Government award celebrates the achievements of HSSF

Hindu Social Services Foundation (HSSF) has won the 2015 NSW Carers Award (Highly Commended) for yeomen services to community, at a glittering ceremony held recently at NSW Parliament House.

Initiated last year, the national awards recognise and celebrate the significant effortand extraordinary contribution of carers, both to individuals and wider community. Coinciding with Carers Week (11-17 October), the awards are organised by the NSW Government in partnership with Carers NSW to raise awareness of the key elements of the NSW Carers Act. Nominations were invited in June and assessed by a special panel from NSW Department of Family and Community Services.
According to latest census, there are 2.7 million carers in Australia, 770,000 of whom are primary carers – providing round the clock support to someone in need. In NSW, more than one in 10 people provide unpaid care to the elderly or those with disability, mental illness, a chronic health condition or dementia.
“The National Carer Awards spotlight the extraordinary role of carers in our society,” John Ajaka, Minister for Ageing and Disability Services said. “These awards are a way for Australians to say thank you for the significant contribution made not just to the lives of those they care for, but the nation as a whole.”
State winners will now enter the running for a National Carer Award across four categories – foster and kinship, aged care, disability carer, and young carer aged 25 years and under. The winners will be announced in November.

Initiated by Swami Vigyananda during the second annual Hindu conference in 2009, Hindu Social Services Foundation is the only organisation of its kind to service the holistic needs of Hindu families in Australia. Inspired by the motto Sat Hastha Samahara, Sahastra Hastha Sankira (create wealth with 100 hands and share it with 1000), HSSF has raised awareness of the needs of differently abled people from ethnic minorities. It has successfully driven many projects and programs, particularly reaching out to culturally diverse communities in the Hills Shire, Parramatta, Holroyd, Liverpool, Blacktown and Hornsby.
The NSW chapter, which caters for over 300 carers, is managed by Dr Shoba Rudra Kumar, Akila Ramarathinam, Subashree Balachander, Saraswati Sashi, R Subramaniam, Uma Ramasubramaniam and Venkatraman.
“Acknowledging our work through such mainstream recognition is a huge step and means a lot to our special families and their carers,” Akila Ramarathinam told Indian Link. “Our organisation exists primarily through the selfless contribution of volunteers. They have worked tirelessly to provide support to carers and their familiesboth through physical and financial contributions. The network is amazing.”
Ramarathinam expressed how winning such an award will help raise HSSF’s profile in the community.

“We particularly want to reach out to new migrants,” she said. “Finding roots in a new country is hard enough for normal families; for disability carers it can be overwhelming. Our aim is to facilitate links and provide respite, resources and support services to such families. Hopefully we can access better funding for such services through greater recognition,” she added.

Under the aegis of VHP Australia, HSSF has fostered strong partnerships with mainstream disability institutions, multicultural groups, local, state and federal governments to initiate activities and build awareness of carers in the community. Among the institutions HSSF works closely with are Differently Abled People Association (DAPA), Boronio Multi Cultural Centre, Bhutanese Refugee Centre, Norwest Disability Centre, Special Olympics Group, Chinese Special Support Group, alongside other disability schools and centres throughout Sydney’s west and northwest.
HSSF runs annual camps, workshops, training and information sessions, cultural events, charity shows and picnic days for carers and their loved ones. Reaching out to newly migrated families with special needs children, it also organises networking sessions.
The flagship disability carer’s picnic has been a huge success involving many mainstream families as well. Differently abled students have been integrated into the Bala Samskar Kendra classes with specially tailored shloka chanting and music therapy programs.
“The unique feature of our organisation is its inclusive and tolerant outlook. Our policy is embrace rather than exclude – Vasudeva Kutumbakam – the world, as one happy family is our underlying philosophy,” Akila Ramarathinam explained. “Although Hindu in name, our aim is to facilitate events where the carers from any ethnic, religious or cultural background can come together, sit back, relax and enjoy, leaving their worries behind for the day.”
The HSSF annual special needs day out is scheduled for 28 November at Don Moore Centre, while a carers’picnic to Helensburgh Temple has been organised for 6 December.

