Noted music director Manisharma will be leading a high voltage musical night at the biggest Mariott in the world in Orlando, Florida on May 31.
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TAJA is one of the Florida Telugu associations that is helping bring this event within reach of all Florida residents. Tickets will be available at the Sarvadhaari Ugadi event on May 10.Email us or call 63-TAZAA (638 2922) or contact any TAJA committee member for details.

This hotel is a stones throw from the parks of Disney and Seaworld. Discounted accomodation may also be available if you book early. For more details, browse over to the event website.

| Florida Telugu Sambaraalu | 31 May 2008 | Mariott World Center, Orlando |

The TAJA Sarvadhaari Ugadi Vedukalu held on May 10, 2008 at the Nease High School turned out to be a big draw. We thank everybody who got involved and helped making this event a success.

It was a typical Florida summer day, hot and slightly humid, sans the showers that might have otherwise brought some welcome relief. Committee members led by Radhika and Padma along with a few volunteers turned up early to complete the stage decoration that was left unfinished from rehearsal day. As they were finishing up, more members and volunteers started turning up after noon to help make other arrangements for food, vendor booth setup and signage displaying directions to the venue. The outdoor lobby area quickly became a hub of activity as tables and chairs were being setup for the various booths on the one side and a snack area was being setup adjacent to the cafeteria. The Sarvadhaari committee members soon joined in with the Sarvajit committee to help organize the event.

As the members started pouring in, the lobby became a 'meet-and-greet' area for many as they perused what the vendors had to offer while grabbing a 'bonda' or two. Members were welcomed with showers of rose water at the entrance to the auditorium. The sports awards event kicked off at around 4.00 pm and was preceded by the invocation and the President's address. Then, the Sarvajit committee members and families were called up on stage and handed over souvenirs by the Sarvajit President Mallikarjuna as a token of appreciation of the hard work that they had put in over the last year.

And then, the podium was handed over to Sarvadhaari President Dora Davuluri, who dished out what maybe termed as possibly the most entertaining introductory speech in TAJA history. After taking care of the customary reminders of upcoming events, he regaled the audience with his introduction of some of the Sarvadhaari committee members. Once those formalities were wrapped up, it was time for the cultural events to take center stage.

The cultural numbers ranged from the traditional to the folk to the film genre. As expected, almost all the film numbers, especially the ones that involved children were very well acknowledged. The folk dance numbers were exceptionally executed and most of the audience was pretty much glued to their seats. The Donga-Donga skit by the children was pretty well thought out and presented that it evoked laughter and guffaws from the audience. There were a couple of classical dance numbers that were also well received. In between events, the MCs Viplav, Padma, Narsi, Sripriya and Sandhya entertained the audience with their short jokes. Raffles were also being drawn at this time for tickets to the Orlando event as well as for giveaways by some of the vendors. Throughout the event, the names of the participants and coordinators of the ongoing presentations were being projected on a screen beside the stage. Ragu Sagli helped execute this part flawlessly. The event wound down with a rendering of India's National Anthem, the Jana Gana Mana, which was followed by a vote of thanks by Mallikarjuna.

While all this was going on, the Food co-ordination committee with help from some members of the Sarvadhaari committee as well as from volunteers, were busy making arrangements for the buffet in the adjoining cafeteria. The cool night and the open lobby served as a perfect backdrop for the food at the end of an exceptionally executed event thanks to all the participants and coordinators who had put in oodles of effort in the months gone by. The lobby as well as the cafeteria once again served as a meeting area as members enjoyed the dinner buffet. Mayuri restaurant, the food sponsor, deserves praise for the high quality of food that was dished out.

We would like to thank all Sarvajit committee members who had helped in staging this event from start to finish. Special mention needs to begiven to our sports coordinators Radhika, Mahendra and Durga Rao, our event coordinators Aruna, Sai, Padma and Dayakar for taking the lead in specific areas. Murali needs to be appreciated for the efforts he put in towards food coordination. And of course we cannot forget all other members including those in the EC for stepping in to fill in the gaps whenever required. we would like to thank the MCs and Raghu Sagili for their valuable efforts. Finally, we would like to thank the Sarvadhaari committee members as well as some of our 'volunteer' members for stepping in and helping out with the event on event day.

