"Our donors responded emphatically to our calls and helped us reach our 40 in 4 [CAD 40,000 (Rs 22,78,580) in four months] goal… We have been able to end the year without having to dip into our reserves, which looked very likely a few months back,” stated Xerxes Madan, president of the Ontario Zoroastrian Community Foundation (OZCF), in their newsletter of January 2021. The community in Ontario is preparing to "march towards achieving our dream of constructing an atash kadeh, our very own consecrated place of worship,” added Madan who took over as OZCF president in August 2020. An ordained navar from the Rustom Faramna Agiary in Bombay, Madan has been performing various ceremonies for the community and also serves as treasurer of The North American Mobeds Council.
"Membership fees make up a significant part of OZCF’s revenues and help pay for 36% of our operating expenses which are currently CAD 97,000 (Rs 55,53,946) per year,” mentioned Madan, appealing to their 539 members to pay their annual dues by April 30, 2021 to remain in good standing. In a bid to accommodate newcomers settling in, the board has decided to offer free membership for the first year.
Clockwise from above: Active in Ontario with members organizing
items collected through a food drive; writing to the troops;
playing chess; Ervad Xerxes Madan
A chemical engineer by profession with a masters in management studies from Bombay, Madan is currently country manager for Croda, a specialty additive (substance added to something in small quantities to improve or preserve it) company. Commenting on the global pandemic that has resulted in "job losses with many hardships and uncertainties beyond our control,” Madan who officiates as a Scout Leader for the 100th Oakville Zoroastrian Scout Group urged, "In such times, it is important for us to give back to the community and do our part in helping those less fortunate.”
In the spirit of Christmas, the OZCF Youth Committee and Fundraising Committee conjointly held a food drive. Despite a short notice period and a single day drop option, they collected 445 pounds of food for the Oakville Fareshare Food Bank. The Youth Committee also got the community to respond to a request from the Canadian Armed Forces to write letters/cards to cheer members of the troops who are deployed in different parts of the world and unable to return home to celebrate the holiday season with their families. Many OZCF children created hand drawn cards and wrote heartfelt messages for the members of the Armed Forces.
During the pandemic the OZCF Sports Subcommittee ventured into the world of virtual sports by organizing an online chess tournament that saw participation from 24 individuals, nine of whom were under 16 years of age. After intense knockout games, Mithra Chothia and Cyrus Gazdar emerged as the finalists and their match broadcast on Zoom saw Chothia emerge as the winner. To capitalize on the interest, an online OZCF Chess Club has been initiated on lichess.org with the intention to transition to regular in-person classes with coaching sessions once the lockdown ends.
Their much awaited food fair, Jamva Chaloji, was tweaked by the Fundraising Committee this year. Prior orders were intimated to the vendors who arrived at the assigned time slots with their goodies neatly packed and labelled for easy distribution at the OZCF Hall. The OZCF volunteers organized the packages as per the orders received with young children serving as elves to efficiently deliver parcels to buyers as they drove in for the curbside pickup.