BOMBAY YMCA NEWSonward

www.ymcabombay.orgDecember 2018

Inside:

the Lord is comeJoy to the world

# faith that is alive ...Pg 2

# COMMUNITY outreach ...Pg 3

# adding value to life ...Pg 5

# events and haPPenings ...Pg 7

# achieveMents ...Pg 9

# international relations ...Pg 10

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GeNeRAL SecReTARY’S THOUGHTS

“...Faith without works is dead.”

Did you know that faith can be alive or dead? Dead faith doesn’t do anything. There are a lot of people who love God, but they aren’t overcoming obstacles or accomplishing their God-given dreams simply because they are not putting any action behind their faith. Their faith is simply dead.

What can you do today to keep your faith alive? It doesn’t have to be something big. by simply obeying God’s Word and doing your best, you are keeping your faith alive. When you go to work every day and give it 100%, you are demonstrating your faith. Sometimes just putting a smile on your face when you feel discouraged is putting action behind your faith. Taking time to go to church — that’s faith that is alive. That’s faith that activates God’s power. That’s faith that opens the door for God to move on your behalf! With faith that is alive, you’ll rise up higher. You’ll overcome obstacles, and you’ll move forward into the blessing and victory God has in store for you!

The YmcA – YWcA World week of Prayer gave us an opportunity to demonstrate that our faith is indeed alive!

‘As christians, when we are challenged we have the power of God on our side to help us overcome. but we need to do our part too. We need to set up and stand up. In a nutshell, we need to have the attitude to overcome, in the knowledge that God is guiding us and in our side. This

FAITH THAT IS ALIve

Congratulations to Mr. Jacob Koshy, past president, Bombay YMCA, for being elected as Vice-president of the National Council of YMCAs of India at the Triennial convention held at Adoor, Kerala on 2nd December, 2018

is equally important for the YmcA and YWcA in that we need to be constantly aware and willing of the role we need to play in overcoming challenges both internally and within the communities we serve’. (Ref: - Youth empowerment for Good)

When we align our purpose and allow our skills and our knowledge to be used for God’s Purposes. Paul says, we can do all things, through christ’s work within us.

The season of Advent brings us the magnificent vision of life and hope for the future given to us by christ.

As we have moved into the season of Advent, it affords us an opportunity to look back to the first coming of christ at bethlehem, and it looks to the future when christ will come again. In the interval between these two events we find meaning for our life as a christian.

Advent is our time to become more involved, more caught up in the meaning and the possibilities of life as a christian community. A time of introspection and to look at possibilities of reaching out to the underserved communities around us.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Yearbe a blessing! Stay blessed!

Paul George

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community OutreachGetting them ready to save a Life

basic First Aid Training programme for Ketsugo & basketball coaches and senior students was held on 4th August at YmcA Khar centre. The resource person, Dr. Arohi Sharma m.S. (Orthopedics), had a good interactive and insightful session with the participants.

Scholarships and Recognition 11 students from the underpriviledged community were able to get scholarships from Ammada Trust through YmcA Khar centre, thus enabling them to continue their dream of completing their education. 34 SSc & HSc Night Study center students from the YmcA Outreach Department, who passed their exams with flying colors, also received individual educational scholarships by the Rotary club of bombay. Similarly 8 students from the Free coaching class conducted at Navi mumbai YmcA were felicitated for passing their SSc exams. They were gifted college bags and encouraged to continue studying well.

The Gift of better SightA Free eye checkup camp was conducted by Lions club of mumbai Suburban for parents of balwadi children and vTc students of the YmcA Khar centre on 4th October during the service week of Lions club. 95 spectacles were distributed to the people who were diagnosed with eyesight problem. Three were detected with cataract and were assured free eye surgery by the Lions club. A total of 250 people benefitted from this camp.

Nutrition and Fitnessmr. Sanket Kulkarni (Nutritionist and Fitness consultant), focused on the importance of balanced diet and nutritious food for children during a Nutrition Awareness session held on 25th August at the Khar centre. The 100 odd balwadi parents found this session highly informative.

mind Your mIND35 children from the Non Formal education center and the Day care centre of Kamathipura went through a Life Skill session on emotional wellbeing on 22nd September. The theme for this session was ‘mind Your mind’. various aspects of emotions and feelings such as Happiness, Anger, Stress, Sadness, Fear along with the dos and don’ts related to sleep, food and self-respect was discussed with the children through fun based activities. Some children shared their experiences about their situational behavior and gave positive feedback.