October school holidays is HSS Children’s Camp time

For nine-year-old Diksha, the recent school holidays were somewhat different.
She attended the annual Hindu Swayam Sewak Sangh’s (HSS) Children and Youth Camp.
“I made loads of new friends and we played some fun games,” she told Indian Link. “Oh, and I learned some new mantras too!”
Over 90 kids took part this year in the annual camp held during the October school holidays. Aged 8-13, they came from a range of Indian backgrounds.
For some it was a debut camp while others were repeat attendees. Many were regularswho attend the weekly Shakha activities.

The Bundilla Scout Camp in Greater Western Sydney was the perfect venue for accommodating over 200 HSS participants over the course of the four days. The camp was jam-packed with content such as team activities, group discussions, games, prayer sessions, disco night, campfire and so on. But the theme this year was “The Story of India’s Independence”, starting from the first invasion by King Alexander to Independence from the British in 1947.
The focus was to highlight to the kids the richness of India’s ancient culture and how it has endured despite the continuous occupation of the country for an incredible 1000 years.

Ice-breaker sessions on the Friday set the mood for the kids after which they went into their bunk beds. (Reports were that midnight snacks and late-night chat sessions did their bit towards group bonding that came in very handy over the next few days!)
The planned activities were divided into interestingly named sessions.
The prayer session ‘Eesh Chintan’ on Day 1 was serene and musical as children recited their mantras. ‘Pratah’ (morning) Shakha followed, including prarthana and games. The highlight of the day was the outdoor activity “Amazing Race”, which encouraged children to work in groups to accomplish team-tasks.
Later they let their creativity run wild as they poured their hearts and souls into creating clay figures relating to India’s cultural achievements and artefacts. It was very pleasing to see them brought to life.
The jam-packed day didn’t stop there. The campers’ day was then filled with a session of ‘Shaka’ where they played games such as tug of war and the dog and the bone. For many children this was the best part of the camp.

Divya Rajagopalan, a fifth time HSS camp attendee, took home some fond memories from this time. “I loved the Blow the Whistle competition,” she told Indian Link. “The teams had to lift the smallest person in their group to blow a whistle that was tied at a height. It was a new game and heaps of fun!”
The activities were then followed by ‘Aarti’, where children got the chance to dress up in colourful, traditional Indian attire followed by the second session of ‘Boudhik’ where children learnt about the pre-Mughal era. The shikshaks (facilitators) brought the era to life with an interesting storytelling session complimented with sound effects.
The treasure hunt was loved by all the kids where they got the opportunity to search for clues with their friends. This was followed by an interesting and knowledge filled ‘Boudhik’ session where they learnt about Maharana Pratap and Chatrapathi Shivaji and his conquests for peace and harmony in India. The experienced shikshaks spoke about many valiant kings and queens of India and how their actions influence India to this day. Kabaddi, kho-kho, trivias – you name it and it became a truly amazing experience for the kids.

“I made some very nice new friends this year and that was cool,” Divya remarked.
It was also a debut for Sahana Sateesha, one of the young facilitators of the HSS camp, along with Vaishnavi Ramyavaran and Kailash Satyanarayan. The young team helped motivate, socialise and bring smiles to the young campers’ faces.
“The kids came wearing their ‘FUN’ hat, looking beautiful and with an awesome attitude,” said Sahana.
The conclusion ceremony involved all 150 volunteers and parents who then engaged in an interactive session.
“Kudos to the 150 HSS volunteer team from eight different Shakhas who served approximately 2000 meals, ran intellectual and physical activities, prepared food, administered and managed the site,” said Shivakumar Rajagopalan, a senior HSS volunteer.
“Each year the camp does a remarkable job in strengthening the cultural identity of the kids through the process of imparting knowledge, history and values,” said Ramyavaran Ramaswamy, HSS head in Sydney.
This year the kids truly lived the mantra of ‘Eat, pray, play and love’ during the camp.