This event couldn't have been a success without the presence of our members who sat through the entire event inspite of the difficulties and we cannot thank them enough for that. We would like to thank our partners and sponsors and the vendors who turned up to setup booths for our members. Mr Randall of Nease High School and his associates were very helpful and accommodative and tried to help the best they could with the event. We thank them very much for their efforts. We would also like to thank the members of the Jacksonville Hindu Temple who had voluntarily stepped in and tried to help wherever possible.

| Sarvadhaari Ugadi Vedukalu | 10 May 2008 | Photo gallery |

On Saturday, October 20, TAJA organised a Free "two in one concert" at the Jacksonville Country Day School located at the intersection of Baymeadows Road and Southside Blvd.

Dhanyavaadamulu! To all those who could make it, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your presence at TAJA dual concerts "Ghantasala Aaradhanostavam" and "Ghazal Srinivas" held on Oct 20th. You beat our expectations and more than 300 people attended the concerts.

Another thank you goes out to all those who donated to Vegesna Foundation. There were apprehensions as to how much donation can be raised for Vegesna from the Jax area which has a 'small footprint' when compared to many other centers in the US. But any such doubts were soon put to rest as the donations came in the form of a deluge from the audience, thus proving that our big hearts more than make up for our (relatively) small presence in the Jax area. Thanks to you, Vegesna could raise close to $12,000; this being the second highest amount that Vegesna has raised during this season.

Many enjoyed the golden oldies and famous songs of the Late Ghantasala. We even had the opportunity to listen to a couple of "Padyalu" (poems) from Sri Venunadha Rao Muddapu, a current resident of the Jacksonville area. Dr. Ghazal Srinivas proved "Telugu Ghazals" are not scary with his melodius rendering of Telugu Ghazals that touched the hearts of everybody in the audience. His Ghazals reminded us of and brought us close to our dear motherland and left us yearning for more. All his Ghazals narrated the day to day life, love for the motherland, love for the mother and the valuable relationships we cherish with our family as well as extended family. We just cannot thank him enough for this out of the world experience.

We are thankful to our sponsors: Prudential Financial, Redchilies Restaurant and Teluguone. Check out what Teluguone had to say about this concert.

With your support, we at TAJA will continue to strive to bring you excellent events. If you have any suggestions or concerns, please let us know. Email us or call us at 904 63-Tazaa.

| Special event 2007 | 20 October 2007 | Photo Gallery

The weather report was encouraging. Clear skies with highs in the low 80s coupled with relatively lower humidity. Considering the fact that the week before had pretty much been 'rained out', it was but natural for most of us to be wary of how the weather would pan out on the big day. Needless to say, come Saturday morning and it looked like Murphy would hit us real hard as the rain started coming down. A quick check of the forecast somewhat quelled those doubts and by the time we reached the park, there were signs of the skies clearing up.

Located bang in the middle of the easily accesible Baymeadows area of the city, the compact, yet secluded park was a perfect choice. The morning hours saw the area humming with activity as supplies were being unloaded in one area of the park, while generators and slide/bouncers were being setup in other areas. A registration/ticket center was quickly setup while banners and signage were being hung/posted around the park.

The India fest 2007 trophy was on display at the registration desk. Tickets for the games and the raffle were given as and when people registered. Breakfast in the form of Upma, Idli, Sambhar, chutney and tea (all sponsored by Mayuri restaurant) had already been setup at the shelter and the early entrants wasted no time in getting to work on it. Not many children initially ventured to try the bouncer that was setup for them, (they preferred to stick to the swings in the regular play area) but as more and more parents wrapped up their breakfast, we could notice the bouncer area start to attract more and more children. The slide/bouncer soon became a major attraction for children of all ages.

Sreedhar Vengala helped setup the music system and took upon himself, for the most part, in association with Sai V, the responsibilities of a DJ. Laxman Chileveru and Padma Patcha coordinated the "Ring" game for children. In short order, this game drew parents too as they at first egged their children to get the ring around the targets, but later on started participating too. A volleyball court was quickly setup and a game got started in no time, but the volleyball decided to call it quits. While waiting for a replacment, the players switched to other games like cricket and football. Meanwhile, some of the ladies decided to indulge in a game of "seven stones". Bharath Muthyala, Srini Miryala and Padma got the children involved in a spoon and lemon race. To make it easy for children under four, they were asked to race without the lemon!

Vamsi Srikakolapu and Ravi Sanka got together to organise a tug-of-war contest for children. In the Boys vs Girls contest, the girls won the first round. Maybe the result prompted more of the boys to join in the game and help the Boys team win the second round. A men vs women contest was held immediately thereafter and seeing that the men were outnumbered, more men interrrupted their volleyball game and joined in the effort to help the men's team win.