A new chapter in excellenceThe bombay YmcA’s vocational Training center running at the Salvation Army premises has now shifted to methodist c e n t e r a t mumbai central. The center was dedicated and inaugurated on 18th September a n d i s n o w k n o w n a s Bombay YMCA

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– Rotary Club of Bombay ‘Vocational Training Center of Excellence’. The center was inaugurated by mr. Jacob Koshy, President, bombay YmcA, along with Rotary President, mr. vijay Jatia, and ms. bhavna Daftary of bharat Serum and vaccines Limited. courses in

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computers, Tailoring, beautician, and manual / computer typing are offered here.

Guiding the Youth for better careersA career Guidance Seminar for the free coaching class students of Navi mumbai YmcA was organised on 21st August. The resource person for the seminar was mr. Ganesh from Disha Institute who spoke to them about

the various scopes in the IT field. miss Nainisha and miss Neha spoke about various opportunities in the field of commerce, Arts and Science.

menstrual cycle – Importance and Personal HygieneThe Women’s Forum of the YmcA Navi mumbai, organized a session for young girls from the community for their personal hygiene and social development on 8th September. The objective of the session was to explain the importance of menstrual cycle. The session began with a video that explained physical changes in the young girls. 50 girls and women benefited from this session. This session

was conducted by the volunteers Ruth, Neha, Alsheeba, and Guest Speaker Dr. Aarti Dhumal. Her presentation was on health related guidance and Q/A regarding personal hygiene. mr. Hemant Katkar sponsored sanitary napkin pads for the girls.

Helping out the Prison inmatesA medical camp for the Taloja Prison inmates was organised as part of the prison welfare initiative by YmcA Navi mumbai. It was conducted in collaboration with doctors from D.Y. Patil Hospital. The camp was very well

received by authorities and inmates. The Superintendent himself took interest and made appropriate arrangements for the camp. He was happy with the quality of medicines and the support provided by the YmcA. We catered to more than 200 inmates.

Diwali mela with a causeTwo nights full of fun games, music, live stage performances and varieties of stalls was organized by the YmcA Andheri branch along with Grow Foundation on 2nd and 3rd November, 2018. The Fest was organized for members and nonmembers along with their family and friends in aid of YmcA boys Home - a shelter for orphan and single

parent children. On 2nd November we arranged dinner for the boys where each child was sponsored by a donor so that they can spend quality time while having dinner with them.

Learning the benefits of Nature Grow Foundation and ‘I LOve mUmbAI’ organized a Flower and Plants exhibition from 2nd to 4th November at the YmcA Andheri branch. The exhibition had varieties of flowers, trees and medicinal plants. The exhibition was organized for the members, citizens and the beneficiaries who are associated or residing around the YmcA. They learned about new and different plants and their benefits.

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Are you ready to take up the challenge? A half day programme on the theme ‘Jesus Beckons’, was organized by the Spiritual and moral emphasis committee, for the youth and elders of churches of all denominations, at the bandra YmcA. The speaker, Rev. macdonald Sorna, encouraged the 27 participants to live a prayerful and holy life. The sessions took everyone on a journey through the bible from the Old Testament where ‘God beckons’; to

Adding value to Life

the New Testament were ‘Jesus beckons’. He shared the message in lucid and impactful manner to drive home the biblical fundamentals which are perhaps contrary to the worldly principles.

LGbT – A christian PerspectiveA compassionate & pragmatic christian view on the verdict of the LGbT was held on 15th September at YmcA Navi mumbai. bro. Stanley Nelson spoke about ethical and humane view of gender, choice, freedom, rights & responsibilities which was well connected with the bible. There was a gathering of 50 participants for the seminar.

bombay YmcA counselling Institute and centreRegular seminars and courses were conducted on various topics as follows:

a. Introduction to Biblical Counselling on 16th and 17th June at YmcA Navi mumbai. There were 24 participants in all.

b. Parenting seminar in People’s school, belapur on 13th August on the day of the Parents Teachers meet. The Teachers were happy that we were able to intervene and make the parents aware on their responsibilities towards their children. 60 parents attended the session.

c. Career Guidance on 13th September. This session was specifically for YmcA counsellors who are practicing in the field and wanted to enhance their knowledge on the above topic.

d. Advanced Biblical Counselling Level 1 Training from 20th to 26th August. In all there were 13 participants who registered. The participants highly appreciated the self-awareness element in the entire training which enabled them to explore more about themselves.

