India Association of Minnesota

December 2024 Newsletter

51 Years Supporting the Indian Community

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IAM News & Events

India Association of Minnesota GBM

The annual General Body Meeting (GBM) was held on Sunday, November 10, 2024 at the Brookdale Library.

IAM General Secretary, Mangala Acharya, kicked off the proceedings. TAC Chairman, Sreeni Checka, welcomed the IAM members to the annual event, spoke about the logistics of the GBM, and facilitated the nominations process. IAM treasurer, Uma Venkat presented a recap of the 2024 budget, answering questions about IAM's finances. 2024 President Meena Bharti showed a video highlighting the events during the year, thanked the 2024 team and spoke on all that had been accomplished. Niru Misra, representing both the Past Presidents' Club and By-laws Committee, discussed their ongoing initiatives and shared their vision for IAM's future trajectory.

The main business of the meeting then took place. The Nominations for the 2025 Board and all other positions in IAM were voted on. Congratulations to the IAM 2025 team led by President Elect, Srividya Vaidyanathan. The January IAM Newsletter will have a full list of the 2025 IAM Team.

We encourage all community members to become an IAM member and participate in future GBM meetings, shape the work of IAM, and advance our mission. See membership section below.

A Message from 2024 President Meena Bharti

It has been an immense honor to serve as the 2024 IAM President. I am deeply grateful to everyone on the board whose dedication and hard work have made 2024 a resounding success. Our achievements this year would not have been possible without their tireless efforts.

Our connections and work with various regional and Asian organizations, state legislatures, and the Indian consulate, has made this year remarkable and furthered the reach and recognition of IAM in the Twin Cities.

One of our significant accomplishments was hosting a successful consular camp, where individuals could walk in to get their visa or Indian consulate-related questions answered, apply for a Visa or OCI, and access other consular services. We were proud to support the Indian consulate in Minnesota and serve our community in this capacity.

Despite the touch of rain, IndiaFest this year was our largest to date. Attendees enjoyed a vibrant cultural program, over 100 booths representative of the local Indian population, and a variety of delicious Indian foods at the State Capitol in Saint Paul. We are incredibly grateful for your unwavering support of all our programs.

Our commitment to assisting the Indian diaspora in the Twin Cities remained steadfast, IAM is here to address any concerns the Indian community may have, and we are always ready to advocate on your behalf.

This year, our mission has been to connect with our community and give back, whether to our Indian or local Minnesota community. We were involved in a variety of causes, from packing essentials for distribution to homeless people, supporting the Jajba group for women's initiatives, to hosting the nostalgic 90s concert to raise money for cancer research.

I am deeply grateful to the entire IAM family, our members, sponsors, well-wishers, and the Indian community for their unwavering love and support. I would also like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my family, who understand the significance of community service and supported me throughout this journey, making it possible for me to serve.

With that, I would like to welcome our diverse and talented 2025 board and the Officer's team. I am confident they will continue to advance our mission with your support.

Dhanyawad

2024 has been a successful year for India Association of Minnesota (IAM) bringing back several successful programs designed for our partner organizations and the community as well as introducing some new events. We advanced our mission to build a cohesive Indian-American community by advocating for diversity & inclusion, increasing appreciation for multiculturalism and strengthening our value pillars of Charity, Connections and Culture through various events and initiatives.

IAM could not have achieved these goals without all your help and support.

Our annual event to thank our volunteers, corporate sponsors, partners and members will be held on Sunday, December 8, 2024. This is an invitation only event. If you have not RSVP'd, please do by Monday, December 2, 2024.

January IAM Event - Mark Your Calendars

Urban Expedition - India - Sundays at Landmark

IAM is partnering with the Landmark Center in St. Paul on January 12, 2025 to highlight the Indian culture. Free event from 1:00 - 3:00 pm.

Watch for more information on the IAM website and the January newsletter.

IAM Cancer Awareness Event - Nostalgic 90"s

October is observed as Breast Cancer Awareness month.

For the last 3 years, IAM has been annually organizing a social fundraiser for spreading awareness about breast cancer. This year, IAM brought this event in the form of a musical concert called Nostalgic 90s, in collaboration with Sur Aur Taal. The cast included some well established artists from the community who performed several popular Bollywood songs from the 1990s.

The event was well attended by the community, selling over 300 tickets.

The ticket sales and donations attributed to funds being raised to benefit Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund, which was in alignment with the shift to expand the cause to different kinds of cancer impacting the Asian Indian community.

The event was well attended by the community, selling over 300 tickets.

Because of the generosity of all of you, IAM will present a check for $9,000 to the Randy Shaver Community Fund.

The Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund is to assist and support the cancer community in Minnesota by funding research, prevention, treatment and other programs relating to the cancer community’s principal needs.

You can still contribute to this cause by clicking on the link below. Click on individual donation and in the optional field, choose "In Honor of" and write in India Association of Minnesota.

https://randyshavercancerfund.org/

IAM Participating in the Community

Target - IAM Partnership

On October 30, 2024, IAM officers, Meena Bharti, Srividya Vaidyanathan and Mangala Acharya spent the morning at Target in downtown Minneapolis. They participated with Target employees, packing bags of necessities for those in need. The 300 bags with an IAM sticker were delivered to Catholic Charities the next day.

