Hyderabad: Kanara Catholics Celebrate 10th Anniversary

by Adarsh P Lewis
Daijiworld Media Network - Hyderabad (SP)
 
Hyderabad, Jan 16: The Kanara Catholic Welfare Association (KCWA), Hyderabad organized its decennial celebrations with plenty of fun and gaiety on Sunday January 11 at St Francis Girls High School, Secunderabad. As per traditions, the celebrations began with a mass in Konkani celebrated by Fr Walter Pinto.

The choir sang selected melodious hymns in Konkani. The Association president Rex Thomas Prabhu addressed and welcomed the gathering. The anniversary cake was cut by the Association  president along with  Retired DGP of Andhra Pradesh and present chairman of the Andhra Pradesh  Tourism Board  Swaranjit Sen, MLA Christine Lazarus and ex- MLA  Della Godfrey. Retd Lt Gen Trevor D`Cunha released the anniversary issue of the KCWA Newsletter. The other dignitaries who graced the occasion included the member of parliament from Secunderabad Anjan Kumar Yadav and   V Jai Prakash, the Secunderabad Cantonment Board Corporator.

A collection of photographs of the activities of the KCWA for the past ten years was displayed, which succeeded in bringing back nostalgic memories to the old members and families. The comperes of ceremony Ashley Coelho and Sonia D`Souza did a fabulous job of conducting the complete show tirelessly, from morning till evening and were fresh and lively all along. One of the Association’s elders Felix Marcel D`Cunha celebrated his 76th birthday at the celebrations by cutting a cake and serving refreshments to all the participants. He received greetings and blessings from all present.

Games were conducted for all age groups but the children enjoyed them the most. There was singing and dancing on the stage where elders and children participated without any inhibitions. There was a sumptuous lunch with the Mangalorean staple item pork curry, prepared by some families of the Association. Gifts were distributed to children of all ages and they loved it. The elder members of the Association aged over 70 were honoured with shawls by MLA Christine Lazarus.  Christine Lazarus also gave a talk on the facilities available with the state government for the minorities and how they can avail them. She also handed over the application forms for the facilities to the Association general secretary  Gerard Rodrigues.

Before the closing ceremony, the Association office bearers had identified two families who picked up the application forms to avail of the facilities. The inevitable tambola was conducted after lunch followed by the Raffle draw. Then the traditional `Mando` was sung, led by Florence Mascarenhas. The general secretary of the Association then presented the vote of thanks and recognized all the contributors who helped building up the Association by handing over mementoes. The celebrations concluded with the singing of Lau Da Te.