students of a grade school in the village of Jhall near Malerkotla, Dist. Sangrur in Punjab. Dr Devinder Sandhu’s father who is the principal of this school oversees this program.
On August 19, 2006, Jyoti and Dr Devinder Sandhu went to Bethesda, MD to build support for SHAMA in DC at the initiative and invitation of Manjushri Sen. Richa Chander flew to DC and performed Indian classical dance for the occasion. We served Indian food prepared by Aruna Kondal and Jyoti. A cultural entertainment program was presented to entertain the guests. Devinder and his brother Dr Harjinder Sandhu taught Bhangra dance and performed Bhangra at the gathering. There was a wonderful young energy to do the work of SHAMA. Ruchi Kohli a civil engineer offered to write grant for SHAMA. She reviews grant applications at her job. The meeting was attended by 40 people, including a chief of neurosurgery, and Mr. Guy Olson, a former US ambassador to Panama.
Dr Devinder Sandhu, Richa Chander, Jagdish, Jyoti and friends helped in celebrating ‘First American Indian Festival’ in Waupaca. There was Dandia, Bhangra, Henna Painting, Gypsy Dancing and Indian Vocal Classical singing and Bhajans by Ragis of Sikh Temple, Menasha and by Shreemayee Kar of Green Bay. Indian food was sold.
SHAMA provided funds to build a home for a homeless ‘goat herding woman’. She took the village goats for grazing in the field and slept with the goats all her life. A picture of her four room house is on the web to see. Pat Reckrey from Wisconsin met the woman and sponsored the home. The home is serving as a school for tailoring, literacy, and with the intention to establish electric connection for basic computer training.
Community gardening continued development through SHAMA, Inc. in Mhaskal village. A tube irrigation system has begun operation, and water from a near-by canal has been brought into the village with water pipes. Pictures are on the Website to see. Additional allocation in the Community gardening project included planting fruit trees and installing protection for saplings from animals.
SHAMA Inc. allocated a grant for the treatment of red-light district HIV patients in Mumbai. P N Doshi College supervised the program.
SHAMA also allocated funds to support the women crisis center in Stevens Point

At Press Time: SHAMA has received READ’s By-Laws, audited tax report, and annual report for members to review.

Our friend Dr Gurdip Brar and Ashok are planning to help us with the booth for SHAMA on India Day, September 9, 2006, in Madison this year. Any volunteers who wish to go along will be highly appreciated.

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