www.gnfa.org is made up of paper and board products. So even though over 50 million tons of paper is recycled each year, more can still be done. A little effort to recycle and reuse today will keep our resources available for to- morrow. -by Dr. Lisa Singh Welcome to the first issue of Sandesa. We hope you are as excited as we are about the new design and format. More importantly, we hope you enjoy reading this quar- terly newsletter. Along with keeping you in- formed about news and events associated with the GNFA community, we have included religious teachings and feature articles. If you have feedback about the newsletter, or would like to contribute a piece, please let us know. Our goal is to make the newsletter interesting for everyone from children to elders. In the spirit of conservation and environmental friendli- ness, we have also made a few subtle changes to the newsletter. First, we are not using any glossy pages. Sec- ond, we are using recycled paper to print the newslet- ter. Finally, we are using a tighter formatting to reduce the total number of pages in the newsletter. While each of these steps is tiny, we hope it will motivate others to do a little more to pre- serve our limited resources. According to the US Environ- mental Protection Agency, approximately 35% of the municipal solid waste stream Conserving , one newsletter at a time Important dates Guru Harkrishan Ji's Parkash Utsav will be celebrated on Friday July 24th, 2009 Sunday July 26th, 2009 Guru Nanak Dev Ji's Parkash Utsav will be celebrated on Friday Oct 30th, 2009 Sunday Nov1st, 2009 Monday Nov 2nd, 2009 Khalsa School registration begins July 5th PAATH COMPETITIONS Tav Parsad Savaiyee and Kirtan Sohila : Aug 8, 2009 Japji Sahib : Sept 26, 2009 Inside this issue: Issue 1 July 2009 YOUR CONNECTION TO GNFA Sandesa sMdysw From Chairman‘s desk 2 Mela 3 Sikh Heritage Week 4 Virsa 6 Gurmat Sangeet 7 Kirtan Samelan 10 Committee Reports 12 Wellness 14 Teen‘s Corner 14 Word Find 16 Operation Walk 18 Khalsa School 19 Sikh Day Parade 20 GNFA: Humming with Activity Guru Nanak Foundation of America
Transcript
www.gnfa.org
is made up of paper and
board products. So even
though over 50 million tons
of paper is recycled each
year, more can still be done.
A little effort to recycle and
reuse today will keep our
resources available for to-
morrow.
-by Dr. Lisa Singh
Welcome to the first issue of
Sandesa. We hope you are
as excited as we are about
the new design and format.
More importantly, we hope
you enjoy reading this quar-
terly newsletter.
Along with keeping you in-
formed about news and
events associated with the
GNFA community, we have
included religious teachings
and feature articles. If you
have feedback about the
newsletter, or would like to
contribute a piece, please let
us know. Our goal is to make
the newsletter interesting for
everyone from children to
elders.
In the spirit of conservation
and environmental friendli-
ness, we have also made a
few subtle changes to the
newsletter. First, we are not
using any glossy pages. Sec-
ond, we are using recycled
paper to print the newslet-
ter. Finally, we are using a
tighter formatting to reduce
the total number of pages in
the newsletter. While each
of these steps is tiny, we
hope it will motivate others
to do a little more to pre-
serve our limited resources.
According to the US Environ-
mental Protection Agency,
approximately 35% of the
municipal solid waste stream
Conserving, one newsletter at a time Important dates
Guru Harkrishan Ji's Parkash
Utsav will be celebrated on
Friday July 24th, 2009
Sunday July 26th, 2009
Guru Nanak Dev Ji's
Parkash Utsav will be
celebrated on
Friday Oct 30th, 2009
Sunday Nov1st, 2009
Monday Nov 2nd, 2009
Khalsa School
registration begins July 5th
PAATH COMPETITIONS
Tav Parsad Savaiyee and
Kirtan Sohila : Aug 8, 2009
Japji Sahib : Sept 26, 2009
Inside this issue:
Issue 1 July 2009 Y O U R C O N N E C T I O N T O G N F A
Sandesa sMdysw
From Chairman‘s desk 2
Mela 3
Sikh Heritage Week 4
Virsa 6
Gurmat Sangeet 7
Kirtan Samelan 10
Committee Reports 12
Wellness 14
Teen‘s Corner 14
Word Find 16
Operation Walk 18
Khalsa School 19
Sikh Day Parade 20
GNFA: Humming with Activity
Guru Nanak Foundation of America
www.gnfa.org
Dear GNFA members,
This is an exciting time at GNFA. The newly appointed committees are actively working to plan cultural events, organize educational programs, work with fiscal responsibility, and keep our members informed about the latest events. Your new Board has appointed 15 committees with a total of 85 members working to serve the sangat. We must also recognize the service of our resident Jatha, Sewadar and visiting Jathas. It is truly hum-bling to serve together and we thank you for this oppor-
tunity.
