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YOUTH - JCYC
JCYC Registration Form for Winter Camp 2003
2003-2004 Children's Classes Registration Form
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**IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT** JCYC classes start on Sunday, September 14, at 9:00 AM. All parents will get necessary information at the Volvo building at 9:00 AM orientation meeting. Children will not be able to go to their respective classes without this information, so please come to this meeting at 9:00 AM. |
Jain
families in the Los Angeles area felt a need to educate their children
in Jainism. The classes were organized in 1982 at a volunteer's residence
in the beginning years, before the Jain Center was built in Buena Park,
California.
The Jain Center of Southern California established the Jain Center Youth
Council (JCYC) in 1988 represented by a committee made up of two Co-Presidents,
Vice President, Secretary, Public Relation, Publication, Historian,
Director of Activities and Members at Large. There are well over 300
students enrolled in their respective classes. Religion classes are
divided by age groups and language classes are divided by skill level.
Dedicated team of teachers and volunteers (parents) teach these classes.
This year a panel of six people selected JCYC committee 2003 members
instead of a general election. The panel was made up of two adults,
two youth and two current JCYC members. This method was adopted from
YJA current format to get the best-qualified people to serve on the
JCYC committee.
Thirty people applied for the positions. The panel narrowed down to
twenty candidates for the personal interview. It was a very difficult
task for the panel to select semifinalist candidates since many of them
had excellent resume. The panel had even more difficult task of deciding
on final thirteen. Interview process took three and a half hours. We
are pleased to see that this many number of people were interested
The following is our new JCYC committee 2003-2004:
Akash Y Shah Co-President
Mona Shah Co-President
Anisha Sakariya Vice President
Priya Shah Secretary
Sonali Vasa Director Of Activities
Mihir Shah Historian
Vidhi Doshi Publishing
Bijal Mehta Public Relation
Poonam Jain Public Relation
Sunny Shah Public Relation
Chandni Shah Member At Large
Ashley Jain Member At Large
Kunjan Shah Member At Large
Shrenik Shah Past Co-President
Shanehi Shah Past Co-President
JCYC Profile
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"Without
Jainism in my life, I would be a lost soul. To me being a Jain
is a privilege."
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The young in the Jain community of America have plenty of material things:
cars, houses, brand name clothes, computers, video games, etc. However,
they often lack spiritual things: ceremonies, faith, a moral compass
and spiritual connection. Every adolescent has to eventually leave childhood
behind and create an identity that can withstand all the vicissitudes
of life. This passage can be emotionally very confusing and exhausting.
Therefore, the young can benefit from a sense of spirituality in their
lives, an aspect they can draw on whenever they are in the midst of
trials and tribulations in their adulthood. Many young adults are truly
in crisis during the passage into adulthood for a variety of reasons.
This can be a time of loneliness, emotional turmoil and confusion.
Because the young are immersed in the psychosocial crisis of identity definition and are beginning to decide for themselves what they will ultimately believe in terms of spirituality, this is an opportune time to inculcate in them the core values of Jainism. It can be a time for spiritual growth, introspection and values clarification.
The ideal of moral education for the young has always been a matter of paramount importance to the Jain parents. Public schools once placed the building of character and moral discernment on a par with developing the intellect. But now the formal curriculum in the schools our children attend is devoid of moral education. Many of the conditions for the development of character in the young have deteriorated in recent years. Mass media transmit messages that are confusing at best and corrupting at worst.
People do not automatically develop good moral character. Therefore, conscientious efforts must be made to help the young people develop the values and abilities necessary for moral decision-making and conduct. The character and conduct of our youth reflect the character and conduct of our community. Hence, every adult has the responsibility to teach and model core ethical values to promote the development of good character. The flight of an eagle cannot be accomplished with the wings of a sparrow. It is a monumental task and truly requires a Herculean endeavor.
Before the Jain Center came into existence in 1988, approximately fifty students attended Jain Pathshala at homes of individual teachers. This was the genesis of JCYC. It was a humble beginning. A year later enrollment in Pathshala classes jumped to seventy, taught by three teachers. Last year a record number of 365 students enrolled in Pathshala. A volunteer staff of 52 teachers and ten administrative help run the Pathshala. The curriculum has been expanded to include classes on Jainism, Indian History and Culture, and Gujarati and Hindi languages. We have Swadhyay and English language classes for adults. Jain Study Group in English was started in 1997 for young adults with seven students, and today we have over fifty students in this class today.
We serve more than five hundred plates of snacks every Sunday when we have classes. Many people come to the temple on that day because everybody is at the center and they get to meet them. Several Jain Pathshalas in America are emulating our model.
All teachers are qualified and dedicated volunteers. They are genuinely concerned individuals, and dedicated to teaching Jain religion and heritage to children. They devote many hours of hard work in preparation and teaching. Most importantly, they provide a cordial and friendly atmosphere for children. Through tears and cheers, they have endured. The success of JCYC is the culmination of their heroic endeavors. Following testimonial from a parent sums up the sentiment of all the parents whose children come to the Jain Center: "We are very happy that our children have a place to learn about Jainism and Indian culture and where they can meet children with similar background and philosophy."
If education is to have an ethical dimension, delight must be concomitant
with moral education. If we want our young to succeed in this endeavor,
pleasure should mingle with instructions. They need to experience activities
that are challenging, inspiring and fun. JCYC children have various
activities during the year besides religious studies. An executive committee
of children is selected to serve a one-year term. The committee has
the responsibility of planning and conducting activities for the children
throughout the year under the guidance of JCYC coordinator.