While people were enjoying themselves, some members volunteered to cook rice (Chidambaram Rayaprolu), to cut vegetables for the salad (Shanta Rayaprolu / Roja Nunna / Vasundhara Srikakulapu) or to prepare buttermilk. The buttermilk was gone in a jiffy, leaving us wondering if we should have prepared more. Either all the activity or the anticipation of a good lunch had folks waiting even before everything was ready to be served. Lunch arrived after a short delay and a line was formeed even as it was being arranged. Lunch consisted of biryani rice, chapati, chole curry and brinjal curry (all sponsored by Apna restaurant). White rice and salad were prepared on the spot and lemon pickle (Kala Kiran) and curd were provided by members. An im-promptu educational seminar on the benefits of insurance and retirement/financial planning was conducted by Ray Riddick and Andy of Prudential Financial just after lunch. Most of the men and some of the ladies listened in and there were quite a few questions asked about long term disability. We thank Prudential for arranging for this enlightening seminar.

Soon after lunch, the cotton candy machine (Chiddu Rayaprolu / Jaya Pureti) and the popcorn machine (Bhagya Sanka / Vijaya Sree Kala) were thrown into operation. The overwhelming demand for the candy soon had us serving the candy on spoons and forks! Towards the end, it was being served at the end of carrot sticks too! Thanks to volunteers like Dora Davuluri and Ramesh Bachala for making sure that no child was left without candy.

While tea was being prepared (KVN, Chiddu R) most adults started settling down for a game of Bingo (housie) while some of the children continued to play in the shaded play area of the park. Tea and pakodi (Red Chillies) which were served while Bingo (co-ordinated by Vamsi S and Ravi Sanka) was on. TAJA President Mallik thanked our partners, sponsors and members for helping out for this day. He also informed members about the upcoming special event on October 20. He dedicated the India Fest 2007 trophy to TAJA members. Raffles were drawn and gift cards/vouchers (Flavors) were given out to winners. It was almost well beyond the scheduled closing time by the time Bingo was wrapped up. Most people started getting ready to leave as soon as the Bingo full house was claimed.

We thank everybody who contributed to make this event as enjoyable as possible. We would like to thank our sponsors; Mayuri restaurant, Apna restaurant and Red Chillies restaurant for treating us to a wonderfull assortment of tasty, fresh food throughout the day. We thank Flavors for contributing towards the gift vouchers. We would like to thank our event partner Prudential Financial for their eye-opening, educational seminar on financial planning.

We would like to especially thank those volunteers who stepped up to the plate and gave us a helping hand when we most needed it (be it in preparing food, serving the food, organising games and events, cleaning up or setting up the place for the events). We understand that these folks could have easily spent their time enjoying along with the others instead of volunteering their precious time and energy towards making it easier for everybody else, and we thank them profusely for their selfless service. (At around lunch time, I couldn't help but notice Vamsi and Chidu replacing the full trash bags on their own initiative.) We would like to thank Prudential Financial and all of our sponsors without whose active support, we woudln't have been able to organize this event at such a low cost per family. Special mention goes out to some of the coordinators in the respective areas: Murali, Padma, Sai and Srini (Event), Murali and Dayakar (Food) and Mahendra (Sports).

We did have comments from some members, most of them positive, some of them negative. As it is more entertaining to dwell on the negative, let us give you those first!

• Raffle prizes were not given to those who were not present even when members were informed at registration that they need not be present to win.
• Some people didn't like the idea of giving $5 gift cards for restaurant use only (Grocery store use was struck out).
• Buttermilk was fabulous but in short supply. Should have made more of it.
• The bouncer/slide should have been setup in the shaded area of the park.

And now for the positive ones: Almost all of them are pretty much the same, so we will leave that to your imagination!

| TAJA fall 2007 vana bhojanaalu | 29 September 2007 | Alejandro Garces Camp Tomahawk | Photo Gallery |

We were bang in the middle of the hot and hazy days of summer and we were pretty sure that it is going to be a hot day ahead. Maybe parents recognized this too as there was a huge turnout by the appointed time. It can sure be difficult having children wake up and get ready so early on a weekend. Thanks to the huge turnout, the events were kicked off almost on time. Doughnuts, Gatorade, lemonade and water were all available.

The tricolor was hoisted to signal the start of the event. Members present sang Vande Mataram. Running races by age group (smallest age group first) were first held. These were followed by sack races for the same age groups. Nityasree arranged and co-ordinated a Treasure hunt which was won by the girls' team. A quiz was held on the nearby basketball court. Winners of the various events are as follows:

The arrival of breakfast (Upma sponsored by Flavors) as the races were being held served as a brief and minor distraction for those present. TAJA President Mallikarjuna J spoke on the occasion and the event was concluded as members sang the Indian national anthem - Jana Gana Mana. Thanks to Murali and Nitya for taking it upon themselves and organizing the various activites.