Awareness programmes:a. On Substance Abuse at christ Academy college

situated at Koperkhairne on 18th July. 200 students attended the session.

b. On Teenage issues at People’s education Society, belapur, in the month of June and July. The session was for students of standard 8th to 10th.

c. On Suicide Prevention at christ Academy college situated at Koperkhairne on 25th September. Around 380 students attended the session in two batches. The sessions were facilitated by Kinging Youths International. The students appreciated the session and said it was enlightening and an eye opener.

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d. On Breast Cancer at YmcA cbD belapur on 31st October along with check-up. A power point presentation on breast cancer and how to take care of the body was shown. Dr. Sandhya Kotian, Dr. Sindhu Kode and Dr. v.J. mahadik gave information on cancer, types of cancer and effects. Some women did a body check up with Dr. Sandhya who addressed their doubts and fears.

vacation bible SchoolIn the month of November the YmcA borivali centre, YmcA Andheri branch and YmcA Navi mumbai branch organised the vbS. It was a time of learning new songs, stories from the bible and moral values. It was open to all the children of the community.

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events and Happenings

convocation of the Hotel & catering management course The convocation of the Hotel & catering management students of 2017-18 batch, from the YmcA International House, was held on 6th November 2018. The students who qualified were present along with their parents and family members. It was a moment of pride and joy for them as well as for the YmcA management. Few of the students have already got employment in top 5 star hotels! Students spoke heart-warmingly about the good efforts of the Hotel & catering management course coordinator ms. Nilam Patel had put in for their success. The event was presided over by mr. Paul George, General Secretary, bombay YmcA. He spoke words of encouragement and awarded the Diplomas. mr. Isaac Prasadam, Associate General Secretary also presented certificates to the students for various Achievements.

brainwaves 2018From 10th to 15th September, the bombay YmcA Andheri branch and bandra branch, organized ‘brainwaves 2018’ – an Annual Inter School competition, in various disciplines such as elocutions, storytelling, short story writing, essay writing, poster paintings and general knowledge. This competition was co-sponsored by muthoot Finance. more than 600 students enthusiastically participated from 20 top schools of mumbai. The prize distribution was held on 28th

September. mr. venkatramana General manager Western Zone muthoot Finance and mr. Paul George, General Secretary of bombay YmcA gave away the trophies and the cash award to all the winners. Udayachal High School lifted the team championship.

AcT NOW - Poster Painting competitionThe competition was held on 13th November at the Andheri branch by the YmcA metropolitan Programme Department.

The multipurpose Hall was full of young painters of Std. 6 and 7. We received 108 entries and all the children came out with creative ideas and Posters.

Table Tennis Stars making a markWe are proud of the achievements of 3 rising stars from Andheri YmcA in the field of Table Tennis, by making an impact in Suburban District Table Tennis Tournament:

1) mast. Havish Asrani- Sub Jr. boys (U-15) bronze medalist and secured 3rd rank in the Sub Jr. boys.

2) miss. mukta Dawlvi- Sub Jr. Girls (U-15) bronze medalist and secured 2nd rank in Sub Jr. Girls and 6th rank in Jr. Girls (U-18).

3) miss Anannya basak- Winning the Youth Girls (U-21), bronze medalist in Womens category and secured 1st rank in Youth Girls and 2nd rank Womens category.

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With their hard work and proper guidance and training under mr. eric Fernandes (Table Tennis coach), all 3 players have secured their spot in the mUmbAI SUbURbAN TAbLe TeNNIS TeAm at the recent State championship at Pune.

A Fun OutingThe YmcA Juhu Shelter children visited Water Kingdom on 03rd November. mr & mrs. benjamin Lane sponsored the cost of the children and staff. The boys enjoyed the various water slides, games and food at the water park.

Diwali celebrationDiwali was celebrated on 7th November at YmcA Street children Programme, Juhu centre. The children had fun filled evening of games with the volunteers, mr. & mrs. benjamin Lane. On this occasion the volunteers prepared special Italian Pasta and distributed many gifts to our boys.

YmcA colaba back in ActionThe time after the beautification of the branch was done, we are happy to say that YmcA colaba branch is back in the game. Placed in a prime locality, we cater to the development of young and old alike regardless of gender or religion. YmcA colaba has brought up the activities that has resumed in the field of Sports, Recreation and Fitness as well as offering the tourists and working men a

perfect ‘Home away from home’ accommodation facilities through Guest Rooms and Hostel. YmcA colaba organized some real interesting and crowd pulling competitions that has rejuvenated the branch with some hustle-bustle again. every program leaves its members with a desire of wanting for more.

