Sewa Day!

Sewa Day, the second event by Exemplaris is now over, and we are happy to report that as before, it was an amazing success! None of this would have been possible without the dedication of members of the team and the volunteers. The lawyers & solicitors, the medics & ophthalmologists, careers advisers & benefit specialists all contributed to a packed day.

A group of volunteers helped pack and deliver langar to homeless people sleeping rough, this team had gone the extra mile, spending days looking for areas where we could help; their efforts went above and beyond the call of duty. Amazing spirit.

Perhaps the most successful of all was our call for unwanted clothes. We collected over 3,000 items of clothing and blankets. These were carefully sorted and packed by dedicated volunteers who spent the entire day on their feet going through bags and bags of clothes. Another team took responsibility of delivering them to charities, who were amazed by the sheer volume.

During the course of the day, we were visited by the organisers of SewaDay.org, who said we were the best run operation in the city! A big, big well done to all!

As expected of course, there were high levels (around 10 full bags) of unacceptable items - shoes, mouldy and unwashed clothes, underwear and socks, despite repeated reminders. However again, big hearted volunteers stepped in and helped dispose them.

We have numerous pictures of the day, which we will upload in an album in due course. In the meantime we have been uploading pictures during the day - if you find yourself in them, feel free to tag yourselves!

As ever, we are eager to hear of YOUR thoughts on the day. Were you there? How did you find it? Could we have done better? Do you have any ideas on what else we can do to take our society forward? Can you help in any way?

Sewa Day - Let's Do This!

In collaboration with Sewa Day and in partnership with the Afghan Ekta Cultural & Religious Society, Exemplaris will be observing Sewa Day on the 07th of October, 2012; from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM, at Guru Nanak Darbar, Southall.

On the day, the following services have been organised and are FREE of cost:

1. CAREERS ADVICE: Specialist careers advisers will give your CV the once-over, suggesting changes, recommendations and possible ways to improve your approach to job search. Please come prepared with a print-out of your CV and examples of covering letters you have used.

2. LEGAL ADVICE: Legal experts and budding law students will be on hand to offer basic legal advice covering criminal cases, housing, family, employment, immigration, benefits, and legal aid. This is especially important for those with impending interviews under caution.

3. HEALTH & WELL-BEING ADVICE: Doctors, Ophthalmologists, Nutritionists, Dentists and possibly a GP will be on hand to give you general advice on nutrition, healthy eating, lifestyle choices and tips on healthy cooking for your family. Information on weight-loss, exercise, benefits of physical activity and yoga will also be available. Printed information (in Punjabi) on common health issues will be available for you to take home.

4. CLOTHES COLLECTION: A team of volunteers will be at hand to collect and sort donated clothes for delivery to a local charity and, if possible to those sleeping rough in the area. Please remember, winter is coming.

5. LANGAR SEWA: A group of volunteers will deliver Guru Ka Langar to a local homeless shelter and possibly to those sleeping rough in the area.

HOW YOU CAN HELP:

If you are able to help in any of the five areas listed above and want to get involved, please say so in the comments below and an Exemplaris coordinator will get in touch with you. We need volunteers to:

(a) help with marketing this event within our community

(b) raise awareness about the call for old clothes and blankets

(c) organise and distribute the donated clothes

(d) give out Guru Ka Langar and clean up afterwards

No cash donations are solicited.

In addition, we are very keen on expanding the Exemplaris team, so if you have any ideas and time to contribute, get in touch with us on our Facebook page.

You can see the event details on the Sewa Day website here.

Our Aims

THIS DOCUMENT IS A WORK IN PROGRESS and is by no means the full extent of how we hope to help our community. Over the coming weeks and months, we aim to learn more about the issues we face and what resources we can identify to address them.

We are a group of professionals, students and businesspeople, who would like to do something about the following immediate issues facing our community:

1. Youth unemployment
2. Advice with regards to education and further education
3. Inability of parents of young adults to provide meaningful information
4. Lack of information on extra-curricular activities to help young people develop themselves
5. Risk of delinquency, substance misuse and the resulting loss of the sense of responsibility

As a group, we feel that those who are in a position to help provide guidance and support to our young people with regards to the above, should do so. Therefore we have come together to find practical solutions. We think we should run weekly workshops covering one of the themes from above, such as CV workshops, GCSE advice, Job Search advice, and advice on how to develop yourself after school. For this we will need volunteers and helpers from all walks of life and professions to chip-in and help us equip our young people with the best chances we can afford them.

At the moment, we are in the process of finding like-minded individuals who are willing to put in time and effort. With most children coming to the end of term and exams - many will be faced with challenging decisions. We would like to be in place to be able to help.

Exemplaris - Who ARE we?

Taking Our Society Forward".

This group has been created by a group of young Sikhs to serve as a

forum where members can share, discuss, and debate issues facing them as a relatively new immigrant group in the west.

We aim to cover all possible topics, such as education, employment, health and well-being, raising children, general awareness, integration, experiences of living in the 21st century, etc.

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