IAM is pleased to partner with our sponsors in serving the community.

Children of Dharma

The world premier of Ragamala Dance Company's Children of Dharma took poace at Northrop Auditorium on the University of Minnesota campus on Saturday evening, November 2, 2024.

“The staging, the choreography, the dancing, the music - GORGEOUS! What a complex, mature, multilayered portrayal. The performance was stunning! The dance, music, lighting immediately wrapped you up in the story in a very emotional way. I loved the theatricality of it, and everyone danced so beautifully! Such strength, fluidity, and vibrancy. Inspiring.”

IAM greeted the attendees with an IAM display in the lobby of Northrop. Indian community members Lisa Gada Norton, Niru Misra and her daughters Asha and Jaya demonstrated Saree wrapping. IAM representatives enjoyed the pre and post receptions hosted by Northrop. India Association of Minnesota President Meena Bharti addressed the audience prior to the performane beginning.

In attendance from IAM were President Meena Bharti, Nithya Mathad, Sanjay Terakanambi and Alice Northrup. IAM past presidents Niru Misra (1994), Godan Namboodiripad (1995), Shanti Shah (1992) and Stefan Peterson (1988). Also attending were Honorary IAM board members Dr SK Dash and Ram Gada.

To read StarTribune review Click Here

IAM Membership

India Association of Minnesota invites you to become a sustaining member of the organization. As the Indian population in Minnesota increases, it is more important than ever that the community be involved in the activities of IAM as it represents our common interests.

The benefits are many, including participation in the annual election of IAM officers and board members, running for a seat on the board or becoming a part of the IAM committees (Government Relations, Cultural, History and SAARI).

For more information send an email to contact@iamn.org and an IAM board member will contact you. To become an IAM member Click Here or click on the QR code.

Welcome to new IAM members

Appreciation

Give to the Max - Thank You!

India Association of Minnesota participated in Minnesota's Give to the Max Day on November 21, 2024. Thank you to everyone who contributed to to make Asian-Indian cultural heritage accessible to all Miinnesotans in the following ways:

Help IAM sustain cultural specific programming and initiatives
Support our mission to build a cohesive Asian-Indian community in Minnesota
Give to IAM to support student scholarships, cancer awareness, relief missions in India and other ways IAM pays it forward.

If you missed Give to the Max Day and want to contribute to IAM Click Here or send a check to IAM, PO Box 130158, St. Paul, MN. 55113.

Gratitude to Think Bank

Through the generosity of Think Bank, India Association of Minnesota has held its monthly board meetings, since the beginning of 2020, in the bank's community room.

"Doing our part to make our communities better places to live, work and play is a core value of Think Bank." Think Gives Day is a one-day event when the employee volunteer teams go out into the community to paint, clean, pack, move, rake, build, haul and much more. In 2023, the offices were closed for one day while 222 employees performed 1300 hours of service.

Pictured from the Edina branch of Think Bank are Sam Awad, Branch Manager Dustin Buhr and Eric Jones.

Think Bank is an American mutual bank started and based in Rochester, MN. It was founded in 1961 as the IBM Rochester Employees Credit Union. After a couple of evolutions, it became Think Bank in 2007 and was opened to the public. The bank focus is customer service, to meet the needs of the community and is non-commission based. The Edina Hazelton Road branch opened 10 years ago.

India Association of Minnesota sincerely thanks Think Bank

Asian Media Access (AMA) - Promoting IAM

Thank you to Ange Hwang and the staff at AMA for their support. The IAM events are published in their monthly newsletter, encouraging the greater Asian community to attend the IAM events like IndiaFest and the Holiday Bazaar. AMA has also included IAM interns in their educational programs in the past.

https://ww1.amamedia.org/

Community Events

Bharat Ko Janiye Quiz

Minnesota Malayalee Association (MMA)

MMA invites all community members to Christmas 2024

When: Saturday, 7th December, 2024

Time: 11:00 am - 5:30 pm

Where: 4551 W 102nd St, Bloomington, MN 55437

Registration Fee:

Adults (16 +): $35 for members / $70 for non-members
Kids (4 - 15 years): $30 for members / $60 for non-members
Visiting Parents (65+ years): $30 for members / $60 for non-members

Last Date to Register: December, 3rd 2024

to purchase tickets Click Here

https://mnmalayalee.org/mma/

Ragamala Dance Company

Ragamala announces 18-month New York City residency

The company will make quarterly trips to NYC for performances, classes, lectures/talks, and workshops. Partner organizations include The New York Public Library’s Dance Division, Lincoln Center, The Joyce Theater, New York University, and more!

Monday, January 6, 2025

New York Public Library

Artist talk

New York, NY

Wednesday, January 8 - Sunday, January 12, 2025

The Joyce Theater

New York, NY

Ragamala Dance Company

Stay Connected with IAM

Visit the IAM Website IAM Facebook Instagram @iamnorg

IAM is on X (twitter) too!

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Submissions for the IAM Facebook page or future newsletters, please email us at marketing@iamn.org

To subscribe to IAM youtube channel: Click Here

To sign up for the IAM newsletter: Click Here