Among the recent accomplish-ments and activities at GNFA, we had a very successful youth kirtan sammelan this year with enthusiastic partici-pation from about 150 youth. Khalsa school re-cently completed its aca-demic year. Enrollment this past year reached nearly 150 students. It is exciting to
see the growth of our young-est members. Our website has a new look and is being actively updated (www.gnfa.org). You can go to the site and register your email address to receive in-formation about upcoming events. Finally, our GNFA mela was another wonderful community experience with
over 350 attendees.
The Membership committee is working to improve our re-cords and conduct a member-ship campaign. A revised membership application form will soon be ready and mem-
bership dates announced.
The Finance committee ob-tained Board approval of an interim budget and will pre-sent an annual budget to the Board in June. It will include plans for raising finances we need to meet our long term needs. Please see our au-dited report for 2008, our monthly financial picture, and our weekly income and ex-penses on the notice board.
May I also please re-motivate us. All these activi-ties require the Sangat‘s sup-port of time, effort, resources, and money. No contribution is too small, and none too big. May Wahe Guru grant us all the dedication to con-tribute these to our Gurd-
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a treasure chest of knowledge with more than 142 million items in about 470 languages. It is a true coming of age for the Sikh diaspora that the Sikh Collec-tion Initiative has been launched at this venerable
institution of learning.
The Kaur Foundation, a Sikh-American educational out-reach organization, in col-laboration with the Asian Division of the LOC and the Asian Division Friends Society, presented a national confer-ence celebrating Sikh Tradi-tions, Heritage and Arts on June 18-19, 2009 to mark
the occasion.
The Council of the District of Columbia passed a Sikh Heri-tage Week Recognition Reso-lution. Senator Richard Lugar (IN), Congressman Michael Honda (CA), Sen. Ben Cardin (MD), Congressman Chris Van Hollen (MD), and a represen-tative of DC Mayor Adrian Fenty delivered remarks of
felicitation and support.
A highlight of the conference was the book launch of ―Empire of the Sikhs: The Life and Times of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.‖ Its highly regarded authors, writer Patwant Singh and numismatist (coin collec-tor) Jyoti Rai spoke elo-quently about Maharaja Ran-
jit Singh‘s progressive vision.
The extraordinary achieve-ments of Sikhs in diverse fields were evident in the presentations by renowned artists Amrita K. Singh, Rabin-dra K. Singh and Aparna Caur, industry leaders like Dr. Kanwarjit Singh , member of the Global Health Pro-gram at the Gates Founda-
tion, and Dr. G.S. Mann, Di-rector of the Center for Sikh and Punjabi Studies at the
Univ. of California, Berkeley.
Several distinguished non-Sikh speakers such as Dr. Paul Taylor, Curator at the Smithsonian‘s Natural History Museum, F.S. Aijazuddin, Prin-cipal Aitchison College, La-hore, and Susan Stronge, Curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, gave testament to the increasing engagement of international scholars in Sikh studies. The erudite DC talk show host Kojo Nnamdi was a forum moderator and showed a deft understanding of Sikh issues. Internationally re-nowned photographer, Fiona Aboud‘s striking photos show-cased the rich mosaic of Sikh
lives and experiences.
The title of the conference was ―Taking Heritage into the 21st century‖. So it was apt that the conference closed with the ―vision of tomorrow‖
panel, comprising highly ac-complished young Sikh Americans. Model Sonny Ca-berwal, whose turbaned vis-age lit up the huge Kenneth Cole billboards in Manhattan. Arpinder Kaur, the first tur-baned female pilot in the US. Architect Jasmit Singh Rangr whose home designs are driven by ―universal themes that unite us all.‖ And a young Kaur whose poign-ant eloquence electrified the audience -- award winning post 9-11 documentary film-
maker Valerie Kaur.
- by Harsharan Kaur
Celebrating Sikh Heritage Week in the Nation’s Capital
Helping the Census Bureau learn more about our community
The U.S. Census Bureau conducts a variety of censuses and surveys each year. The decennial survey is used to
determine the population of districts in different states across the country. The information provided on these
different surveys are used by the Bureau to provide summary statistical data about the population.
GNFA is collaborating with the US Census Board to generate awareness among Sikhs about the importance of
completing a Census survey, the participation process, and the availability of different job opportunities at the
Census Bureau.