A Table Tennis Home Tournament was organized for its members from 31st August to 5th September 2018.

Around 30 members participated in the event. The event witnessed some neck to neck battles and saw a very spirited championship battle. The members raised cash prize for the winners and also organized the tournament in a very professional manner. Over these days YmcA colaba showcased that both young and old alike have a very youthful heart.

YmcA colaba held an Invitational Basketball Tournament for the children from the schools nearby. As much as 20 teams competing in Under 11 boys & Girls categories

and Under 13 boys & Girls category from 12 schools from colaba participated in the event with great interest and constructive competition. The tournament was managed by the volunteers and was played as a Round Robin Series. Participants were exposed more to the professionalism and discipline of the YmcA and its values while playing and also they were happy to spend more time on court than at other tournaments. Appreciation and rewards were granted to all the teams. The tournament embedded the presence of the YmcA in colaba and its efforts to empower youth was portrayed well.

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Fun time for members of the Procter poolThe 8th Home Swim Gala for members was held on 7th October at the YmcA Swimming pool at Agripada. competition was held in the age group of under 6 to above 70 years. 178 members participated with approximately 400 entries. Dr. Ashok Shah, a well-known plastic surgeon

and former Head of Plastic Surgery Department, JJ Group of hospital, was the chief Guest. medals and certificates were distributed to the winners.

Time to challenge your mindThe 20th brainvita Quiz competition, sponsored by muthoot Finance, for Navi mumbai Schools received a fabulous

response this year. 28 teams with 2 students each from various schools of Navi mumbai participated in 2 days of brainstorming. Written elimination was held on 4th August of which 13 teams progressed to pre finals which was held on 11th August. 6 Teams participated on the finals held on the same day which comprised of oral, audio and visual rounds. The chief Guest for the finals was mr. Alok Nair, ceO of marketing mojo who gave away the certificates and trophies along with the chairman, mr. T. S. Thomas and captain Shailen Pathare, Regional manager of muthoot Finance.

AchievementsOur very own Karate champseight YmcA Navi mumbai members participated in the 35th Maharashtra State Karate Championship organized by Itso-Ryu Karate do & Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate Do Shobukan in the month of July. mast. Daksh Gundeeha, Akshit Sharma

and miss. Ayati Sharma were placed 2nd in the sub- junior, Individual Kata category. mast. Akshit Sharma secured 1st place in the sub- junior, under 6, Individual Kata category. miss. Tanisha Pal, was placed 3rd in the sub- junior, under 14, Individual category.

Winning comes naturally to them miss. Alina F mulla & miss Annisha Patra, both member of the YmcA Navi mumbai branch participated in the Raigad

District Table Tennis Championship 2018. Alina achieved 2nd place in the Under 19 (Girls Singles category) and 1st place in the under 12 & 14 (Girls Singles category). She also achieved 2nd place in under 12 & 14 (Girls Doubles category). Annisha achieved 1st place in under 10 (Girls Singles category) and Runners-up in under 12 (Girls Doubles category)

YmcA - Stepping Stone to SuccessPratyush Halen is a resident at the colaba YmcA Working men’s Hostel. His startup Tapits Technologies

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International Relationsmr. chris Shatananda, Secretary of camping Department, attended the YmcA Global camping conference held

f r o m 7 t h t o 10th November 2 0 1 8 a t t h e YmcA of the Rockies, Denver, USA. It was a fruitful learning experience and also helped him network with the rest of the

YmcAs for future exchange programmes with bombay YmcA.

mr. Paul George (General Secretary) and mr. Leonard Sa l ins (Asst . Gen. Secretary) a t tended the Wor ld U rban N e t w o r k conference held a t S h a n g h a i from 14 to 19th October. The meeting afforded an opportunity to network with other ceOs of YmcAs across the globe and opportunities for collaboration and partnership.

was recently recognised as the 10th most trusted biometric companies in India. This young entrepreneurs company boasts of an innovative point of sale (POS) devise, Fingpay, which allows you to make payments card-less, cashless and mobile-less. Pratyush founded Tapits technologies with a mission to bring about digital and financial inclusion in India. The

World YmcA/YWcA Week of Prayer 2018The Week of Prayer was held from 11th to 17th

November. The theme for this year was “Youth Empowerment for Good”. The inaugural service was held at St. Thomas cathedral, Fort, where mr. Noel Amanna, President, bombay YmcA and mrs. Lalitha Fernandes, President, YWcA of bombay welcomed the gathering. The message on the theme was shared by Rev. Avinash Rangayya, Priest in charge. Approximately 180 people attended the service which included the church members and YmcA/YWcA members. Through the week area prayer meetings were conducted at different branches of the YmcA and YWcA in the city. The closing celebration service was held at YWcA, Fort. The chairperson of the Spiritual and Religious Programme committee welcomed the gathering and summarised the ‘Week of Prayer’ sessions.