JCYC activities during a typical year include a picnic in the park, an outing to the beach, roller-skating, ice-skating, and a trip to a local amusement park for the children. Also, children stage performances during two of our religious holidays, create an art project, and participate in a "Fun and Games" day. Children volunteer to help out at various events at the Jain Center including a once a year Medical Camp where volunteers from the medical profession provide their services for a complete physical check-up to anybody who walks in.
JCYC also organizes a four-day winter camp retreat to the mountains once a year. This is a unique experience for many children, because some of them part with their parents and live away from home for the first time. In addition to learning religion, they learn to take care of themselves and help others. They make new friends at the camp, and have fun with their old friends. There were 130 children, fifteen youth volunteers and fifteen adult volunteers at the winter camp of 2002 in the San Bernardino Mountains. Active involvement of youth was the major factor for the success of this camp.
A forum is held once a year for teenagers of JCYC, with a panel of about ten young adults of Indian extraction who have grown up in America with Indian values and heritage where they were tormented by the pull of two cultures. They discuss cultural differences between America and India, and associated difficulties. The panel provides valuable counseling to the children to deal with their parents as well as their American peers. The same panel, once a year, has a forum with the parents of teenage children as well. They provide them with insight on teenage behavior, and give them suggestions on how to deal with the concerns they may have raising their children in America.
JCYC has contributed magnificently to the success of our Jain Center and has been a major benefactor. JCYC classes use the facility year around. Having the Main building and the Post Office building has been a boon. Many Pathshala in America are struggling because they do not have facilities to hold classes. We have already outgrown our present facility. Cramped premises and lack of space hinder further growth and introduction of new activities. Additional space in our new building will allow us to organize better and improve the classes and we are looking forward to the completion of the new building project.
Children look forward to coming to the Center. They come to the Center to learn and to meet their friends. They are encouraged to socially interact with their peers at the Center. As a result they have strong social bonds and they realize they are the beneficiaries of a rich and glorious culture. In JCYC we nurture our future. The future of our community depends on them. The next generation will be the stewards of our community. We expect these children to be the future leaders of our community and reach undreamed of heights.
The JCYC activities are as follows:
Religious classes for children of 5 years (mommy and me) to 18 years
of age.
Language classes (Gujarati and/or Hindi).
Cultural education.
Fun-filled annual religious winter camps on local mountains (for students only).
Separate forums for teenagers and their parents to bridge an improved understanding for each other.
Cultural performances by the students during Puryushan parva and graduation.
Other
fun activities include:
Picnics, Roller/Ice Skating, Roller Blading, Visit to Theme Parks, Visits
to a Christian Church, Jewish Temple, Buddhist Temple, and Hindu Temple.
The religious studies and language/cultural education have become more fun for the children. The essay competetion shows their understating of Jainisum, which is truly commendable. Our dedicated teams of teacher-volunteers present and past, equally share the credit.
For more information you may contact Sailes Jain at (714) 529-5874.
Feedback on Activities:
Field Trip to Camalot by Ronak Jhaveri
The
JCYC commitee put together another social event for the students. It
was held at Camalot. The children met infront of the park and collected
money. Once they had obtained the group discount, everyone was off to
play minature golf. There were multiple courses so there was no crowd.
After they were done with minature golf there was pizza and soda upstairs.
While everyone was eating everyone was given 10 tokens to spend and
play games with. After that they were free to go wherever they wanted
to. JCYC field trip was a great success.
Black History Parade By Ruchir M. Shah
The parade of black history month took place on Saturday, February 5th. We participated in the parade as the Jain Center of Southern California, representing India. This parade had a lot of neat floats. Many different countries and schools supported the parade. This was my very first parade experience. I was excited to walk in the parade. I was holding the flag of India. Sailes uncle and Manav were carrying the Jain Center banner. Amita auntie and Usha auntie were in their traditional Indian Sari. I saw all different kinds of band playing there and they had people from the Army. I was nervous, when we got close to the judging stand and the TV crew.
There were people from different ethnic groups. I would like to thank Sailes uncle for calling me for this event. It was a very good learning experience for me. I enjoyed it very much, and I think we should go to the parade again next year.
The Game Day by Shanehi
Game Day had an excellent turnout this year. Approximately 100 kids attended this activity, held on January 16, 2000. Due to the possibility of rain, games were held in our post office building where each game was played in a separate room. This year, game day was packed with fun and exciting games including football, basketball, musical chairs, red-light/green-light, whipping cream contest and guessing the M&M contest.
The children enjoyed these games while earning tickets, and later cashing them in for great prizes such as milky pens, gooey slime, bead bracelets, and beanie babies.
After these exciting games, kids were treated to hot chocolate and ice cream with Oreos. Thanks to the adults, volunteers, children, and the committee members for taking part. Because of them, this game day was truly a success.
JCYC Winter Camp by Mona Shah
My name is Mona Shah, and I attended JCYC Winter Camp. While I was there for about four days, my overall experience was great. The thing I really enjoyed at the camp was meeting new people. This year I have met so many new people of all ages. I met this really cool guy whose name is Kartik. He is an adult who plays guitar and is really an interesting guy to talk to. I have also met a girl my age named Ami. We are now great friends and we just recently went to see a movie together. I have not only met new people with amazing personalities, but also have gotten a chance to catch up with friends whom I don't see too often.
Camp also taught me about my religion. What I really liked in this camp were the teachers. The teachers made learning interesting and really made me think about my religion. I thought things that I would have never thought of before. I really went in deep with my religion and learned things I didn't know. There was one thing that I did not like and that was the food. It wasn't so great. I don't blame the cooks because they did try their best in preparing a pure vegetarian meal. I just didn't like it though. JCYC Camp is great experience. People come from all over the United States and it is a great way to learn and meet people.