The streets of Liverpool host a classic Bollywood-style Ganpati Visarjan procession

Every year, marking the conclusion of the ten-day festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, devotees immerse idols of the elephant-headed Lord Ganesha in water. Chants of “Ganpati Bappa Morya” and sounds of the dhol resound through the streets as followers proceed towards the water.
It was indeed an impressive visual on the main streets of Liverpool this September as Friends of India, Australia hosted a two-day celebration giving the impression that Maharashtra had come to Sydney.
With this year marking the 20^th annual Ganeshotsava, the festivities were a grand affair.
Various poojas, a Ganpati installation with an ornate stage, preparation of eco-friendly Ganesha deities, a cultural extravaganza, bhajans, and a Ganpati immersion procession were just a few of the incredible highlights.
The Ganeshotsava FOIA team, about 400 volunteers from the Liverpool area, welcomed more than 5000 enthusiasts during the weekend and ensured that they all enjoyed themselves and were rewarded with the mahaprasadam (sanctified food of the Indian vegetarian delicacy of pulav, korma and sweets made out of carrots).
The highlight of the Saturday program was the inaugural pooja when the Pandit lifted a coconut above his head and smashed it against the floor, crushing it into pieces.
A semicircle of onlookers, draped in magenta, saffron, violet and burgundy, clapped as if in chorus.
“The coconut shell is like the human ego,” said the Pandit, “You have to break open the ego-filled intellect to let the Lord reside in your pure heart.”

It was also an opportunity for the new generation of devotees to exercise and understand their religious tasks.
At a special chanting ceremony for children, primary school students clasped their hands and shut their eyes tightly as they recited the mantras and shlokas.
“Ganesha is my favourite god,” they said, before explaining how they learnt the mythology behind how the deity came to have an elephant head.
Engaging children’s activities were followed by devotional bhajans and kirtans by budding artists. Then began the cultural gala session.
A contemporary-style Indian dance combining classical and South Indian beats was a not to be missed performance by Smruthi, Vaishnavi and team of nine amazing girls draped in red sarees.
The last day of the festival, following the morning pooja and chanting, began with children’s fancy dress.

Kids as young as four years old dressed up as the cutest little Hindu lords and exhibited their traditional Indian wardrobes.
In true Aussie style, the gigantic Ganesha deity was then set on the back of a ute to move in the procession, along with the smaller bio-degradable Ganesha clay idol.
The procession itself was a unique experience as hundreds of Ganesha devotees sang and danced away with joy.
“Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudcha Varshi Laukariya” they chanted for over an hour, asking Lord Ganesha to come early next year.
A ten-year-old youngster named Amogha Pradeep became the hero of the afternoon as devotees followed him while he sat on his older brother’s shoulders and stridently yelled ‘Ganpati Bappa’.
It was just incredible to see his zeal supported by everyone around him who followed repeating ‘Morya’. (The term Morya comes from Morya Gosavi who was a famous devotee of Lord Ganesha in 14th century Pune.)
After reaching the water, the eco-friendly idol was immersed in Chipping Norton Lake on the Georges River, symbolising that the Lord Ganesha, also known as an obstacle remover, takes away all pains and sorrows from people’s lives and in return blesses each one with love and happiness.
The FOIA team, lead by Shoba Deshikan, Ramyavaran Vasu, Rajeev Jairam, Rajesh Jolapara and Lakshmi Ramyavaran, did a fantastic job on the 20th anniversary of Ganeshotsava in 2015.
Their legacy has been passed on to the younger generations, and young volunteers such as Divya, Krishna, Tanu, Vaishnavi and Charishma also played a major role in planning this enormous festival with the support of hundreds of other volunteers.
Both the days were well attended by dignitaries, MPs, local councillors, community leaders, members of Liverpool Council and local police.
Everyone supported the festival and congratulated all participants and volunteers for their enthusiasm and service.

