Oshwal-USA.org » Community News

Congratulations to Heena Shah and Brian Griffin

Smita Dipak Shah — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 17:26:35 +0000

Our heartiest wedding congratulations to Heena (daughter of Ramila & Suryakant (Sudhir) Shah of Ballwin, Missouri) and Brian (son of Mary Ann & Ronald Phillip Griffin of Suffolk, Virginia) who got married on February 20, 2010 at the Days Inn Eureka Ballroom, in Eureka, Missouri. The wedding celebrations started on Friday with Mehndi followed by Mandovo, Christian wedding and lunch on Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon, there was a traditional Indian wedding followed by cocktails and dinner. The reception included a traditional toss, cake cutting, and dancing throughout the night. Family and friends came from the UK and all over the USA. The evening was beautiful and everyone had a wonderful time while celebrating until midnight.

Hitesh K. Malde

Chandu L. Shah — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:11:08 +0000

Hitesh K. Malde of Vasai/Santacruz, Mumbai, India, passed away on February 13th, 2010, in India at the age of 52. He was brother of Meena C. Shah of Springfield NJ.

Narmdaben Dhanji Maru

Kamala Gudka — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:30:37 +0000

Our deepest condolences to the family of Late. Smt. Narmdaben Dhanji Maru who passed away on February 16, 2010 at Mulund, India. She was 66 years old and suffering from pancreatic cancer.

She was the sister of Veni Sumaria, Chandu Shah, Ratan Maru, Kamla Gudka and Late Shri Somchand Shah of Boston, Massachusetts; Premchand Shah of Los Angeles, California; and Nathalal Shah, Jethiben Harniya, Rupaben Gudhka and Champa Shah residing in India.
May Almighty Give eternal peace to her soul.
Om Shanti

Keshavji Kachara Dodhia

Jayanti Z. Galaiya — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:12:25 +0000

Keshavji Kachara Dodhia of Vasai and Bhivandi passed away recently in Thane, Indiaa at the age of 83. He was brother-in law (banevi) of Keshav and Kanchan Shah of Chestnut Ridge, NY; Harakhchand and Jyoti Shah and Mansukh and Mina Shah all of Budd lake, NJ; Pushpa and Shantilal Jankharia of Hackettstown, NJ; and Vijya and Jayanti Galaiya of Long Valley, NJ.

From the desk of President Chandulal Shah

Chandulal Shah — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 00:47:23 +0000

I would like to thank our community for electing me as the president for HVO of USA, and to serve on the Executive Board. On behalf of all Halari Visa Oshwals, I sincerely would like to thank our outgoing executive committee members for their excellent work for the past two years.

2010 will be our 25th anniversary of Halari Visa Oshwals gathering. I am proud to say that all our community members have kept the community intact and passed on our heritage to younger generation. We are a small community and everyone’s participation is very important. I request everyone to take part in your area activities and keep in touch with our organization. We will contact all area representatives soon to get their feed back.

I ask you all to verify your information in our directory and submit any corrections, changes or new additions by completing the form available on www.oshwal-usa.org website in Directory category. I request every one to forward any significant news/information to our secretary or your area representative for publishing in our newsletter. Most of our community news is also regularly posted on our website.

I really appreciate the trust you all have placed on us. We will make every effort to bring our organization to the highest level, to be recognized and be visible in the World Halari Visa Oshwal Community.

Chandu Shah

Halari Visa Oshwals of America

Executive Board for Year 2010-2011

Keshav Shah — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:44:02 +0000

Election for the executive committee was held during the Northeast Area Thanksgiving Gathering on Saturday, November 28, 2009, in South Plainfield, New Jersey. Presently, we have six committee members and we need odd number members for majority voting. Assistant treasurer position was eliminated to make a five member committee. Several nominations for various positions were received and executive committee was elected. There was no nomination for assistant secretary position so it was kept open to fill from other areas. After discussing with one person, this position was filled. We wish our incoming committee all the best and a great success. We ask you all to support and help them to make us more visible in the Oshwal-world.

Executive committee is as follows:

President: Chandulal Shah, Springfield, NJ
Vice President: Smita Shah, Lemont, IL
Secretary: Jayanti Galaiya, Long Valley, NJ
Treasurer: Nimish Vora, Princeton, NJ
Assistant Secretary: Dr. Alpa Shah, Plano, TX

The following positions are non-elected and these are filled by the board from volunteers, when a member wants to hand over the work. Current members will continue to hold their positions.

Web-Master: Ketan Dodhia, Jersey City, NJ
Assistant Web-Master: Nikesh Shah, Danbury, CT
Directory Administrator: Satish Shah, Plano, TX

Keshav Shah – President, Yr. 2008-2009
Halari Visa Oshwals of America

Annual Northeast Thanksgiving Get Together

guest — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 14:11:31 +0000

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Our 24th annual northeast area Thanksgiving Gathering was held on Saturday, November 28, 2009 at Ramada Inn, in South Plainfield, New Jersey. Despite bitter cold and windy weather, we had a good turnout of 70 plus people including children. The event was entirely sponsored by thirteen families. A wholehearted thought goes a long way.