The 2007 edition of the TAJA Pool championship was conducted as part of the independence day event later in the day at the Seven Bridges Restaurant and Grille by Tinseltown. The event was co-ordinated by Venkata (Durga) and Vasudeeep and spanned over the weekend. The winners of this championship are:

All prize winners during the independence day event (Pool championship included) will be recognized during the TAJA Special event currently scheduled to be held on Saturday, October 20. If you would like to correct the spellings in this list please do so now as these names will go on the prizes. Just email us with the correct name.

| TAJA Independence day event | 18 August 2007 | South Hampton Grounds | Photo Gallery |

Conceived and conducted by Bharath Muthyala, who is himself an M. Sc. in Astro Physics, this workshop opened to an overwhelming response from the community. During the workshop, participants built simple models to help observe the night sky. Some of the activities/observations carried out were:

• Celestial navigation: Identified the directions with the help of compass, sun set and also with the help of Pole Star during night
• Each student made an astrolabe to measure the altitude of the pole star
• Plotted the moon phases during a lunar cycle
• Made their galactic address (their address in the universe)
• Drew their own constellations

On June 16, 2007 the participants stayed over-night at the temple to watch the progressively changing night sky. They have also been able to watch some planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn) with the naked eye, all during the course of this single night.

On June 22nd 2007, Night Sky Observations with parents was conducted in collaboration with North East Florida Astronomical Society (NEFAS www.nefas.org). Over 200 people turned up to watch the night sky.

• There were more than 10 members from NEFAS including their President Art Russell, past president Roger Curry, Ted Treiber and others.
• They brought around 10 telescopes for observing which includes a 18 inch Reflector telescope and a video camera attached to a telescope for scanning artificial satellites ;
• Watched Craters on Moon, Saturn rings, Jupiter's moons, Venus phases, M13 star cluster, Ring nebula
• Children who had, during the workshop, learnt how to identify spacecrafts and objects like Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station (ISS) were excited when they saw the ISS passing by the North Star in the night sky. They have also had the opportunity to observe through video camera fitted to telescope (thanks to Roger).

During the final session on June 28, a valedictory function was organized at the Hindu Temple. HSNEF President Ravi Sanka, TAJA Secretary Aditya Varma, Workshop Director Bharath Muthyala and Temple Priest Pundit Srinathji spoke to participants and parents and thanked them for their interest and participation. Some of the participants spoke about their learning experience and thanked Workshop Director Bharath. Pundit Srinathji handed over certificates recognizing the participants and volunteers.

| Astronomy Wrokshop | June 2007 | Jacksonville Hindu Temple | Photo Gallery |

As many of you are aware, IndiaFest 2007 was conducted at the Temple premises on May 19. The Andhra Pradesh booth received the "Rolling Trophy" upon being named as the best represented booth for it's lively depiction of Telugu culture and heritage. Though the booth was setup under the TAJA moniker, it was the members of the community who made this possible through their active and selfless participation. Hence, this trophy, though given to TAJA, is a symbol of the dedication of all participants and volunteers who made this possible.

The morning started off with volunteers and committee members getting busy with the decorations. Sashi Varanasi, Vaishali and Pallavi Palwai were among those who contributed towards the decoration effort along with many others. The four pillars of the booth were made up of standing plam leaves (kobbari aakulu) interspersed with sugarcane sticks (cheruku gaddalu). Mamidi toranalu (strings of mango leaves tied together) were tied all around the tent's edges. Kobbari kayalu (coconuts) were also thrown in the mix to bring forth a booth that wore a green, natural look. Some more color was added to the overall look of the booth as some members applied rangula muggulu (Rangoli) on the path in front of the booth. Radhika Kandlakunta, Vasundhara Srikakulapu, Bhagya Sanka and others chipped in for the Rangoli. The booth also had information regarding the history of the state displayed prominently.

As if this was not enough, a festive spirit was fired up in the form of a Gangireddu (decorated by Shanta Rayaprolu), and a few Haridasulu (Sreeramana, Vytharana and Preetham). Needless to say, IndiaFest visitors were treated to a visual extravaganza. The eye-catching AP booth soon became a people magnet, as many who came for the visual experience were caught off guard with the volley of home made food that was served at the booth.

