Indo-Canadian Community Centre, Ottawa

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Indo-Canadian Community Centre, Ottawa"

Caitlin Freeman
6 years ago
Views:

Indo-Canadian Community Centre, Ottawa Minutes of the April 30 th, 2016 AGM, held at 1993 Robertson Road 1. Approval of the Agenda Nitya Varma motioned to pass the agenda. Sucha Mann seconded. Passed.

Ratify Board Appointees: Biju George motioned to ratify Kanwal Talwar, Naveen Patni and Asha Mehta as Board appointees. Sucha seconded the motion, all were in favour. Motion passed. 4.

1 Indo-Canadian Community Centre, Ottawa Minutes of the April 30 th, 2016 AGM, held at 1993 Robertson Road 1. Approval of the Agenda Nitya Varma motioned to pass the agenda. Sucha Mann seconded. Passed. 2. Approval of Minutes from last year s AGM Shiv Chopra motioned that the minutes be passed. Nand Tandan seconded. All in favour. 3. Ratify Board Appointees: Biju George motioned to ratify Kanwal Talwar, Naveen Patni and Asha Mehta as Board appointees. Sucha seconded the motion, all were in favour. Motion passed. 4. President s Report. Biju began his report by thanking ICCC members, the Board, and community leaders who have helped make this a great year. Biju continued by thanking Arvind Chhatbar for his excellent work in leading the board for the first half of the term. He thanked the other Board members for their tireless work as well. Biju also made note of all the families who support their loved ones who are volunteering their time to the Indian community in Ottawa. Biju made note of some of the excellent events held by ICCC in the past year. There was the Nepal Earthquake Fundraiser that raised over $10,000; there was the reception to welcome the new High Commissioner from India; there was the fundraiser for BMRI led by Chan Chandramouli; there was the All Candidates debate for Nepean for the Federal election; and the Diwali on the Hill reception attended by over 500 guests (the largest in history). Aside from these one-time events, ICCC continues to run Seniors activities, run by Indu Ghambhir, Anil Agrawal, Naveen Patni, and Bala Madaparthi. There are also the wonderful programs being run by S.N.O.W. (the Social Network Of Women) led by Rekha Dogra and Indu Ghambhir. The Speakers Forum had run another year of successful talks. This year has also seen the ICCC logo updated by the Board and a concentrated effort to update the list of members. Currently the board has Nitya Varma and Kanwal Talwar exploring new options for an ICCC facility (to be discussed later), and there is an upcoming Spring Concert planned. Biju then made note of issues in ICCC s current organization. Of note, he highlighted that ICCC general body continues to be an aging membership with limited youth involvement. He also stressed that ICCC search for a new center may not result in an option that the general body can agree on. If that is the case, the general body must also consider other options for the future of ICCC. 1

2 Again, Biju thanked the general body, the Board, the community, and their families for all their hard work. Nitya, moved that the report be received by the general body and Kanwal seconded. Motion passed. 5. Secretary s Report Anish Mehra began the report by sharing the news that ICCC was able to secure a central location at 1993 Robertson Road to maintain a small office. All ICCC documents could be kept here and anyone with any paperwork should bring it here so that it could be maintained. The space also provided a small meeting room (based on availability). The current list had also been updated, but any member who is not getting s should contact the Board to ensure their is correct. Anish then echoed Biju s list of activities for the past year and the wonderful job the Board has done to promote the ICCC vision. Finally, Anish made note of the upcoming spring concert and encouraged all member to purchase their tickets. Dr Jindal and Dr. Chopra took a moment to thank East India Company at 1993 Robertson Road for providing the office space. Nand asked if the official address would change as well. Biju responded that over the next few months, addresses would be updated so that everything would come to one place. Chan motioned to receive the report and Nitya seconded. Motion passed. 6. Treasurer s Report Sushma reviewed ICCC s financial situation. She provided the following reports as a context to ICCC s current situation: SUMMARY OF ACCOUNTS May 24, 2015 Nepal Earthquake Fundraising : East India Company Downtown Revenues (donations, silent auction, tickets etc.) $10, Expenses (child haven, food, other) $10, Revenues minus expenses $54.11 July 12 th, 2015 High Commissioner Reception: at the Cedar Hill Golf Club Revenues (ticket sales) $2, Expenses (food, music, banner, photographer) $2, Revenues minus expenses $27.65 September 13, All Candidates Debate: Cedar Hill Golf Club Revenues (donation from Bank of Nova Scotia) $ Expenses (food and rentals to Club) $ Revenue minus expenses - $

3 November 18 th Diwali Celebration: Parliament Hill Revenues (donations) $3, Expenses (food, flowers, printing, entertainment) $3, Revenues minus expenses - $78.50 INDO-CANADIAN COMMUNITY CENTRE INC., FINANCIAL STATEMENTS UNAUDITED FOR THE PERIOD OF JANUARY 01 TO DECEMBER 31, 2015 Presented at the April, 2016 AGM INDO-CANADIAN COMMUNITY CENTRE INC. BALANCE SHEET AS AT DECEMBER 31, ASSETS Current Assets Cash $6,977** $17,824* Scotiabank Deposit $743,852 $728,989 $750,829 $746,813 LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS Current Liabilities Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities $0 $0 Net Assets Unrestricted $750,829 $746,813 $750,829 $746,813 Notes *Includes adjustment for outstanding cheque of $64.80 **Includes adjustment for two outstanding cheques for $

