President's Message
Dear Bhutanese Folks,
Namaste! A community organization was the need of the hour. I am glad that we got there. Yes, we made it after a long and untiring dedication from all of us to form this organization called the Bhutanese Community In Iowa (BCI). We waited for this moment with patience and perseverance, we clung to our mission unfazed despite many obstacles because we knew why we wanted this organization and here we are finally.
Before I say anything else, let me take this time to thank all of you folks, other organizations, and individuals who stood by us in creating this organization. It will consume many pages if I start mentioning the names of those behind this. Therefore, I would take a short cut route and say ‘thank you!’ from the bottom of my heart to all you folks here in Iowa who made this organization possible.
I am excited about the role of the organization’s President you have entrusted me with. It is my privilege and honor to lead from the front to shape the future of this organization. The journey has just begun and we have many miles to go. I am very positive that you will always be by my side as we move forward. You have teamed me up with very diligent and committed individuals in the Board of Directors. With their wholehearted support, I am very confident that I will be able to pave a way forward during the next three years of my presidency.
I mentioned earlier, the journey has just begun and I feel it is rightly so because so far we have been tangled in the process of formalizing the organization such as registering it in the state, writing the bylaws, holding election of the Board of Directors, so on and forth. Now, with very few things left in the ‘process’, it’s time to act - to materialize our mission and vision, and work toward some substantial ‘products’. Therefore, I would like to call upon all the Bhutanese Iowans to contribute what you can from your end.
BCI is our organization formed to help our community. It is yours and it is mine. We need to find out ways to help our families and ourselves. It is not wise to wait and let things happen, it is time to act and make things happen. So, to start making things happen, let’s ponder over these questions: How will our parents, many of whom never went to school, learn English to obtain citizenship of this country? How can we educate people about the laws so that we do not hear stories of our people getting in trouble with the law? How do our children get good education without having to struggle for English language? How do we preserve our culture, language and heritage so that we can proudly call ourselves Bhutanese Americans? What can we do to mitigate depression and other serious health problems people have in our community? It is you and me who need to look for answers to these and many other questions. Our families need answers to these questions before it is too late. We need to reach out and advocate what needs to be done. That’s why; I call upon you to find answers together. So folks, let’s join hands together for our common mission of uplifting our life style in this newly found home in America.
Rome was not built in a day. Definitely, it will take time and resources to be able to materialize our missions. But as they put it - the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step; I think we have already taken some significant strides in gearing up toward our mission. We have formed all the task force subcommittees some of which have already started off with their activities. We have finished most of the groundwork that is necessary to build a strong foundation for this organization. Now, all we have to do is to act for the reasons we have this institution. So, let me reiterate, it is time to act to help each other and live by the spirit of I am because we are as we always did. Thank you!
Sincerely Yours,
Harka L Biswa
President
Bhutanese Community In Iowa
Namaste! A community organization was the need of the hour. I am glad that we got there. Yes, we made it after a long and untiring dedication from all of us to form this organization called the Bhutanese Community In Iowa (BCI). We waited for this moment with patience and perseverance, we clung to our mission unfazed despite many obstacles because we knew why we wanted this organization and here we are finally.
Before I say anything else, let me take this time to thank all of you folks, other organizations, and individuals who stood by us in creating this organization. It will consume many pages if I start mentioning the names of those behind this. Therefore, I would take a short cut route and say ‘thank you!’ from the bottom of my heart to all you folks here in Iowa who made this organization possible.
I am excited about the role of the organization’s President you have entrusted me with. It is my privilege and honor to lead from the front to shape the future of this organization. The journey has just begun and we have many miles to go. I am very positive that you will always be by my side as we move forward. You have teamed me up with very diligent and committed individuals in the Board of Directors. With their wholehearted support, I am very confident that I will be able to pave a way forward during the next three years of my presidency.
I mentioned earlier, the journey has just begun and I feel it is rightly so because so far we have been tangled in the process of formalizing the organization such as registering it in the state, writing the bylaws, holding election of the Board of Directors, so on and forth. Now, with very few things left in the ‘process’, it’s time to act - to materialize our mission and vision, and work toward some substantial ‘products’. Therefore, I would like to call upon all the Bhutanese Iowans to contribute what you can from your end.
BCI is our organization formed to help our community. It is yours and it is mine. We need to find out ways to help our families and ourselves. It is not wise to wait and let things happen, it is time to act and make things happen. So, to start making things happen, let’s ponder over these questions: How will our parents, many of whom never went to school, learn English to obtain citizenship of this country? How can we educate people about the laws so that we do not hear stories of our people getting in trouble with the law? How do our children get good education without having to struggle for English language? How do we preserve our culture, language and heritage so that we can proudly call ourselves Bhutanese Americans? What can we do to mitigate depression and other serious health problems people have in our community? It is you and me who need to look for answers to these and many other questions. Our families need answers to these questions before it is too late. We need to reach out and advocate what needs to be done. That’s why; I call upon you to find answers together. So folks, let’s join hands together for our common mission of uplifting our life style in this newly found home in America.
Rome was not built in a day. Definitely, it will take time and resources to be able to materialize our missions. But as they put it - the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step; I think we have already taken some significant strides in gearing up toward our mission. We have formed all the task force subcommittees some of which have already started off with their activities. We have finished most of the groundwork that is necessary to build a strong foundation for this organization. Now, all we have to do is to act for the reasons we have this institution. So, let me reiterate, it is time to act to help each other and live by the spirit of I am because we are as we always did. Thank you!
Sincerely Yours,
Harka L Biswa
President
Bhutanese Community In Iowa
