SAYA!: In Action!
By Sakshi Jain
May 25, 2010
Elmhurst, NY: South Asian Youth Action (SAYA!) celebrated its 2009-2010 End of the Year Talent Showcase on Saturday, May 22nd, 2010, from 12-4pm, at its center in Elmhurst, Queens.
On a sunny spring day, SAYA! youth came together to showcase their talents at the annual end of the year event. Through art, photography, video, skits, and dance; youth presented to the community the different projects they had been working on throughout the year.
Udai Tambar, Executive Director who has been working with SAYA! for twelve years, welcomed the crowd with memories from his early days at SAYA!, “Today is a culmination of the hard work and talents of so many people. I am thrilled at what the youth have accomplished this year”. New York State Senator, Jose Peralta congratulated SAYA! for its successful academic program in which students saw an average rise of 200 points in SAT scores. After the speeches, the showcase provided a forum for youth to highlight issues that affect them and their community such as poverty, peer pressure, and cultural identity. The event concluded with a public service announcement by the After-School leadership program at Richmond Hill which included a discussion on ending poverty. The SAYA! Event was a great success and enlightened the audience on the hardwork that SAYA! has accomplished throughout the year.
SAYA! was founded in 1996 with the mission to create social change and opportunities for South Asian youth to realize their fullest potential. It is the only organization in the country dedicated to providing non-sectarian comprehensive youth development services to the South Asian community, which is one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the city.
For more information on SAYA! and how to get involved, please visit: www.saya.org
On a sunny spring day, SAYA! youth came together to showcase their talents at the annual end of the year event. Through art, photography, video, skits, and dance; youth presented to the community the different projects they had been working on throughout the year.
Udai Tambar, Executive Director who has been working with SAYA! for twelve years, welcomed the crowd with memories from his early days at SAYA!, “Today is a culmination of the hard work and talents of so many people. I am thrilled at what the youth have accomplished this year”. New York State Senator, Jose Peralta congratulated SAYA! for its successful academic program in which students saw an average rise of 200 points in SAT scores. After the speeches, the showcase provided a forum for youth to highlight issues that affect them and their community such as poverty, peer pressure, and cultural identity. The event concluded with a public service announcement by the After-School leadership program at Richmond Hill which included a discussion on ending poverty. The SAYA! Event was a great success and enlightened the audience on the hardwork that SAYA! has accomplished throughout the year.
SAYA! was founded in 1996 with the mission to create social change and opportunities for South Asian youth to realize their fullest potential. It is the only organization in the country dedicated to providing non-sectarian comprehensive youth development services to the South Asian community, which is one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the city.
For more information on SAYA! and how to get involved, please visit: www.saya.org