Dr. Uma Eyyunni fired up the stove to signal the cooking of Mirapakayi Bajji. Dozens of volunteers joined in the race of cooking hot bajji as they tried to keep up with the hot demand. Such that, the bajji soon became one of the most sought after items at IndiaFest! Other items that were served at AP booth were Pulihora, Curd Rice, Sweet Pongali, Pakoda, Laddoo, Boondhi, Water Melon, Lemon soda and Masala buttermilk. AP culture was brought to the fore in such a way that even the uninitiated might have had something to take away from the whole experience.

All this couldn't have been possible without the active participation and voluntary contribution of many members and we would like to thank each one of them even if we cannot name them all. We would like to thank the following donors whose food contributions had people clamoring for more: Kala Davuluri, Shanta Rayaprolu, Aruna Kakarla, Saritha Chekkilla, Padma Katepalle, Sailaja Yadlapalli, Sashi Arun, Jyostna Jerripothula, Saraswathi Venkatasubban, Shiva Vellanki and Padma Patcha. We would also like to thank all those on-site volunteers who helped getting the stall ready and decorated, helped in the Bajji preparation (Rani C, Srilatha P, Vasundhara K, Roja N, Kiran Vinjam, Sailaja Y, Padma Chakravarthy, Hema K, Jyostna J, Aruna K among others) and also in selling the food(Srinivas S, Sai V, Venkat P, Sunny K, Dayakar Reddy, Seshu, Srinivas N among others), all demanding jobs considering the situation.

We hope that all of you feel that your efforts have paid off as the recognition that the AP booth has earned during IndiaFest is only due to the efforts of each one of you, the members of this great community that hails from a state called Andhra Pradesh!

| India Fest 2007 | May 19 2007 | Jacksonville Hindu Temple | Photo Gallery |

TAJA's Sarvajit Ugadi celebrations heralded the new year with style and pomp. The main attractions at the beginning of the event were the snacks, and the various sponsor booths while displaying their wares, were attracting members by holding raffles of their own. While much of this activity lasted throughout the evening, the snacks were a different story altogether. The portrait corner got a lot of attention too and as a result, a huge amount was raised towards charity. Free Telugu Panchaangams were handed over to members.

The stage show kicked off with the President's address and was immediately followed by the presentation ceremony for the winners and runners of the Ugadi sport events.

This was followed by a scintillating display of talent as the audience was treated to an array of mesmerizing numbers. Numbers that were excellently coreographed and presented no matter what the age group of the performers was. The items were quite varied too, for they spanned the entire gamut from folklore to classical to film. The events were briefly punctuated by the recognition of the current committee and past presidents and by the introduction of the next committee. The MCs Sai, Vaishali and Krishna Priya ably kept the audience entertained in the gaps between events. Sai even took to the flute (and did it well) on occassion. The event was rounded up by a vote of thanks by the Vice-President.

Baby sitters with entertainers (face painting) kept the children entertained in an adjoining room while the show was on. Pizza was provided for the children and food was served for the rest of the members after the event. The area in and around the cafeteria was buzzing with activity as the winners of the various raffles were being drawn and announced. The Ashwin (Davuluri) and Anil (Yada) families were the winners of Pattukunte Pattu Chira (Sponsored by realestates4hyderabad). There were not many TAJA Medhavulu (Sponsored by HCL Systems), but all winners were given gift cards. The Ipod nano was raffled off too and Jaya was the lucky winner. One of our sponsors, Apna Bazaar, handed out kitchen utensils for free. It was close to midnight by the tme the last soul left the venue.

We would like to thank all our members who made this an evening to remember. We appreciate the hard work that several members had to put in for practice sessions of the events. We also appreciate the efforts of all the volunteers including those of the committee members, both current and future. A lot of voluntary work that cannot go unrfecognized went on behind the scenes both on and off stage as well as in and around the cafeteria on the day of the event. Thank you everybody for making this possible.

Last but not the least, we would like to thank all our sponsors, without whose help, we wouldn't have been able to take this off on such a grand scale.

| Sarvajit Ugadi Bonanza | 04.21.2007 | Bartram Trail High School | Photo Gallery 1 2 3 4 5|

Here are some of the winners so far...