The evening started with the delicious appetizers as people started arriving. Everyone enjoyed tasty appetizers – bhel, batata vada, papadi ganthia and desi chai, while catching up with friends and relatives. Children played several games afterward and prizes were given to everyone. They really enjoyed the games and they were happy to be here. Our sincere thanks to Bina Beed for planning and conducting games for children.

Prior to dinner, election was carried out / held for next two year term and executive committee was elected. Results will be posted on website in a separate report. Then, mouthwatering Gujarati and Punjabi style dinner was served. People sat and chat in groups while eating dinner. Paan flavored ice-cream and paan were served after the dinner. We would like to thank Jayanti and Vijya Galaiya, and Kanchan Shah for selecting and making arrangement for the delicious food. During dinner, Keshav Shah reminded everyone about our plan for publishing the updated Oshwal Directory in 2010.

It was a great get together and everyone enjoyed it. Our special thanks to the families who contributed to cover the cost of the event. The event was sponsored, however we collected nominal token for raising money for our association as we have a minimal balance. At the end we had surplus of $500 for our association. We also would like to thank committee members and area representatives for helping out.

See below for some pictures from the event.

Jain art exhibitions in New York museums

Satish P. Shah — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:52:32 +0000

Peaceful Conquerers: Jain Manuscript Paintings at Metropolitan Museum of Art from 10 Sept 2009 to 21 March 2010 www.metmuseum.org

Victorious Ones: Jain Images of Perfection at Rubin Museum of Art from 18th September 2009 to 15 February 2010 www.rmanyc.org, (press release)

Congratulations to Amit and Ruhi

Manisha Shah — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:24:12 +0000

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Congratulations to Amit and Ruhi Shah of Washington, DC, on the arrival of their baby girl, Anaya, in October. Grandparents Kantilal and Manisha Shah of Poughkeepsie, New York, and Nirav are extremely proud of the new addition to the family.

Congratulations to Sandip and Sonal

Seema Maru — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:51:58 +0000

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Congratulations to Sandip and Sonal Maru of Long Island, New York, on the recent arrival of their baby girl, Saaya.

Grandparents Tansukh & Manju Maru of Hazlet, New Jersey, and Hansaben & Jitubhai Patel of Florida, and Aunt (Faiba) Seema Maru are proud of the new addition to the family.

Kiran (Bhikhu) Govindji Hemraj Shah (1954-2009)

Smita Dipak Shah — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:15:36 +0000

Our deepest condolences to the family of Kiran ( Bhikhu) Shah of Nyeri (currently Nakuru), Kenya, who passed in India, on September 14th, 2009. He suffered a heart attack.

He was a husband to Raksha Kiran Shah; father to daughters Dimple and Nipa; son of Govindji Hemraj and Shardaben Govindji Shah; brother to Kirit and Rekha; cousin to Arun Premchand Shah (Nakuru,Kenya) , Ramilaben (Nairobi, Kenya), Ushaben Ashwin Shah ( Somer,Wisconcin) and Chand (UK).

May god rest his soul in peace.

Mahen (Narendra) Chandaria 1950-2009

Smita Dipak Shah — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:39:44 +0000

Our deepest condolences to the families of Mahen Chandaria, of Toronto-Canada, who peacefully passed away in the early hours of Friday, September 11th, 2009, at his home at the age of 59. Beloved husband of Geeta, and dearly loved father of Sagar, Sarit and Savan, Mahen was born in Nairobi, Kenya, on August 21st, 1950.

He arrived in Canada in the spring of 1984 and joined his family in successfully building their businesses. Mahen always showed tremendous perseverance and fortitude, particularly in the last ten years, in spite of serious health issues. He was known as “a man with a golden heart”. Always a giver and rarely a taker, he was sought by many for his ability to inspire and motivate.

He was the cherished son of Velji Dharamshi and Paniben Chandaria, and brother of Ashok, Navin, Kapoor, Kumud and Dhiren. He will be missed by his many nieces, nephews, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law and family and friends from around the world. He was a proud son-in-law to Liladhar Khimji Jesang Shah & Lalitaben Liladhar Shah of Nairobi , Kenya. He was a proud banevi to Meena David Youngblood (Houston, Texas), Mala (Dallas, Texas), and Smita Dipak Shah (Chicago, Illinois).

The funeral ceremony took place from 2:30 to 4pm on Tuesday, September 15th, at Elgin Mills Funeral Home, 1591 Elgin Mills Rd. East, Richmond Hill, Ontario, and was followed by a reception.

Shanti Puja was held at 10:30am on Saturday, September 19th, at the Sanatan Mandir Cultural Centre, at 9333 Woodbine Ave., Markham, Ontario, followed by a lunch.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Kidney Foundation of Canada (www.kidney.ca).

Sudhaben Chandulal Popatlal (Irving, Texas)

Alpa Shah — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 11:33:03 +0000

Sudhaben, wife of Chandulal Popatlal Keshavji (Sumaria), of, Nairobi, and Irving, Texas, and daughter of Harkhchand Hansraj Haria of Chela, passed away on the morning of October 7 after a short illness.

