Lawrence Mascarenhas, Chicago

Chicago, Aug 2: Those who have met Vissia D’Souza, the present president of MKCA/Chicago,  need no further introduction. Others, be careful. You will be hooked up instantly for her unique personality filled with elegance, dignity, generosity, intelligence, wit, humour and above all an honest and sincere smile that can light up an entire room! Envy her? Alright. Here is other side of the coin. She is not a wishy-washy girl, occasionally shows some mild short temper, shoots at point blank and knows how to put people in their respective places with her short, sweet and sharp answers.

Vissia has been blessed with big house, understanding husband and two lovely children. Their home is a second home for many, especially the boys and girls who come here for studies and enjoy temporary free accommodation, transportation and guidance to settle down in a new place. She is a combination of Indira Gandhi and Mother Teresa.

I met Vissia first time about 13 years back when we co-founded the Mangalorean Konkan Christian Association (MKCA). The first meeting was held at my residence and there were about 25 people attended the meeting. I was living in a two bedroom condominium then with limited furniture and never expected such a big crowd. When some bigwigs were acting like there was no breathing place, it was Vissia with sheer modesty sat on the floor and conducted the meeting. Slowly one by one started sitting along with her. She was leading the discussion and writing down everything that was discussed. That was my first impression of her leadership skills.

Initially, there was a competition for the president position but Vissia never competed even though she could have elected unanimously. She did hold other positions like secretary, joint secretary, PRO etc., but never crossed the parameters of her position and always remained humble and cooperative to the executive board. She worked very hard as if she owns the association without seeking any name or fame. If I can ask all the past presidents about the persons behind their successive tenure, I am sure the first name would come out from most of them will be Vissia D’Souza and her husband Stan D’Souza. I was privileged to have her on the board as secretary during my tenure as MKCA president. Therefore, I am writing from my experience.

Some people are born with leadership skills. Others develop as they grow up. Holding any title doesn’t necessarily mean the person is a good leader. Vissia grew up in the political family of Kundapur, Udupi district in India. Her father late G L D’Lima was a Congress leader and the past president of Kundapur municipality. The atmosphere in which she grew up perhaps nurtured her leadership skills.

Vissia already started the ball rolling in MKCA by thinking out of the box and vowed to take the association to the greater heights. She already started to strengthen the pillars, clean the cobwebs and make the association strong and attractive to prospective members.