Professor Kaikhosrov Irani will give a talk on Zoroastrian Ethics at the March religion class (March 4th, 2007 at the Pomona Darbe Mehr Zoroastrian Temple).  Please join us, as these presentations are consistently educational and entertaining at the same time!

4TH WORLD ZOROASTRIAN YOUTH CONGRESS

• BALLARAT, AUSTRALIA
• DECEMBER 27, 2007 - JANUARY 3, 2008

Another advantage of being a ZAGNY member!

ZAGNY youth members desiring to attend this Congress can obtain upto $500 towards your travel cost.  ZAGNY will award $250 to each qualified participant and forward the names to FEZANA for its matching contribution.  Please follow the information and guidelines on ZAGNY website and FEZANA website.  

• 4th WZYC Registration Form 2007
• 4th WZYC Rules and Regulations 2007

The application (including essay) must be submitted no later than February 28, 2007 by email to president@zagny.org.

The Zarathushti Oral History Project is looking for volunteers:  we need local coordinators in order to help publicize the project, identify volunteers, and coordinate interviews within FEZANA associations.

• Objective: The Zarathushti Oral History Project is an effort to document our heritage as Zarathushtis. The aim of the project is for youth to interview Zarathushtis, especially seniors, and record their oral histories for posterity. We plan to excerpt interviews for the Fall 2007 issue of the FEZANA Journal.   Second, we hope that it will stimulate youth interest in their heritage and culture.  In the diaspora, much of our culture risks being lost once the immigrant generations pass on.
• Reasons: In the past century, the Zarathushti community has witnessed remarkable transformations.  After more than a millennium of existence in the rural strongholds of Gujarat, Yazd, and Kerman, Zarathushtis have become a largely urbanized, well-educated people dispersed around the world.  Many members of our elder generation have witnessed first-hand the changes that have greatly impacted our culture, traditions, and religion.   It is in our interests to record their stories while they are still with us—within the Parsi community, 30 percent of the population is above the age of 60.
• Example Topics: Topics for discussion—historical, cultural, and religious in nature—are diverse and unlimited.  Examples include: Life in a Gujarati or Iranian village, village customs and traditions, life in India and Iran during the Second World War, Parsis in the Indian independence movement and newly independent India and Pakistan, migrations from Yazd and Kerman to Tehran, or from rural Gujarat to towns in Gujarat to cities all over India, Zoroastrianism in the Pahlavi era, reasons for migrating to North America, and how early Zarathushti immigrants adjusted to life outside of their homelands.
• Interviewees: Interviewees are the heart of this project. We need people who are willing and interested to share their experiences and recollections of personal and historic events, describe daily life when they were children, as well as their migration stories.
• Interviewers: Although we encourage anyone to participate as interviewers, we are especially looking for youths.  Youth participation will be a way to foster interest in their family and community heritage.  Ideally, this project could be integrated into the religious classes offered within associations.  Youth participation in the project may fulfill community service requirements in some schools.
• Local Coordinators: We are looking for people to help coordinate interviews in their area. The project contacts listed below will mail interviewers suggested topics and questions and notes about how to take oral histories.
• Inputs, suggestions, and comments related to this project are greatly appreciated.   We do hope that you can help make the Zarathushti Oral History project a success!
• Contacts:
• Dinyar Patel (ZAMWI)
• Nawaz Merchant (ZAGNY)
• Hormuzd Katki (ZAMWI)

Friends,  This year we’re going to give you plenty of time to write your essays!

Subjects:

1. “No, in fact, I’m Zoroastrian” (An unusual personal story about telling a new friend that you are a Zoroastrian.)
2. What I learned from my grandparent

Essays should be personal and anecdotal rather than theoretical.  MS-Word format preferred (it does the word count as well!)  They should be about 150 words, and should be emailed to vicepresident@ZAGNY.org with Name, Contact number, and Age of participant, on or before Feb 26th 2007. 

• Essays will be judged in two categories, the under-10 age group and the 11-15 age group. One first prize of $50 will be awarded in each category. All entries are the property of The Gool Kothawala Essay Competition, and may be printed in future editions of the ZAGNY newsletter.
• Students must submit original work, and be current members of ZAGNY. Please no “excessive” helping by parents- Judges will detect adult intervention, or paragraphs lifted from the internet, and it will not benefit the contestant.
• Judging: Contestants names will be masked from the judges. Of course, the judges decision is final.
• Please email me if you have any questions, at  vicepresident@ZAGNY.org.

Warmly,

Nawaz Merchant
Vice-President, ZAGNY

Dear Friends:

The Iranian Zoroastrian Association (IZA) will be celebrating the Zoroastrian/Iranian holiday of Sadeh and the life of Iranian scholar Shahpour Shahbazi on January 27th at 4:30 PM at Darbe Mehr in Pomona, New York.  As Sadeh celebrates the discovery of fire and the start of human civilization, Doctor Shahbazi was a bright light in the study and knowledge of Ancient Iran, and made this knowledge known to the world permanently.

The program will start at 4:30 and include:

• Prayers by Mobed Noshir Hormuzdiar
• Speech by Dr. Farhang Mehr
• Some words from Miss Roodabeh Shahbazi
• Starting the Sadeh Fire
• Live music with Shahrokh Vafah
• Dinner and Desert

You are invited to attend this celebration with us. The admission price for members is $25 and $35 for non-members, with phone reservation.  The price at the door (without a phone reservation) is an additional $10.  Children under seven are free.  For reservations, please contact:

• Mr. Bahram Soroosh at 908-359-1140 or Ms. Shirin Khosravi at 631-470-0884 or Mr. Parviz Hooshangi-Kermani at 845-227-6525.

Iranian Zoroastrian Association – 106 Pomona Road, Suffern, NY 10901

Please make sure you’ve contacted us regarding your 2007 ZAGNY Membership!

Please see here for the 2007 Membership form.