Cricket Winners - Mourya team, led by Rama Avvaru
Cricket Runners - Kakatiya team, led by Goutham Katta
Volleyball Winners - Team led by Venkata Lukalapu
Volleyball Runners - Team led by Sai Katragadda
Kabaddi Winners - Team led by Harinath Kandala
Kabaddi Runners - Team led by Inder Katta
Bowling Winner - Jyothi Bikkumanla
Bowling 1st Runner up - Madhuri Nimmagadda
Bowing 2nd Runner up - Smitha Sinha
Bowling Group Winner - Sheetal Mouya, Madhuri Nimmagadda, Saritha Chakkila, Lakshmi Karri, Anupama Gattupalli, Swarupa Paladugula.
Tennicoit Winner team - SriPriya Miryala, Saritha Chakkila, Swaroopa Paladugula
Tennicoit Runner team - Radhika Kandlakunta, Padma Challagulla, Krishna Priya

Running Race ..

Cricket ..

Volleyball ..

Schedules for other games..

• Ladies Carroms & Children's Chess - 4/14 9:00AM at South Hampton Grounds.
• Children's Carroms - 4/14 10:30AM at South Hampton Grounds.

If you have not yet enrolled and would like to participate, please send your details to our sport coordinators. Registrations will be open until 9:00 AM on the day of the sports.

| Score card and other details | Cricket Gallery | Volleyball Gallery | Running Race Gallery

When we threw open the doors asking for nominations for the new committee, little did we expect that there would be a flood of direct as well as indirect nominations for the various posts. It is greatly inspiring to see that the community is more actively coming forward to help run TAJA knowing fully well that it is purely voluntary.

The TAJA AGM was held on Monday April 2nd at 6 PM at the Southeast branch of the Jacksonville Library. What was perhaps the largest turnout to date also included the somewhat rare occurence of having all past Presidents of TAJA present at the meeting. President Sreedhar gave a broad outlook of what events were undertaken over the last year. He also gave us an overview of the balance sheet. This was followed by updates by Jyothi (Telugu Badi), Aditya (Event ratings) and Sanjeev (Sports).

The new committee was then officially nominated by the first three Presidents based on the nominations that were received. While you will have a chance to meet most of them during the Ugadi Bonanza later this month, here is the list of the Sarvajit committee members...

• President - Mallikarjuna J
• Vice President - Srinivas Y
• Secretary - Aditya V
• Treasurer - Janardhan K
• President Elect - Dora D
• Past President - Sreedhar N
• Event Coordinators - Saishankara V, Padma P, Sashi V, Aruna K, Murali G, Dayakar R
• Sports Coordinators - Venkata L, Vasudeep Y, Mahendra G, Radhika K
• Web Coordinator - Srinivas N
• PR - Ramesh G
• Youth Coordinators - Sandeep K, Nityasree S
• Telugu Badi - Srilatha P

It was pomp and gaiety at TAJA's 2007 Sankranthi Sambaralu held on the evening of Jan 13 at the Jacksonville Country Day School. Though the celebrations started off in right earnest at around 5 pm, the actual festivities were kicked off in the morning itself when Haridasu visited several Telugu homes in the area. Theses visits prompted people to give donations which were accepted for use towards TAJA's charity programmes back home in Andhra Pradesh. Haridasu aslo made a similar appearance at the actual event itself which generated additional amounts for the Charity event..

The evening started with a rendering of annamacharya kirtanam by Latha garu. This was followed up by an event by children of the community presenting a skit depicting the meaning of Bhogi, Sankraanthi and Kanuma, that too in full traditional attire. Then it was time for the Muggula poti for ladies and the drawing/Indian quiz for children of all ages. The Nalabhimapakam contest for gents was being judged on the sidelines. The winner of this contest made Andhra famous 'Ariselu'. .

For the first time in TAJA history, Telugu calendars based on Atlanta time were distributed to all attendees. TAJA also had the honor of having TANA represented at this event at the highest levels including TANA's President Dr. Hanumaiah garu. TAJA President Sreedhar invited Dr. Hanumaiah garu onto the stage. Dr. Hanumaiah apprised TAJA members about TANA's activities in the US as well as in India. He also talked about TANA's upcoming conferences in the DC area (2007) and TANA's first ever Florida conference in Orlando (2009). Members of TANA's delegation appreciated the innovative ways in which TAJA's members were carrying out their events and encouraged the community to participate in TANA's upcoming events with special reference to the 2009 Orlando conference.

Dinner was thrown open to the attendees as the events were still going on. Dinner consisted of items made and brought in by members themselves. The evening ended with an Antakshiri competition and the awards ceremony where winners for the evening's events were announced and prizes were given.

| 01.13.2007 | Jacksonville Country Day School| Haridasu Gallery |Sankranthi Gallery |Gallery2 |

Our annual charity event was held at the Southwood Nursing Center. Around 15 members aged anywhere between three and fifty showed up in right earnest at the center. They participated in activities as varied as serving food, cleaning up tables and windows, helping sort out the laundry and even entertaining the elderly with some lively Indian music.

