History of KOJAIN….
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| More than 500 KOJAIN members – young and old,
males and females - had gathered together in Toronto, Canada for the
weekend of July 1-4, 1994.
It was
a very memorable
gathering – Sammelan – for more than one reason. Our
community decided, then and there, unanimously, to formalize us into an
organization, to be known as KACHCHHI OSWAL JAIN ASSOCIATION IN NORTH
AMERICA – KOJAIN, in short. An 18-member constitution committee
was set up with a mandate to come up with a constitution. The committee
gave us a constitution in October of 1995. KOJAIN was born.
Elections were held and the first governing body was elected for
a two-year term for 1996-97. We have had elections thereafter for the
two-year terms of 1998-99, 2000-2001 and 2002-2003. |
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| The Kachchhi Oswals started
coming to the United States for higher education in
moderate numbers in the 1960s. An influx of large numbers of
Kachchhis occured in the 1970s and 1980s. The Information Technology
graduates dominated the 1990s. Now it is estimated that approximately
1200 Kachchhi Oswal families are residing in North America. |
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| Our first Sammelan of KOJAIN Families was held at
Siddhachalam on the weekend of September 1-3, 1990, at Blairstown, New
Jersey. This was then followed by our Sammelan at Toronto, Canada, on
July 1-4, 1994. Then we all got together in Houston, Texas, on December
26-29, 1996 which was then
followed by our gathering at Cherry Hill, New Jersey on July 28-30,
2000. We cherish the sweet
memories of these Sammelans and thank the organizers for their time and
efforts to make them so memorable.
These gatherings of ours have brought us all closer socially as
well as emotionally. |
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| KOJAIN also undertook fundraising for
humanitarian causes, when called upon.
Our community responded generously for The Kachchh Cyclone Relief
Fund in 1998 and we collected and
sent $35,415 to Shri
Vivekanand Research & Training Institute (VRTI). The response to our
Kachchh Earthquake Relief Fund was overwhelming. We collected and
distributed $428,000. Effort by our
community for Matunga Boarding fund are also noteworthy. We are
so grateful to all our donors. KOJAIN contributions are tax-exempt.
Our tax-exempt ID number is 06-1442444. |
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| The Kojain directory started
in 1974 with loose papers distributed among few families. It has been
revised and reprinted
several times. The
directory of Kachchhi Oswal Jain families residing in North America was
published and updated in the years of 1989, 1994 and 1997.
This directory has become an indispensable tool for the bonding
of our community. Many
other projects have been conducted through KOJAIN to serve our community
here and in India. Youth organization, scholarship program, matrimonial
information service, host families program,
helping Kachchhi students coming from India for further studies
in North America, are some of our programs. |
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| One of the unstated
objectives of forming organization such as ours is to promote a sense of
belonging, a sense of unity amongst the members of our community. Our
unity is our strength. One of the ways we strengthen this sense of unity
is by getting involved. The first step one can consider taking is to
become a member – and, preferably,
a Life member. |
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| With the support from all of you, zeal dedication
and commitment from the Board Of Directors, we shall bring the KOJAIN to
the next level of accomplishments. |