Re: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom
George Pinto writes: A young Goan girl whose father tragically died a few years ago and who relies on her mother's income to maintain the family and meet expenses, is appealing for funds to go to her high school prom. This is part of helping a young Goan girl's confidence and coming-of-age high school ritual and providing her an opportunity she cannot afford with a single parent Cecil Pinto on the other hand writes: I find your appeal intriguing. What exactly are the expenses involved in going to a high school prom that warrants a public appeal such as this? It is frivolous to appeal for such a cause. There are many events that are similar to this 'coming-of-age high school ritual'. Will more such appeals be made for her to participate in all these rituals? Response: Obviously this is a cultural thing. And yes it is a Big Deal for the young ones.I have sent my contribution as requested. Hope Goa Sudharop gets sufficient donations to enable this young lady to present herself appropriately. BTW a couple of years ago my young daughter was voted homecoming queen at her high school prom. http://grandblancview.mihomepaper.com/news/2009-10-01/Front_Page/Homecoming_Queen_thrilled_to_be_honored.html Best Regards, E.
Re: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom
Hey Cecil, The person likely wants to rent a gown and accessories. In north am, the prom is a big deal and the dress code can cost. Incidentally, the north am prom also includes pre and post prom parties (not suggesting the person would go to these dos). *clearing my throat*...cha-men, no date to go to the Xaviers prom? True, taking a date to the Xaviers prom by BEST no. 63/61 from Byculla or the Bandra date by no.81, 83, 86 would be...yours truly gate-crashed the senior prom, no date required and that patie-spoiler Fr. E-m-ill spotted and promptly showed the door, only to return via the stage door by the chappel!!!. The Xaviers prom came to life after E-m-ill went to bed after 9!! Think there was a strange rule during that time: the prom was reserved for students of the current year so you were limited to who one could bring as a date. Yikes, the gurls in the lit class wore their eye glasses thick and were yawning by 9. Folks in antro or physiology were lot mo fun- they were cool 'bout taking in quarters of brandy !!! The Xaviers after-party was usually the reddish chai @ Mayrose and if you were cash heavy, the Shamaiana. On Sun, May 6, 2012 at 12:56 PM, Cecil Pinto cecilpi...@gmail.com wrote: Dear George, I find your appeal intriguing. What exactly are the expenses involved in going to a high school prom that warrants a public appeal such as this? It is frivolous to appeal for such a cause. There are many events that are similar to this 'coming-of-age high school ritual'. Will more such appeals be made for her to participate in all these rituals? Cecil = Date: Sat, 5 May 2012 06:09:35 -0700 (PDT) From: George Pinto georgejpi...@yahoo.com Subject: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom Dear all, A young Goan girl whose father tragically died a few years ago and who relies on her mother's income to maintain the family and meet expenses, is appealing for funds to go to her high school prom. This is part of helping a young Goan girl's confidence and coming-of-age high school ritual and providing her an opportunity she cannot afford with a single parent.
Re: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom
Cecil Pinto wrote: What exactly are the expenses involved in going to a high school prom that warrants a public appeal such as this? It is frivolous to appeal for such a cause. Hi Cecil, What George is doing, is trying to help. Who knows, there may be a reader here who would be willing to lend a helping hand. That one reader is all that the girl requires. When I was studying at St. Xavier's College in Mumbai I couldn't go for the Annual College Dance because I couldn't get any girl to go with me for the couples-only event. I also didn't have enough money to pay for the entrance ticket and money to pay the girls who would accompany you in for a fee. It hurt at the time but I recovered soon enough. It's called growing up. When I went for my graduation in Dar es Salaam, I saw the one guy who beat me in every subject sitting in the visitors section of the hall. Shocked, I asked him why he was not sitting with the rest of the graduating class. He replied that his sponsor, a semi-govt business, had not yet paid his college fees. As such, the college was not going to award him his degree until the fees were paid. This happened to the smartest guy in our graduating class. Mervyn201
Re: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom
Dear Cecil, I understand your opinion on this appeal and you are not wrong. I too have experience that matches yours, having gone both to a school and college that had rich kids who made up more than half of the student body and I underwent personal agony when I was called for events, being a popular guy, and chose not to go when I felt I could not match the spending that was called for. But that agony was only temporary and I moved on to participate in what I could afford. The prom is not a life and death ritual that you can't miss it because you can't fund it, except when you have created for yourself a superficial value system that sadly many young folk have fallen prey to. It is an important event in North America but not one in which a student would have to ask for funds to go to. Americans (and Canadians to a lesser extent) are charitable folk and if they even got a whiff of the needs of the student needing money for the prom, would have done several things to meet that need. The class would have raised funds, the school participated, individual students would have chipped in and neighborhood organizations would have quickly responded financially. The idea is to have fun and celebrate your school experience, not to have poorer kids left behind with sadness trailing them. Not to mention how the average kid works as many hours as they can, in restaurants, fast food and other student-employing minimum wage places to save for the event. I have a relative whose 16 year old worked as a waitress in a restaurant in Silver Springs MD for an entire summer and made enough in wages and tips to buy herself outright (no exaggeration), a new little Honda sports car even if low end. The average dinner for four costs about $250 and tips are routinely 20 to 25%. The students in some rich schools can be very snotty. A brand name gown and shoes could set you back a thousand dollars. There is the limo to and fro and the cost of the hotel suites where the night after the dance is spent and expenses on food and liquor. And there is the pub crawling that goes on post-party. I am only saying this because you asked what the expenses could be and not in justification of the appeal. You were right in saying that the girl asking for the funds might get wrong expectations in the future. I also noted that it was not Goa Sudharop that thought it appropriate to make the appeal on its own but that the girl involved asked for it. Nevertheless I have faith that the GS team have weighed all the circumstances and found extenuating ones before making the appeal. The fact that we are only slightly enlightened on the appeal's merits does not mean that we know all that they do. George could have made a more convincing case though. Roland. Toronto. -Original Message- From: goanet-boun...@lists.goanet.org [mailto:goanet-boun...@lists.goanet.org] On Behalf Of Cecil Pinto Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2012 3:26 AM To: goa...@goanet.org Subject: [Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom Dear George, I find your appeal intriguing. What exactly are the expenses involved in going to a high school prom that warrants a public appeal such as this? It is frivolous to appeal for such a cause. There are many events that are similar to this 'coming-of-age high school ritual'. Will more such appeals be made for her to participate in all these rituals?
[Goanet] Appeal for assistance to go to prom
Dear all, A young Goan girl whose father tragically died a few years ago and who relies on her mother's income to maintain the family and meet expenses, is appealing for funds to go to her high school prom. This is part of helping a young Goan girl's confidence and coming-of-age high school ritual and providing her an opportunity she cannot afford with a single parent. If you wish to donate, please email or call our Goa Sudharop Management member Acaria Almeida at acariaalme...@yahoo.com or 1-925-324-0513 and let her know. For privacy reasons, we are not disclosing the young girl's name and family name. Your donation to GOA SUDHAROP is tax deductible (for USA residents) and you can pay through PAYPAL on the home page (DONATE NOW link) on the Goa Sudharop website (www.goasudharop.org) or mail a check made payable to GOA SUDHAROP, 18 WIMPOLE STREET, MORAGA, CALIFORNIA, 94556, USA. Thank you. Goa Sudharop www.goasudharop.org