group has come together to build an innovative, simple and secure mechanism to enable digital payments and documentation for the rural India. Tapits Technologies is the first fintech startup to receive seed funding from India’s top private lender IcIcI bank in February 2018. They also received a grant funding for working in the Financial Inclusion, significantly making an impact in the life of rural people bringing them access to banking services. bombay YmcA wishes Pratyush great success as he contributes to the development of India, especially in the rural sector. We are proud to be a part of Pratyush’s life.

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18, YmcA Road, mumbai 400 008 Phone 23070601/2/3, 61540100 email : ymcaih@ymcabombay.com

HEAd OffICE

colaba branch12, Nathalal Parekh marg, colaba, mumbai 400 039 Phone: 22021316 / 22020079 / 22826384 email : central@ymcabombay.com

Procter branch & Swimming Pool19, F.S. Umerbhai Path, Agripada, mumbai 400 011 Phone: 23078457 /23091140 email : procter@ymcabombay.com, poolagripada@ymcabombay.com

Student branch & camping Department412, D. bhadkamkar marg, mumbai 400 004 Phone: 23824534/ 23855468 email : student@ymcabombay.com camp@ymcabombay.com

Andheri branch & boys Home & vocational Training centreD.N. Nagar, Andheri (W), mumbai 400 053 Phone: 26303076/ 26303065 email : andheri@ymcabombay.com

Navi mumbai branch & counselling centre and Training Institute and Swimming Pool YmcA Road, Sector 8, cbD belapur, Navi mumbai 400 614Phone : 27572930 / 27580496 / 27572241 / 27576154email : navimumbai@ymcabombay.compoolnavimumbai@ymcabombay.com

Ghatkopar branch - NSccI centrePant Nagar, Ghatkopar (e), mumbai 400 075 Phone : 25014963, 21026391email : ghatkopar@ymcabombay.com

chembur centreGandhi maidan, chembur, mumbai 400 071 Phone : 25283545. email : chembur@ymcabombay.com

bandra branch & NSccI Khar Danda centre Plot No. 308 & 422, YmcA Road, Khar (W) mumbai 400 052. Phone : 26482708 / 26007060 email : bandra@ymcabombay.com

Physical education DepartmentJhoola maidan, Agripada, mumbai 400 011 Phone 23098274. email : ped@ymcabombay.com

Outreach & Development Departmentmethodist centre, 21, YmcA Road mumbai central, mumbai 400 008. email : ord@ymcabombay.com

Street children Project YmcA Lions Juhu beach centreJuhu beach, mumbai 400 049. Phone : 26177995 email: streetchildren@ymcabombay.com

borivali centre & metropolitan Programme committee & Spiritual & moral emphasis committeePlot No. 551 A & 648, off Holy cross Road,Near banjara Dhaba, Ic colony, borivali (W)mumbai 400 103. Phone 28919192email : borivali@ymcabombay.com smec@ymcabombay.com, mpc@ymcabombay.com

YmcA Sharan Project for Homeless Women behind Holiday Inn, Sakinaka, Andheri (e), mumbai - 400 072 Phone : 28500277email : sharan@ymcabombay.com

30th September, 1993 is the day when a massive earthquake shook parts of maharashtra especially in the Osmanabad District. To mark the 25th year of this catastrophe and more importantly to remember and felicitate the organisations that contributed in the rebuilding process, a function was held at balsur on 30th September 2018 . A long with others, the bombay YmcA also received a citation from m r. S h a r a d Pawar, the then chief minister, appreciating the work done by us. bombay YmcA had adopted two villages Kalnimbala and Kaldevnimbala and built 100 temporary houses each at the two villages, additionally constructing of Primary school and community hall at Kaldevnimbala. In the words of the former head master of the school “These solid structures have stood the test of time and such a solid structure for a school is not to be seen in the whole area”. mr. Austin Kunder and mr. Ashish Thorat received the citation on behalf of bombay YmcA.

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Teachers Day celebrations

Independence Day celebrations

ONWARD, BOMBAY YMCA NEWS is the official organ of the Bombay YMCA and is edited & published by Mr. Paul George, General Secretary, on behalf of the Bombay YMCA. For internal circulation only.