Newsletter – Jan/Feb 2021
| It has been a hectic start to the New Year and there are many things I would like to share with you. I do apologize for combining the January and February updates because of lack of time. If you have not done it already I would like to invite you to visit our landing page on the LOTUS website for information on our accomplishments and challenges of 2020. I would like to acknowledge the work of Sundari Shankar and Devi Sudhakar in help with our website and also welcome your suggestions on its layout and future enhancements. Even as we wish for things to be different in 2021, it behooves us to be cautiously optimistic. We need to continue to be on guard for the challenges associated with the Pandemic and do our share with being proactive with vaccination, both in the front of taking it and encouraging our families, friends and acquaintances to also take it when it becomes available. We need to continue our rigorous personal practice of infection prevention which includes good hand washing, avoiding crowded places and following the Federal mandate of continued use of face mask in enclosed areas and in close proximity of non-family members. In January we celebrated Martin Luther King Day and it always brings back memories of India history from the perspective of Dr. King being such a devoted follower of Gandhian principles. Our country is going through the challenges of change in leadership with fairly significant policy changes and hopefully we will see some settling down of many of these issues in the coming months. This month is a multitude of celebrations including Black History Month, Healthy Heart commitments and love for the family and near and dear ones in the celebration of Valentine’s Day. I think this is a great time for us to plan and march to a positive future even as we deal with challenges which probably will persist through for majority of this year. The Community Advisory Board of LOTUS will meet later this month to plan some exciting activities suggested by our membership. We will also be reviewing the Annual Finances of 2020 which was really a very productive year in many ways for LOTUS. We will think of innovative ways to manage our Annual Temple celebration that is usually held in April and our volunteer appreciation in the next few months. If any one of you would like invitation to attend our meeting, please do not hesitate email [email protected]for information and meeting details. Later this month, the LOTUS Board will also finalize the additional disbursement of the funds collected during the YE 2020 campaign. I would like to thank the community once again for rising to the occasion and supporting the fundraising effort which was an humongous success. Youth Corner – Updates for the future The leadership of the Board is working with Mrs. Sakthi to plan some innovative activities to engage our youth in showing off their talent and get interested in community engagement. Please be on the look out for more details in the coming months in this space. Temple Activities – February 21st, 2021 Dr. Bhawuk continues with performing the monthly pooja on the 3rd Sunday of the month. He is always happy to perform special pooja for anyone that is interested. Please reach out to him or LOTUS leadership. In the first six months of this year, we will be working on plans for targeted renovations of the temple area in an effort for us to preserve its longevity. I am soliciting your Annual Donations to LOTUS through our website or feel free to mail the same to LOTUS, PO Box 89-4052, Mililani, HI 96789. This information is also available on our website. |
| February Calendar February 12 – Chinese New Year February 14 – Valentine’s Day February 16 – Vasant Panchami and Mardi Gras February 17 – Ash Wednesday February 21 – Wahiawa Temple Pooja Day |
