There is no doubt that the times have changed, it is a different world, than the one which most of us grew up in. Just within the past few weeks, we were shocked, once again, with news of brutal killing of an Ahmedi Homeopathic doctor in his clinic. This, only to be followed by the shocking shooting of Amjad Sabri, a Pakistani treasure. While target killings and terror mongering seems to have re-initiated in Karachi, the world has faced the worst chain of terrorist attacks. Unfortunately the Holiest Month of Ramzan, a month for asking forgiveness and designed to teach us patience and tolerance, have been used to reign terror in an LGBT club in Orlando and massacre Muslims in Istanbul, Dhaka and Baghdad. All this had been done in the name of Islam, one of the most peaceful religions in the world.
In the past, we have received many inquiries for advertising jobs to APPNA members. Unfortunately we did not have any vehicle to advertise such placements.
We are pleased to inform you that as a service to our members we have initiated an APPNA job board.
The job board is available for both prospective employers and job seekers. This service is of course available to our members only.
During the floods in 2011, the village of Munirabad in Punjab, was badly affected and homes got destroyed. APPNA adopted this village and there were a hundred homes built in this area.
There was also a vocational rehab center built to help train the ladies in the village to stitch clothes for a living. More recently, TCF chapter of DC has raised funds along with APPNA and a school is being built here and will educate children in the neighboring villages as well.
Many thanks to Appna for this great effort to raise funds for Eman in her battle with leukemia.
Due to generous contributions from Appna members along with famiy and friends, we were able to collect 37,884 USD . The amount was directly transferred and received by the Hospital in Italy where Eman is receiving treatment. This is a substantial amount and means a lot to Eman's family. Many heartfelt prayers for everyone who have contributed and prayed for little Eman.
Eman and her parents have reached Italy where initial testing has started. Please do remember little angel Eman in your prayers.
Special thanks to Dr. Nasar Qureshi, Dr. Aisha Zafar, Dr. Faheem Abbasi, Dr. Faheem Raheem and his brother Dr. Naeem Raheem , Dr. Rao Kamran Ali who helped organize this effort.
We are very excited to announce the two new membership benefits to APPNA Members.
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Car Rental Program :
Enterprise Holdings (Enterprise, National and Alamo) has a fleet of over 987,018 vehicles with 6,802 locations across North America. With large fleet and more access to their locations, APPNA members can get their next car rental on discounted rates easily and with more choices of vehicles.
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Legal Services: APPNA members can now avail themselves great legal services, especially in regards to immigration and visa processing, at highly competitive rates. We have partnered with some of the best attorneys in USA to guide APPNA members, as well as new incoming residents, at special discounts with an option of monthly installments.
APPNA members together with members of Central Florida Pakistani Community organized a vigil on June 19th, 2016 at
Eola Park, Orlando at 7:30 pm. One week previously 49 persons died in a mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando by a lone gunman. Members of the expatriate Pakistani community wished to express their condolences and solidarity with the families of this tragedy.
APPNA distributed free bottled water, chicken wraps and fruits to the participants of this public vigil which held crowds numbering 50,000.
T-shirts were also distributed free of cost to the members of the public. Many members of the public came forward and hugged members of APPNA delegation. Florida Gov. Rick Scott, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs, Orlando Police Chief John Mina and District 4 Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan attended the vigil.
APPNA represents the most financially stable group within the Pakistani Diaspora, representing approximately 15,000 physicians who live and practice in North America. The members of APPNA have been extensively involved in the social welfare, healthcare policy and philanthropy both locally within the communities we live in, as well as in Pakistan. Over the years APPNA has been involved in numerous financial initiatives to support big projects in Pakistan and US. However, we as a group are not giving back enough to the Pakistani descent community in the U.S.
APPNA recently initiated the Adopt a Medical Student program. Every year, many medical students are not able to join or continue their medical colleges due to lack of funding and family commitments. APPNA is collaborating with I Care Foundation in Pakistan to identify eligible students who are unable to afford medical education. The students will be interviewed and their financial status determined according to pre-set criteria. Those eligible, are given these scholarships which are 600 dollars per year. The educational performance of these students will be monitored on an ongoing basis, and, regular updates will be given to the sponsors.