New KCYLNA Newsletter

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K.C.Y.L.N.A. Times
KCYLNA Youth Summit 2015
Archdiocese of Newark’s Archdiocesan Youth Retreat Center
New York-New Jersey
December 27-30, 2015
Knanaya Catholic Youth League of North America
April 14th, 2016
Volume 1, Issue 2
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KCYLNA Executive Board
President
Amy Moolakkattu
Executive Vice
President
Ryan Theccanat
Regional VP
Angela Mangalathettu
Regional VP
Jevis Vettuparapurathu
General Secretary
Jake Illickal
Regional VP
Riya Illikattil
Treasurer
Thomson Korattyil
Regional VP
Jex Nediyakalayil
Joint Secretary
Thomaskutty
Mangattuthundathil
Regional VP
Tinu Pazhakayil
Youth Advisors
Matt and Jackie Odirakallumkal
April 14th, 2016
Volume 1, Issue 2
President’s Message
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Dearest Knanaya Family,
With the joyous holidays behind us and spring just around the
corner, I wanted to reflect on the latest endeavor our board
completed.
As with any major undertaking, many individuals deserve to be
acknowledged for helping pull this event together.
Thank you to all the KCCNA committee members who never failed
to show their support. I'd specifically like to acknowledge President
Sonny Poozhikala Uncle & his wife, Valsa Aunty, for staying all three
nights, providing any guidance necessary, and of course Secretary
Pious Velupparambil Uncle, for being instrumental in the plans from
day one - even spending time as a chaperone between work.
Similarly, IKCC New York executives were extremely helpful
throughout the planning process and connecting us with all the parent volunteers who were ready to
support the youth:
Kurian Medayil, James Alapat, Tozin Abraham, Saju Koyithara, Jimmy Manimala, Sanjoy Augustine, Jose
Illickal, Roy Moolakkattu, Elsy Koyithara, Jorcy Kaipuram, Meera Urumbeth, Stelby Kuzhiparambil, Bindhu
Velianthara, Sephy Muprapallil, Ancy Illickal, Metty Moolakkattu, Laly Manappuram, and the others who
supported.
We must acknowledge Orapankal (Aby) Achan, who was an awesome addition to Summit. A great spiritual
leader, praying for us behind the scenes, it was great to see him connect with the kids during our
discussions. Also, we appreciate Reny Achan for driving after a long Sunday of celebrating masses simply
to greet the youth.
We'd also like to thank Dolly Thomas for sharing her insight during the Mental Health Awareness talk. It's
a subject not often discussed in our community, so I loved seeing such honest interaction.
We have to recognize Sini, Steni, and Steffi Nirappathu, the three sisters who rocked the stage during our
cultural program. Their acapella performance was beautiful, and it was great to be able to highlight our
community's talent.
Also, big thanks to our awesome young adult volunteers for simply being present and helping with
whatever came our way: James Thomas, Joshen Thottam, Jaison Medayil, Samuel Joseph, Naveen
Madathil, Linda Kaipuram, Rina Jacob, & Maria Makil!
Each summit hosts a crowd-pleasing date auction from which the proceeds directly go to charity. This
year, we raised $1,604 for Jumpstart for Young Children, a national early education organization to serve
pre-schoolers in low-income areas!
April 14th, 2016
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There are two important folks who literally are our backbone: Matt Odirakallumkal Chetta & Jackie
Odirakallumkal Chechy. I'm certain we don't mention it enough, but they are here to make sure we keep
steering in the right direction!
Lastly, kudos to my board members: Ryan Theccanat, Thomaskutty Mangattuthundathil, Thomson
Korattyil, Jake Illickal, Angela Mangalathettu, Riya Illikattil, Jex Nediyakalayil, Jevis Vettuparapurathu, &
Tinu Pazhakayil...having completed two out of three solid events, we're more than half way there! As
always, we're able to pull through - I can't wait to see what's left for us.
I'll admit it was personally rewarding planning Summit because these children are frankly the #nextgen,
and I feel it's our responsibility to ensure they are at least given the opportunity to grow together among
the Knanaya community.
One major key I learned was how critical ownership is - to any mistake made. Many had voiced their
concerns, but our primary goal was to ensure safety every day.