She is survived by her husband, Chandubhai; two sons Kaushik and Shamir; daughter Rina; daughter-in-laws Maryann and Kalpana; son-in-law Himanshu Patel; grand children Ethan, Maya and Roshni.

Our heartfelt condolences to the family of Sudhaben and we pray to Almighty to rest her soul in eternal peace.

Ratanben Ramji Shah

Navinchandra Shah — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:53:57 +0000

Mrs. Ratanben Ramji Shah, mother of Navinchandra Shah of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, passed away on September 19, 200, in London, UK, at the age of 82.
She was born in Vadalia Sihan, India. She lived in Nakuru, Kenya, before moving to London.

Annual Texas/Oklahoma Diwali Dinner 2009

Alpa Shah — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:40:53 +0000

We are delighted to share the details of our Texas/Oklahoma Diwali 2009 celebration. We met on Saturday, Oct 3rd, at Pasand Restaurant in Richardson, Texas. We had over 50 members at the party. We had a short get-together at the beginning followed by Arti, Mangal Devo and Navkar Mantra recital. Music and Artis were brought in by Shilpa Shah. Later, we had art activities for children and supplies were sponsored by Sandhya and Sangeeta Shah. We then enjoyed dinner followed by family quiz game. Special thanks to Reeta Shah for assisting in the party planning. A big “thank you” to all the members who have always been eager to help and support our community gatherings.

Congratulations to Nikesh and Neha Shah

Keshav Shah — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 01:56:58 +0000

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Congratulations to Nikesh and Neha Shah of Danbury, Connecticut, on arrival of their baby boy, Shailen, in September 2009. Grandparents Keshav and Kanchan Shah of Chestnut Ridge, New York, and Manu and Nirmala Parikh of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, Aunt (Faiba) Shilpa Gaggar, Uncle (Fuva) Amit Gaggar, and little cousin Akash Gaggar of Hoover, Alabama, and Uncle (Mama) Dhiman Parikh of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey are extremely proud of the new addition to the family.

Motiben Narshi Samat Shah

Smita Dipak Shah — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:23:22 +0000

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Our heartiest condolences to the families of Motiben Narshi Samat Shah-Dodhia of Changa, who passed away in London, UK, on August 25, 2009. She was 83 years old. She enjoyed her life for 60 years in Kisumu, Kenya, spending time with her children and grandchildren.

She was a mother to Chandrakantbhai (Nairobi, Kenya), Late Rameshbhai (Nairobi, Kenya,) Ashwinbhai (London, UK), Vasantiben Vasant Shah ( Woodridge, Illinois, USA), Sarojben Arun Shah (Nakuru, Kenya). She has 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

Last year she visited Chicago, USA, to spend time with her daughter, Vasantiben Vasant Shah and family for 2 months. We all had an honor to meet and spend some time with her.
She recently suffered pancreatic cancer, and her family would like to protect our elders from this deadly disease, by encouraging early check-ups. The symtoms are stomach/abdominal pains, vomiting, and diarrhea.

May God grant her eternal peace, she will be missed by all her family and fellow Oshwals. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.

Congratulations to Mayur and Jigna

Kamala Gudka — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 17:14:02 +0000

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Congratulations to Mayur and Jigna from Boston, MA, on their newborn baby boy, Dhruv.

Proud Uncle (Kaka) Hiren Gudka, Aunt (Faiba) Mijal Gudka, Grandma (Dadi) Kamala Gudka of Boxford, MA. Grand Parents (Nani and Nana) Gitaben and Ashokbhai Shah from London. Grand Uncle Veni Sumaria, Chandu Shah, and Grand Aunt Ratan Maru from Boston, MA.

Tarachand Dharamshi Virji Malde

Paras Maalde — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:30:02 +0000

Shree Tarachand Dharamshi Virji Malde (born in Mombasa, Kenya, in the late 1920s) passed away on Friday, 4th September, 2009, in Mombasa, Kenya, following severe heart disease.

Tarachand Bhai was the eldest son of Late Dharamshi Virji Rupa Malde (of Moti Rafudar in Halar, Gujarat) and Late Jiviben Dharamshi Virji Malde.

Tarachand Bhai is survived by his wife Shushila Ben who resides in Mombasa, and his two daughters Lata (residing in Nairobi, Kenya) and Priti (in London, UK)

Congratulation to New Jersey Tapasvis

Jayanti Galaiya — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:25:56 +0000

This year during Paryushana in our small New Jersey Oshwal community we had six persons who completed Atthai Tapasya, and several others did various level of Tapasya.

Congratulations to following six Atthai tapasvis:

Chiraag Galaiya (Long Valley, NJ),
Jayanti Galaiya (Long Valley, NJ),
Sushila Gudhka (Kinelon, NJ),
Seema Maru (Hazlet, NJ),
Meena Shah (Budd Lake, NJ),
Nimish Vora (Princeton).

Michchhami Dukkadam.