Indian Australians raise funds for charity at the City-Bay Fun Run

The City-Bay Fun Run in Adelaide has been running for 43 years now and attracts over 30,000 participants.
It is a 12km route but people can join in at the 6km mark or for the last 3kms too. And those not so fit to run, can walk as well.

Many of the runners choose a charity to raise funds for and the highest funds raised this year by one group was over $11,000 for Breast Cancer Network.
The event was held on Sunday 20 September and drew a large number of participants and spectators as well as those there for the fun of it!
There were Smurfs and Starwars Storm Troopers, Bart Simpson and Superman, Superwoman, Supergirl, the Grinch and monkeys, gorillas and many other costumed people.
Most of them completed the run/walk too! Just being part of the whole thing, even as a spectator, was great fun!
Every year there is an increasing number of Indian participants and some did raise money for various charities.
Others went just for the fun of it or to achieve a fitness goal.
Sunaina Sharma walked to support Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service.

Celebrating a fair go for all, Daljit (Kaur) Rao receives a Pride of Australia medal

 

The Pride of Australia Medal celebrates the unsung heroes of the community, recognising and rewarding the nation’s most outstanding members of the public.
During a five week nomination period, nominations are received across ten categories, including Child of Courage, Outstanding Bravery, Inspiration, Fair Go, Heroism, Courage, Young Leader, Environment, Care and Compassion and Community Spirit.
A panel of judges in each state and territory select three finalists per category from all nominations received during the nomination period.
Once these finalists are announced, the state has the opportunity to vote for their most deserving medallist across all categories in the Pride of Australia People’s Choice Medal.
This year, Daljit (Kaur) Rao of Adelaide was nominated for the Pride of Australia medal in the Fair Go category and won the People’s Choice Award. Congratulations, Daljit!

Arriving in Adelaide from Fiji as a 14-year-old in 1974, I am sure Daljit was filled with all the emotions of a teenager asked to move from the familiarity of her school, her friends, relatives and old haunts.
The tenuous excitement of moving to Australia was dampened when she discovered that her English was very different to what was spoken here!
Sensitive to not only language and cultural issues, but also the problems facing new migrants, young Daljit dreamt of one day having her own business that would assist newly arrived migrants from all walks of life and ensure they were not being disadvantaged owing to English language, and to find ways to equip them with employability skills.
Today she has done just that, establishing two organisations in 2013.
Visionplanet Australia was set up for counselling and guiding students in their pathway education to achieve a successful outcome.
Simultaneously PEAR (Professional Education Academic Requirement) was established to prepare overseas students and migrants for study in Australia. English/IELTS and OET preparation advice was also provided for professionals to attain registration and gain appropriate employability skills by acquiring language proficiency, understanding Australian work culture and social integration.
For the past 13 years, Daljit has assisted migrants turn their dream of studying and working in Australia into a reality.
Along the way, she has become a positive role model to many. Her Pride of Australia profile states, ‘With a passion and commitment to pass on the skills that stood her in good stead, Daljit wants to ensure that today’s migrants are better prepared and have greater access to information and resources than she did nearly 40 years ago.’
At the elegant Medal Ceremony on 23 September, Daljit said she was absolutely overwhelmed at winning the People’s Choice Award which is not just what the judges decide but is voted for by the people of South Australia.
She feels very proud that it is a recognition by the people. She also attempted to explain to Indian Link very genuinely how she “want(s) to add value in the community…that is by developing, working with the people to help them integrate into society here”.
She hopes to do this by running courses for students and migrants who come from India and other countries to not only learn English literacy, but all aspects of the language.
Daljit feels strongly, fluency in English requires not just basic reading, writing, speaking skills but doing it the Australian way.
Especially speaking and understanding local colloquialisms, the jokes, the mannerisms and taking an interest in the topics locals are interested in. “It is very hard to change our accent,” she says, “But not so hard to change our attitude.”
She feels our attempt to improve our language skills should not be limited to a certain score in IELTS or OET but include non-verbal communication, social skills, etiquette, our conduct in various situations like interviews, workplace, work parties, etc.
All these would help us integrate into our new country better, not just language literacy skills.
Daljit’s vision for the future is “to help our people with language and help them settle in”.
She believes that our people need guidance to choose the right academic path, change attitudes, acquire the non-verbals to communicate better which would all help them integrate quicker in society here.
These would break the barriers in settling down and make life much more

Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations in Adelaide continue to expand

One of the most awaited Indian festivals, Ganesh Chaturthi was celebrated in Adelaide in late August at Ganesh Temple with pomp and procession.
Dilip Chirmuley has been organising the event since 1986 with the help of some local families, and this year’s evening celebration attracted crowds from all backgrounds to participate and enjoy the festival.
The celebration kicked off with procession Shivagarjana. Male and female dhol and cymbal players actively participated followed by the dancing, singing enthusiastic families.
The instruments like dhols, tashas, lezims and cymbals which help make the procession a success had been kindly donated by the Shivgarjana squad in India on the request of Anup Deshmukh who belonged to the Shivgarjana squad in Pune.

Transportion costs were beared by some local Marathi families here.
The idea of the procession, which is in its third year, was initiated by one of the Marathi community members to take the utsav image of the lord around the temple.
As the procession is quite loud, very careful measures had been taken to avoid any inconvenience to the neighbours.
Permission from the local police had been taken to escort the hour long procession through the street outside the temple.

Dance and music carried on outside the temple grounds even after the procession ended while other devotees participated in Havan Puja, Ganesh Puja, Bhajan and talks on Ganesh Chaturthi inside the temple.
The tiny church converted temple space was struggling to accommodate the families and devotees pouring in throughout the evening including 1200 Maharashtrian families.
The temple society has plans under consideration to expand the hall to increase the seating capacity.
New ideas brought in by newly arrived families revamps the festival each year in effort to duplicate Ganesh Chaturthi celebrated in Marathi cities and towns back home.

Six weeks of meetings goes into preparation and planning for the festival by the Adelaide Marathi Mandal committee members.
The current president of the Adelaide Marathi Mandal and main co-ordinator of the festival Mr Sadanand More has been successfully cooking Mahaprasad for 1200 devotees for 2 consecutive years with the help of committee members Mr Didlip Kulkarni (Vice President), Dr Vrushali Sanap (Gen Sec), Gangadhar Patil (Treasurer) and 30 plus volunteers with arranged donation from devotees as well.
This prasad is served to the devotees at the end of the evening celebration which included rice, vegatble sabji, scrumptious modaks, laddos and other accompaniments.
Adelaide’s Marathi population began to substantially increase around eight years ago. Therefore it was decided to establish Adelaide Marathi Mandal (AMM) in 2007.
The number of devotees attending the celebration has increased from around 200 in 1986 to 1200 in 2015.

Lord Ganpati has been worshiped for at least 1400 years as part of Shaivism.
The most famous devotee of Lord Ganesha, Sri Moraya Gosavi popularised the worship of the elephant headed god in Maharashtra.
Around the 10^th century temples dedicated to Lord Ganesh began to appear the largest of which is on the Rock Fort of Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu.
Also known as Vinayak Chaturthi this festival is one of the most popular festivals in India and mainly Mumbai.
The entire city of Mumbai comes out on the streets for the Visarjan (immersion) of the Ganesh murti irrespective of cast, creed or religion.
Concern has grown over the years of the after effects of the Visarjan which have caused water pollution.
Lately people are coming up with eco-friendly ways to do the Ganapati Visarjan and using materials like paper maches, natural colours, natural gum and even chocolate to make the Ganesh murtis.
So let this be a reminder to all of us to celebrate our festivals in an eco-friendly manner!