I'm in a unique position, often playing liaison between KCYLNA and KCCNA and participating in
conversations across all platforms. As we're thrust in the age of social media, people are excited to
show their passion for the community, often wanting to be the first to share their commentary. And,
while I think it's a beautiful thing - possessing the drive to connect with Knanaya family across the globe
- people often, inadvertently, lose site of what's truly important. Our prerogative should be to plan and
execute memorable events to foster growth among the community. After all, children are rather
perceptive, so the community's young adults and parents should take the reigns in creating a
foundation our kids are proud to be from.
With a successful Summit 2015 in our rear view mirror and family convention quickly approaching this
summer, it's great to see everyone ready to travel across states to meet and bond with their fellow Kna
family. I personally hope the kids each left Summit with a valuable lesson, and can't wait to see
everyone again in about 5 months!
Kindest regards,
Amy Moolakkattu
KCYLNA President
One Nada. One Family. One Vision.
Click the link to enjoy a short highlight video of the KCYLNA Youth Summit!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxJtL7IVFjY
April 14th, 2016
Volume 1, Issue 2
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Message from Fr. Orapankal
KNOWING THE WHY OF WHO WE ARE!
It was truly a privilege for me to be present at the recent KCYLNA
Summit in Kearny, NJ. Considering the many things that impressed me
with our youth during the inter-active seminar I gave and the Masses I
offered, let me comment on one attitude they manifested in general:
they want to know the why of what we do or believe. I found this
attitude in both the areas that define our identity as Knanayites and
Syro-Malabar Catholics.
First, our identity as Knanayites: Yes, there is a tremendous sense of
love and attachment to their belonging to the Knanaya Community.
They are proud of our heritage and traditions that show forth in the
feeling of great fellowship and unbreakable unity that is rare in other
communities. But they want to know the why of these traditions rather
than knowing just the what. More than knowing the historical details of
these traditions, they wish to know how and why they are relevant to
our present day culture and society. They wish to know how they can be
true to their Knanaya heritage of exclusivity and transmission through
birth from both Knanaya parents only while at the same time remaining
true to the American values of inclusivity, fairness and equality. I believe that it can be done satisfactorily
as long as our leadership – both laity and clergy – can think outside the box and explain these in a lingua
that is acceptable to the young generation.
Second, our identity as Syro-Malabar Catholics: There is so much of confusion about our religious
affiliation – not only among the youth but also among the adults! Although in common parlance we have
been calling ourselves “Knanaya Catholics,” we are part and parcel of the “Syro-Malabar Church.” That
means we too are full-fledged members of the Syro-Malabar Church. That’s why we still celebrate the
Syro-Malabar Qurbana. If most of our youth seem to show less interest in the Syro-Malabar Qurbana, it
is because they have not grasped the beauty and majesty of this ancient liturgy. When the symbols of
this beautiful liturgy are not understood, it remains a boring and empty ritual. When I offered the SyroMalabar Qubana at the Summit, I explained, in the limited time, the meaning of just one symbol, the
Syro-Malabar way of giving peace: how peace begins with Jesus Christ who is represented by the priest
at the altar who is offering the Mass “in the person of Christ” and how it is passed on from individual to
individual, reaching the whole community. Both the young people as well as their adult chaperons told
me how meaningful it was to understand this explanation which they had never heard before.
In conclusion, the great interest our young people show in knowing who we are and in understanding the
why of our practices and traditions is very praiseworthy. We need more forums to satisfy such interest.
Then they will be proud heralds and happy members of our unique community – both as Syro-Malabar
Catholics and Knanayites!
-Fr. Abraham Orapankal
April 14th, 2016
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Registration/Opening
Ceremony
As everyone landed from their flights across the nation into the winter
wonderland of New Jersey our KNA Express bus was ready to take
everyone to the Archdiocese Youth Retreat Center. To start off this
summit, every participant went through a rigorous security check,
making sure that this summit would be a safe environment for
everyone. After security, participants were given name tags, which they
wore for the remainder of the summit, their room numbers/ roommates,
and their "Summit & Chill" long-sleeve T-shirt. After all initial check-in
was finished, everyone went to their rooms, and got prepared for Holy
Qurbana.