4 INDO-CANADIAN COMMUNITY CENTRE INC. STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND NET ASSETS FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, REVENUE Receivable $0 $0 Interest Income from Scotiabank Deposit 8,702 12,190 Donations received 17,268 1,788 Donation from new members 1,000 0 Total Revenue $26,970 $13, EXPENSES Bank Charges Advertising and Promotion 2,000 1,600 Rental Costs 5,593 4,255 Office and General 1, Miscellaneous (incl. catering for events) 2, Donation for research (BMRI- University of Ottawa) Donation to charities ,000 Total Expenses $22,804 7,530 Excess of Revenue over Expenses $4016 $4,815 Net Assets, Beginning of Period $746,813 $741,998 Net Assets, End of Period $750,829 $746,813 Organization NOTES Indo-Canadian Community Centre Inc. (ICCC) was incorporated without share capital under the laws of Ontario by letters patent dated Feb 2, The objectives of the corporation are to fund and carry out activities and programs that are beneficial to the Indo-Canadian community as a whole without financial gain to its members. 4

5 Current Investments Bank of Nova Scotia Accounts (1.5% interest) $244, (nominal interest) $10, (no interest) $22, Total 1-year non-redeemable Guaranteed Investment Certificates (1.8 percent annual interest) Issued on March 16, 2016 The Bank of Nova Scotia $125, National Trust Company $125, Montreal Trust Company of Canada $125, Scotia Mortgage Corporation $125, Seniors Committee Report: Report was provided by Indu Gambhir and Naveen Patni. Helping seniors has been a long time goal of ICCC. Naveen took a moment to single out Indu Gambhir s and Anil Agrawal s long term commitment to ICCC seniors activities. Noted that it began in 2012 with one location in Merivale Mall, and now two centers are meeting each week. Bala Brahmanandam Madaparthi, Sudesh Kanda, Nand Tandon, and Ram Sahi were all instrumental in getting these seniors meetings off the ground. Next, Naveen informed the Board that earlier in the year, Indu and Anil prepared a grant application to the Federal Government. The application was submitted by Naveen and Arvind and had letters of support from a number of Indo-Canadian organizations. In March, the board was informed that the Grant had been approved in the amount of $22,985. The goal of the grant is to expand and enhance the current seniors socialization, exercise, and outdoor activities. The committee responsible for the grant will include Anil Agrawal, Naveen Patni, Indu Gambhir, Ken Talwar, and Sushma Barewal. Currently, the committee is setting up goals and action teams to manage the activities that need to be done. Programs 5

6 such as neighbors helping neighbors is being used as a base to grow activities. It was noted that although ICCC is responsible for the grant and its distribution, the programs and activities are open to all, not just members of ICCC. Mr. Neogi noted that Deshantari had also applied for and been given a grant. Mr. Chopra noted that originally he thought ICA was part of the grant application but was not part of the committee. Naveen responded that many groups, including ICA, provided letters of support for the application. However, the actual application was prepared by Indu, Anil, Naveen, and Arvind only for submission on behalf of ICCC. 8. Property Search: Nitya and Ken provided two reports on property searches. Nitya began by giving a brief history of what he had done. Currently he is focused on a parcel of land on Conroy Road owned by the City. He is exploring if the City would be willing to enter into a co-operative relationship where ICCC would provide much of the upfront costs to build a center (that would be open to the public) and the City would be responsible for ongoing costs and maintenance. AGM provided support for this idea and encouraged Nitya to follow up on this. Ken began by saying he was exploring three options. The first two were two properties on Barnsdale. The first property was a 6.5-acre land for about $599,000. Zoning still needed to be explored and there was likely a need for infill. The second Barnsdale property was a five-acre land for $350,000, with potential to expand at the rear of the property. Finally, the last property that Ken was exploring was the land Dr. Jindal had offered to donate. Ken noted that it was a great parcel of land on Mitch Owens Road of about five acres (up to 10 acres was available). It was close to a school and field. However, the major issue is that the land is currently zoned as agricultural land. He had contacted the city and province about rezoning. As of now it would take 1-2 years and cost up to $250,000, without a guarantee of success. He noted that tests would have to show the land is not good for farming in order for it to be rezoned and then opened the floor for discussion. Biju noted that all options would need time to be explored but that the AGM should discuss the merits of each option. Dr Chopra said he liked the ideas of the Conroy Road Co-op and Dr Jindal s land, but did not see the potential in the Barnsdale properties. Indu followed by saying that right now we should not say no to any option and keep exploring all of them. Anish noted that he agreed that all three should continue to be explored, but wanted to take a moment for the AGM to recognize and appreciate the kind offer from Dr. Jindal. Sucha Mann noted that in considering all options, the ongoing costs and maintenance must be a key factor. He mentioned the Richcraft Center that used monies from Richcraft to build, but is maintained by the City. In his opinion, a co-op with the City would be the best option. Mr. Barewal also thanked Dr. Jindal for his land offer, but asked the board to consider the options and come 6

7 back to the AGM with one recommendation. Mr. Neogi disagreed and said the board should explore all the options and come back to the AGM with any viable options. He also wanted to make sure that ICCC charitable status was not in question. Nitya agreed that all options would continued to be explored and noted that the charitable status was not at risk. Anish made the following motions concerning properties: A) That Nitya Varma be given a 6 month period (till October 31 st ) to fully explore the option of coming into a co-operative agreement with the city on a parcel of land for a community center. 32 votes in favour, one member abstained. B) That an agronomist be hired and that up to $10,000 be used to confirm if Dr. Jindal s property can be rezoned for a community center, with the same time line as above (up to October 31 st ). 32 votes in favour, one member abstained. C) That Ken be given a 6 month period (till October 31 st ) to explore the possibility of the Barnsdale properties, which may include him making a conditional offer (subject to AGM approval) on the properties. 31 votes in favour, two members abstained. Meeting adjourned at 4 pm. 7

Third Party Fundraising Events

Number 50 August 2009 Third Party Fundraising Events Conducting fund raising events to grow a fund at a community foundation is a common activity by many donors. People have come up with fun and often