Even the young children got involved in the action and were seen actively participating in the tasks. Some of the residents even enquired about the origin of the music that was played while mentioning that they thoroughly enjoyed the exposure.

As often happens, the seemingly simple task of sorting out socks into matching pairs became more challenging than anticpated! So much so that somebody even came up with the bright (albiet humorous) idea of writing an algorithm for the sort!!

The personal thanks that were handed out to the members as they were preparing to wind up the event were testament to how much our efforts were appreciated on that day. Maybe the fact that the event coincided with the spirit of the Christmas/holiday season was not lost on the elderly. All in all, this event was proof positive once again that, as humans, we can be happiest when we give without expecting something back in return

| 12.23.2006 | Southwood Nursing Center| Photo Gallery |

The weather report for this day was encouraging. Clear skies with a high of 80 and low humidity. What better day could we have asked for to come together and have some outdoor bonhomie and fun? The crisp and slightly chilly fall morning served as an excellent indicator of how the day would turn out to be. When you are out to spend a whole day under the open sky, it is good to have the weather on your side.

Located bang in the middle of the easily accesible Baymeadows area of the city, the compact, yet secluded park was a perfect choice. The morning hours saw the area humming with activity as breakfast was being prepared on one side of the park, while lines were being drawn out for volleyball, tennicoit, kabaddi and kho-kho in the open areas. Preperations were in full swing to have the slide setup for the children while a couple of chairs were thrown together to put up a makeshift registration/ticket center. Grocery and Supplies were being unloaded and stacked away for use later in the day.

A few people started trickling in in anticipation of fresh, hot breakfast, only to be dissappointed that they would have to wait longer for their share of the idli's. And wait they did, understanding that the cooks needed some more time to work their magic. Some people decided to have a game of tennicoit instead of just waiting around, and they quickly formed two teams and jumped into the competitive spirit right away. The slide became an immediate attraction for children of all ages and it was the first stop for most if not all of them. As the slide started getting crowded and the morning started to warm up, some of the younger children moved over to the park's relatively shaded play area with parents (mostly mothers) in tow.

The first round of idlis disappeared in a flash while teams for a volleyball contest were quickly drawn up. While the cooks were busy dishing out more idlis, most men ended up by the volleyball court either playing or umpiring or just cheering and most of the ladies retreated to the more shaded areas of the park. The cooks soon got busy with preperations for lunch and games for children got underway. The spoon and lime race and the sack race were held and bubble solution was handed out to all participants. Kho-Kho was held for the ladies while kabaddi was voted out in favor of more volleyball.

Either all the activity or the anticipation of a good lunch had folks starting to line up even before everything was ready to be served. Lunch was gone in a jiffy leaving some waiting for the fresh batch of rice to be ready. An im-promptu educational seminar on retirement/financial planning was conducted by Prudential Financial during lunch. Most of the men and some of the ladies listened in and some were even impressed with the information that was doled out, that too for free! We thank Prudential for arranging for this enlightening seminar.

While tea was being prepared and served, prizes were given out to winners and particpants of the TT, Tennis and Independence day event. The ice and candy machine was soon put into business and the children were treated to some cotton candy and crushed cherry ice. (There were a few complaints that this was done in haste and by the time children who received prizes turned up for their share of the candy, it was already too late for them!) Most adults started settling down for a game of Bingo (housie) while the "volleyballers" continued to persist with their game, not even pausing for the tea or the Pakodi! Tea was followed by Pakodis which were served while Bingo was on. It was almost well beyond the scheduled closing time by the time Bingo was wrapped up. Most people started getting ready to leave as soon as the Bingo full house was claimed.

We thank everybody who contributed to make this event as enjoyable as possible. We would like to thank George, Srinivas and the cooks and helpers from Red Chilies restaurant for treating us to a wonderfull assortment of tasty, fresh food. The fact that almost all of the food was gone within minutes of being served is the best compliment that can be given to the quality of the food. (In case you are wondering, Red Chilies is set to re-open later this month.) We would like to thank Prudential Financial for their eye-opening, educational seminar on financial planning.

We would like to especially thank those volunteers who stepped up to the plate and gave us a helping hand when we most needed it (be it in preparing pooris, assisting the cooks where needed, serving the food, cleaning up or setting up the place for the events). We understand that these folks could have easily spent their time enjoying along with the others instead of volunteering their precious time and energy towards making it easier for everybody else, and we thank them profusely for their selfless service. We would like to thank Prudential Financial, Red Chilies and all of our sponsors without whose active support, we woudln't have been able to organize this event at such a low cost per family. Special mention goes out to some of the coordinators in the respective areas: Madhav Aleti (Event), Aditya Varma (Food) and Sanju Tegulla & Gopala Reddy (Sports).