As the Sikh population in the United States grows, it is important that our community share its views with various
government entities and leaders. Doing so will give a voice to our community.
The U.S. Census Bureau is issuing a call to action for every resident of our nation:
“Be Counted in 2010.”
For more information
about the 2010 Census, visit
2010census.gov.
www.gnfa.org
There is a more enticing way for large numbers of Sikh youth to spend the Memorial Day weekend than lounging lazily at the beach or shop-ping for deals. For the fifth year in a row, the Washing-ton Capital Sikh Youth Kirtan Sammelan held at Guru Nanak Foundation of Amer-ica (GNFA), Silver Spring, Maryland, drew a substantial number of enthusiastic partici-pants and listeners from sev-eral gurdwaras. About 150 youth, ranging in age from four to twenty-one, inspired the sangat with their dedica-tion to gurmat sangeet at this year‘s sammelan, held on
May 23.
The institutions represented were Anhad Bani of York, Pennsylvania, Gurdwara Sa-hib of Augusta, Georgia, Guru Angad Institute of Sikh
Studies (GAISS) of Sterling, Virginia, GNFA, National Gurdwara of Washington DC, Raag Rattan Jatha of Maryland, Sri Harmandir Academy of Maryland, and Washington Sikh Center of
Maryland.
There were two categories at the sammelan organized by the dharmik committee of GNFA -- competing and non-competing. The competition section had three age groups: Juniors (7-10 yrs.), Intermediate (11-14 yrs.) and Seniors (15-18 yrs.). Each jatha had 12 minutes to perform and the judging cri-teria were rigorous. All age groups were required to sing a shabad in its nirdharit raag, that is, the raag in which it was composed by our guru sahibaan. The melodious notes of raags Kalyan, Bi-laval, Sarang, Malhar, Todi, Asa, Tilang, Basant, Kan-nada, Sorath, and Kedara induced feelings of deep
devotion in the sangat.
In each age group, 1st, 2nd and 3 r d place were awarded. In addition, an outstanding achievement
award was presented to one jatha from each age group in recognition of their accom-plishment in advanced areas of Gurmat Sangeet, among them, playing the complex tanti saaz (stringed instru-
ments).
The results:
Juniors: This year all jathas in this category happened to be from GNFA. The organiz-ers would like to encourage participation in this age group from other institutions
as well.
Outstanding Achievement Award and First Place: (GNFA) Amrita Kaur, Amrita Kaur Sawhney, Anmol Kaur, Harpreet K. Nagi, Jaskiran Kaur, Jasneer Kaur and Me-
har Cheema.
2nd Place: (GNFA) Avneet K. Bahra, Jaskeerat K.Sian, Mallika K. Ubhi, Mehar Cheema, Saihajleen K. Bahra,
The sammelan provided many memorable moments. Some especially striking ones
were:
. Kiran Kaur, age 5, of Washington Sikh Center, playing the violin with an
amazing purity of notes.
· Prableen K. Chowdhary playing tabla – an inspiration
to other girls to learn too.
The 12-member non-competing jatha from GAISS that played all the tanti saaz (stringed instruments ) includ-ing dilruba, rabab saranda, sarangi and taus as well as the traditional percussion, jori from the time of our guru
sahibaan.
A special performance by the guest jatha from Connecticut, 17-year-old Hardeep Chana and 14-year-old Jasmeet Chana. Hailing from a distin-guished lineage of gurmat sangeet proponents, the brothers ‘ performance showed artistry and maturity. Hardeep ‗s mellifluous voice and melodious taus were matched by Jasmeet‘s com-manding tabla performance. They were ably accompanied by Soni Kaur Sarin (dilruba
and vocals) and Gurpreet Singh Sarin (mandolin) of the
Raag Rattan jatha.
A central role in the suc-cess of the sammelan was played by the hazoori ragis of GNFA. Bhai Jagmohan Singh ji, Bhai Harmohan Singh ji and Bhai Harvinder Singh ji, tirelessly and selflessly trained 50 youth for the sam-melan. Our community is in-debted to them for their con-tribution in inculcating a love for Gurmat Sangeet in our
youth.
This youth kirtan sammelan is held on the Saturday of the memorial day weekend an-nually. For a guru-centered holiday celebration, sadh sangat is invited to GNFA for the 6th Washington Capital Sikh Youth Kirtan Sammelan
on May 22, 2010.