- Jevis Vettuparapurathu
After mass, registration/check in, and the inauguration, the
participants all got together to participate in a popular ice breaker
known as speed dating. Two rows of chairs were set up facing
each other and one row were all girls while the other were all
guys. Each "date" consisted of two minutes and within the two
minutes participants had the opportunity to introduce
themselves and get to know their date. When I asked Samu
from New York about his speed dating experience, he said, "It
was amazing. I think I found my future wife while speed dating.
She had the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. And every time
she smiled my heart melted." Kevin Puthusseril from Tampa
explained his speed dating experience as, "Incredible. Since I
am a really smooth talker I got like five girls’ number after talking
to them for like 2 minutes. Only OG's like me can pull that off.
But my wingman, Shawn Mulla, got more numbers than me.
He's a true OG." While Neal Mathew from California said, "I had
hella fun meeting hella girls, getting hella digits. Even though
some numbers were fake, it was hella chill." After the
icebreakers, all the participants were spilt into their respective
groups. The groups had about 10 minutes to get know each
other and come up with a team name/dance to be performed in
front of everyone. Afterwards each group competed in friendly
group games. Overall icebreakers were a great way to break the
ice among the participant and begin Summit -Jex Nediaykalayil
April 14th, 2016
Icebreakers
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Kna Discussion
After the kids finished check in for the event,
Fr. Abraham came in to discuss the
Knanaya culture with the participants. It was
an interactive discussion where kids were
able to ask questions about their culture and
faith in an open manner. Topics ranged from
our original roots to how we are still
following our original principles today. Once
his presentation was completed, the
participants were split into smaller groups to
further discuss what was taught in the larger
group. Many questions were posed so that
there would be a comfortable environment
for the participants to say what they feel
about their Knanaya culture. Discussion
topics included how being Kna has impacted
your life, the differences between American
and Indian culture, dating etc. After, the
participants were able to come together in
the larger group and share out their views
on certain questions. -Angela Mangalathettu
Mental Health Awareness
At this year’s summit, Ms. Dolly Thomas presented a
discussion on mental health awareness. Mental health
awareness is a subject which is not well recognized in
our society today. It is important to stress on how much
we should encourage and teach our youth early in life.
She brought significant points which the KNA youth
community needed to hear. The seminar was very
successful; the youth engaged themselves by asking
questions and interacting with Dolly. This seminar helped
bring the youth community together and collaborating
these issues amongst them. We received a lot of positive
feedback from having these seminar. It was suggested
that we conduct more
seminars on these issues
and even have the parents
attend these as well. -Thomaskutty
Mangattuthundathil
April 14th, 2016
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Cultural Program
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After the cultural program, summit participants
were led to the main meeting room for a special
event. Liam Vincent, from the Bronx, NY, came and
impressed the participants with his talent of
Hypnosis. He placed 20 volunteers under a
hypnotic trance inhibiting their power of voluntary
action and making them highly responsive to
suggestion and direction. Volunteers fell asleep on
top of each other, picked up imaginary $100 bills,
and even discovered their favorite celebrity was in
the crowd. When asked to describe his experience,
Paul Edat said, “I still don’t know what happened.”
Rupa Kottoor, whom Mr. Vincent made forget the
number 7, has tragically since been unable to note
how many days of the week there are, what 3+4 is, as
well as being unable to name which store you can get
Slurpees from. Albin Poothurail, aka Magic Mathukutty,
when describing his experience of turning into
Channing Tatum said, “It was exhilarating, bae was
crying because she got to meet the real Magic Mike.”
Overall the participants had a great time watching as
their friends went through the experience of hypnosis.
The KCYLNA board would like to thank Liam Vincent
for his amazing work and for putting on a great show!
-Jake Illickal
April 14th, 2016
KCYL members turned up the auditorium with
roaring chants of city pride and celebration during
the night of the cultural program. We were honored
to have the graceful presence of the trio sisters –
Sini, Steffi & Steni Nirappathu who blew away the
crowd with their medley song performance.