We have also got some feedback a sample of which we have taken the liberty to reproduce here.

• Ravi Marri said: "Great event. We enjoyed the whole picnic!"
• Nirmala and Vasista Imandi write: "Congratulations on a job well done!! We enjoyed the picnic thoroughly."
• Nirmal Kumar said: "Enjoyed it and breakfast is the best......"

| 10.14.2006 | Alejandro Garces Camp Tomahawk | Photo Gallery |

It is normally understood that it takes a group of dedicated artists to churn out spellbinding music number after number and minute after minute. And when these artists enjoy what they do, it becomes even more magical. That is what happened when the TAJA Musical and Comedy Show came to life amidst an air of anticipation and left the audience enthralled and spellbound by the end of the evening. All thanks to the Usha - SivaReddy group, the audience was left asking for more even after over three hours of Music, Dance and Comedy.

The show itself had a well balanced feel to it, with the right mix of old and new songs while never losing sight of melody. I couldn't help but note that there were quite a few Illayaraja numbers in the chosen mix. Usha was in her elements while Viswa Mohan's energy brought in additional zest to the proceedings. The singers were very ably supported by Sridhar (keyboard), Amol(tabla) and Eugene(drums/percussion).

One of the starting numbers was SPB's classic number (and one of my faves to date) 'Ye divilo verasina paarijatamo' rendered by Viswa Mohan. And then Usha joined in to render the famous 'Aakalirajyam' number. As numbers from different eras were being performed, the artists always made sure that their choice was never short of melody. The numbers were performed in no particular order and that helped retain the audience's attention as we never new what was coming next. Numbers performed ranged from the timeless 'Siva Shankaree' from 'Jagadeka Veeruni Katha' to the current faves from Athadu and Pokiri. And then there were songs from films as diverse as 'Anukokunda Oka Roju', 'Sagarsangamam', 'Indra' and Usha's own 'Tooneega Tooneega' from 'Manasantha Nuvve'. The choice of another great melody from Illayaraja 'Enno Raathrulosthaayi kaani...' was a pleasant surprise. Even after so many years, such songs retain their freshness and never fail to bring a smile back to our hearts. Usha also rendered Chitra's first national award winning song from 'Sindhu Bahiravi'. The famous 'Kajrare Kajrare' from 'Bunty Aur Babli' was rendered with gusto as Amol joined forces with Usha and Viswa Mohan. Usha signed off the night by singing the Indian national anthem 'Jana Gana Mana'.

And then there is Siva Reddy. Simply put, the man is a roit both on and off stage. It was evident that he was enjoying himself while pulling the house down with his superlative comic timing. Of course, as one would expect from someone with such talent, there was the usual display of mimicry through effective usage of his vocal and dancing abilities. But his talent stands out when he uses real time situations (as they unravel,) to instantly make up his own pieces. To round off his performance, he even crooned the Hindi classic "Mere Sapnon ki Rani...' from 'Aaradhana' and proved to be a good singer too. Describing his antics on stage would not justify how he had us in splits, but suffice to say that you just had to be there to experience it all. There was never a moment when the audience looked tired of any of the performances.

The show itself was preceded by the TAJA Idol contest which gave an opportunity to participants to not only display their talent in front of a supportive home crowd, but to also be judged by Usha and Siva Reddy. Winners were anounced at the end of the show and medals were presented by Usha to all participants. For, win or not, we felt that the particpants will have to be recognized for taking the time to rehearse and perform. The contest was conceptualized and organized by one of our Event Coordinators, Govind. (See article at the bottom of this page.)

TAJA would like to thank Usha, Siva Reddy, Viswa Mohan, Sridhar, Amol and Eugene without whose whole-hearted efforts, we wouldn't have had the hugely appreciative audience. We would like to thank everybody who turned up to cheer the contest participants and to enjoy the show. Last but not the least, we would like to thank all of our Comittee members who took up the challenge and made it possible to hold the event with such short notice. We would also like to thank our numerous other volunteers who gave their time to make this event happen. And of course, we cannot forget the event sponsors without whose support, we may not have been able to bring you this event.

Coverage of the event by other sites...
Idlebrain
Eenadu
TeluguOne-Photo Gallery

| 09.23.2006 | Bolles School Auditorium | Photo Gallery |