11
Issue 1 July 2009
Article by: Ranvinder K. Gill & Harsharan Kaur Pictures by : Sirmukh Singh Manku
www.gnfa.org
Building Maintenance
Committee
The long-term goals of this
committee are to improve the
cleanliness and appearance of
the Gurdwara. To date, the
Langar Hall carpet has been
replaced, paneling removed,
and a fresh coat of paint has
been applied. The flower beds
have been weeded, and new
plants have been planted.
The committee will also be
cleaning and organizing the
entrance area and bulletin
boards. Plans are underway
to add toilet seat covers and
replace damaged ceiling pan-
els in the Women‘s restroom.
Bylaws Committee
The Bylaws Committee has a
draft ready to be reviewed by
the General Body for final
approval.
Capital Projects
Committee
In response to a Montgomery
County request concerning the
new gurdwara building permit,
the committee submitted a new
round of documents on May 8th,
2009. The next phase consists
of a hearing by a review com-
mittee from the Park and Plan-
ning Commission and then on to
the full commission board. The
committee continues to provide
them with any necessary infor-
mation and will keep the san-
gat updated on further devel-
opments.
The committee is still using the
funds raised from a 2005
fundraiser. They would like to
encourage the sangat to do-
nate to the new building fund
whenever possible. Donations
can be given to the GNFA
Treasurer at any time.
Community Affairs
Committee
The main objectives of the
Community Affairs Committee
are to plan quarterly events
over the next 10 months. The
first event the committee
planned was the Punjabi Mela
on June 13th 2009.
The committee is planning the
following events (exact dates
TBD): Cul tural Program
(October), Family Fun Night
(January), Youth/Senior Event
(March).
Education Committee
Most education activities are
self supporting and funded
through tuition and private
donations. In the year 2008,
the Education Committee
budget was $30,000 and
Committee deposited $31,500
with GNFA. The 2009 budget
is $50,000. Major expenses
include: facility expansion,
computer equipment, software,
books, supplies, school bags, T-
shirts, and awards.
In 2008, Khalsa school regis-
tered 150 students in 7 levels
of instructions. The committee
has expanded our school facil-
ity with another trailer that
houses 36 KG students and 6
teachers. The classroom was
furnished with Montessori style
furniture. The committee will
also add audio, video equip-
ment and activity pods. The
expansion cost is $15,000.
Khalsa School is a member of
Sikh Research Institute and sub-
Committee Reports
12
Sandesa sMdysw
scribes to its Elementary School
Sojhi Curriculum package,
which includes Boli – Language
Arts; and Virsa – History and
Gurmat. Plans for the 2009-
2010 school year include ex-
panding the curriculum from
Elementary into the Middle
School level.
Every year, the Education Com-
mittee awards one merit
award in the amount of
$2,000 to a college-bound
graduating High School senior.
The selection criteria includes:
grade point average, SAT
score, involvement in GNFA
and community activities, an
extempore essay, and an inter-
view with a GNFA Board ap-
proved selection panel. The
2008 award was sponsored
by Amar-Kartar Foundation,
Inc. The 2009 Award is spon-
sored by GNFA Trustee, S.
Surinder Singh. The Merit
Award Recipients were
Beneeta Kaur Ahuja (2008).
Langar hall renovation
Architectural drawing of new Gurdwara
www.gnfa.org
Gurdwara Committee
The following ragi Jathas will be visiting us in coming
The idea of putting together this article is to educate peo-ple about wellness. By doing a few simple things in life, one can make Healthy Fami-
lies and Healthy Society.
One may wonder how this can be achieved. Well, complment Conventional Western Medicine with Alter-native Medicine which in-cludes Energy medicine e.g. Biofield Therapies, Reiki, Bioelectromagnetic- based therapies-using magnetic fields and alternating current or direct current fields---Just to name a few as well as Mind-Body medicine e.g.
Meditation and Prayer.
It is our responsibility to take care of the gift of the body given to us by GOD. We have the opportunity to take care of it and make a con-scious decision to stay well. In the present day environments we are stressed, lack good night‘s sleep, breathe poor quality of air and drink wa-ter which contains chlorine as well as bacteria killed with chlorine—all this is hap-pening from the toxins within our homes we live in. All the
above leads to imbalanced body functions which cause varied symptoms-headaches, infections, allergies, digestive Issues, muscular aches and pains, hormonal imbalance etc. There are evidences available which show that in the long run these toxins can
initiate cancer.
The toxins can be removed from the body by doing a
few simple things:
Hydrate your body properly—with good quality water which can add energy and bal-ance to your body func-tions.
Breathe good air which not only filters the air from toxins but also has the ability to give negative ions back to you (Negative ions help to reduce stress and provide relaxation).
Good Night‘s Sleep—Your body tends to re-store it‘s balance when it goes through a deep sleep phase. Problems like insomnia and snoring can be relieved by using a quality mattress based on use of far-infrared and magnetic field tech-nology. It is well known that lack of sleep can
cause hypertension, dia-betes, anxiety and eat-ing disorder.
Role of Products based on Electro-Magnetic Field Tech-
nology:
This has been around for over 2000 years in Chinese medicine. Magnetic field therapy is also mentioned in some of the earliest writings in Egypt, India and Greece. It further provides a natural way to assist the body‘s nor-mal healing processes as it encompasses all tissues and cells in the range of it‘s field. Applying magnetic fields to an injured area improves blood flow and enhances the body‘s natural healing proc-esses as well as relieves pain and reduces inflammation. Recently its use has been reported even in Medical Literature for managing problems like anxiety, de-pression, migraines, and dia-betic neuropathy. It has proven to be safe, effec-tive, economical and free
from adverse effects.
The deficiency of a magnetic field creates multiple meta-bolic problems. The defi-ciency is created mostly by the blockage of a magnetic field via concrete floors. It
Wellness and Rejuvenation
14
Sandesa sMdysw
Dr. Hema Sidhu
seems as if the modern way of life is creating what we may call magnetic deficiency syndrome. It is incumbent on us that in the process of maintaining and regaining wellness, we reverse this trend and bring back the adequate levels of magnetic filed in our intrinsic and ex-
trinsic environment.
The body has the potential to regain wellness provided it is given this opportunity. The essential tools are --- breathe air free of toxins, drink water free of toxins and ingest food free of tox-ins. This approach enhances the rejuvenation of body functions at all levels; it‘s like cleaning the house and make everything refreshing.
Pray—Wellness for all
Classes held every Sunday from 12:00 to 2:00pm at GNFA
If you or anyone you know who may be interested, please contact
We have an all new Facebook group. Facebook is a social networking site where you can create your own
profile and connect with friends and keep yourself updated with current events in your community.
Join The ―GNFA Youth‖ group at Facebook.com where you can:
Discuss sikhi related topics with your Friends
Share pictures and videos from Community events
Participate in Quarterly events (such as writing or artwork) which could be published in upcoming news-
letters
Stay connected with your friends at GNFA
www.gnfa.org 17
Now Serving
At our Brand New Location!
8874 McGaw Rd
Columbia, MD 21045-4785 Phone:(410) 381-1111
We Cater
throughout
the
Metropolitan
Area!
www.gnfa.org
.
When we thought of starting a branch of Operation Walk here in Maryland, we knew we would find support from our friends and the community. The objectives of this organization hold fast to the Sikh principle of ―vand ke chakna‖ as espoused by Guru Nanak Dev Ji. We were right in our prediction, but we never would have
guessed the magnitude of encouragement and appreciation for what we are doing.
Operation Walk Maryland is an independent, non profit organization that performs hip and knee replacements free for poor people in developing countries. It is a volunteer organization that takes health care providers from Maryland to per-form these surgeries. We also take all the supplies including the joint replacement implants. Each trip costs well over $100,000. Despite this we are able to do these surgeries for one tenth of what the total care would cost in the United
States. On these trips we try do about 40-50 joint replacements, in a week‘s time.
Last year was our first trip to Peru and it was an overwhelming success. We re-placed 49 joints. I cannot express the gratitude of those we helped. Their thanks was unconditional. They know without the expertise of the Operation Walk team that these surgeries would not be possible. We were showered with hugs, kisses and
the blessings of many patients and their family members.
We too often take our freedom to move with-out pain for granted. Imagine a manual laborer in the third world, the sole provider for a large family. Suddenly because of debilitating arthritis he cannot work. There is no health insurance. Even if he could afford treatment, there is no expertise in his city, state, or possibly country. Suddenly, a team from the United States with expert surgeons offers to replace his hip. They ask for nothing in return. Imagine how thankful this person will be. His surgeon was a Sikh as were many members of the team. He had never seen a Sardar before, but imagine how he and his family will
think of these people forever.
Personally, I believe Operation Walk not only allows us to be ambassadors of healthcare from Maryland, but also ambas-sadors of the Sikh faith as well. We had our first Gala fund-raiser, and many members of the sangat attended. An American colleague of mine, who traveled with us as a surgeon to Peru, remarked at how impressed he was with the turnout
from the Sikh Community. That made me proud and thankful.
We hope to go to Ecuador this November and Punjab next year, but we are a long way from our financial goals. We con-
tinue to need your support. All of us at Operation Walk thank you. To learn more please visit www.operationwalkMD.org.