Through colorful props, creative themes and
immense spirit, KCYL members from all over the
nation showcased their talents and displayed
strengths of their units through various skits and
dance performances. The tied first place winners
were KCYL New York and KCYL Chicago. The
second and third place winners were KCYL Dallas
and KCYL Houston, respectively. All of the
performances can be found on youtube.
-Thomson Korattyil
Hypnotist
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Basketball Tournament
On Tuesday morning, at around 9 am, KCYLNA conducted the extremely hyped
and anticipated basketball tournament. The tournament began with a small
prayer and team meeting with all the players followed by the national anthem
sung by no other than Joelu Legend as well as the Canadian national anthem
sung by the Kna 6ix God, Jeffrey Kotoor. Coming into the tournament Chicago
seemed to be the favorite since they had won the 2011 and 2013 summit
basketball tournament. However it was evident from the first day that
the New York boys were determined to prevent the 3 peat from
occurring. The 7 team double elimination tournament was filled with
surprises and great games. For instance the very first game was won
on a buzzer beater. However the biggest surprise of the tournament
was the mixed team claiming second place. With players representing
Dallas, California, Milwaukee, and New York, they managed to make
the finals by beating Houston (twice), Tampa, and New York B. They
eventually squared off with New York A in the finals, but ran out of gas
and lost. New York A was led by Ryan Thomas and the
finals MVP Ruben Raju. When asked Alex “Snooki”
Stephen on how he felt about his team winning the
championship he said "Man. I haven’t been this turnt
since NY KCYL banquet" When asked Jamie Thomas
from Tampa about his team's performance he said,
"You know I didn't really care about the tournament. I
only really cared about looking good for the ladies while
sitting on the bench. I mean thats why I bought 200
dollar basketball shoes even though I didn't play at all."
When asked Chicago A team's coach, Alex Muthalom,
about his team's performance, he said, "I told my team
before every game 'Remember guys. Clear eyes. Full
hearts. Can't lose. Unfortunately that didn't really help
out." When asked Tibin Thomas from Houston about
his team's performance he said, "You know I wasn't
feeling too good while playing in this tournament. I ate too much booty in the
morning.” Overall the tournament seemed to be a highlight of summit with all
the cities getting really into the tournament and coming up with creative
chants. Chicago seemed to make its dominance clear with their large fan
section as well as their hilarious chants. All in all, the tournament was a great
success and had lots of great games. -Tinu Pazhukayil
April 14th, 2016
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Banquet/Auction/DJ
After an epic basketball tournament, the participants got a couple of hours
to rest and get ready for the banquet. Before the actual banquet, there was
a mass, celebrated by Fr. Oranpankal. After his interactive and blessed
mass, everyone headed over to the cafeteria where the banquet was held.
The theme of this year's banquet was Winter Wonderland. The cafeteria
was filled with boys and girls, eating the delicious meal, taking pictures with
each other, and having a wonderful time! After the banquet, all of the
participants walked over to the main auditorium, where the traditional
auction was taking place. We were able to raise $1,604 and the money was
given to a charity named Jumpstart for Young Children. The participants had
a blast buying one another and donating the money to charity. Many talents were
showcased as well, such as dancing, singing, and even modeling! After a fun auction, the
kids finally had a chance to
change out of their fancy
dresses and suits, and into
their dancing clothes for the
DJ. Our very own KCYLNA
Secretary, Jake, turned into
DJ Illi, as all of the kids
danced the entire night
away.
-Riya Illikattil
Last Day
After a couple of exciting and fun days, it finally
came time for everyone to say their goodbyes
and go their separate ways. Jake, the KCYLNA
secretary, presented the vote of thanks and
everyone gathered around for a big group photo.
But what kind of a Knanaya event would it be if it
didn’t end with a nada? The kids gathered
around, with their old and new friends, and did
one last nada before everyone departed.
-Ryan Theccanat
April 14th, 2016
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Volunteers
Adult Volunteers:
Kurian Medayil
James Alapat
Tozin Abraham
Saju Koyithara
Jimmy Manimala
Sanjoy Augustine
Jose Illickal
Roy Moolakkattu
Aby Karathuruthel
Chacko Velianthara
Elsy Koyithara
Jorcy Kaipuram
Meera Urumbeth
Stelby Kuzhiparambil
Bindhu Velianthara
Sephy Muprapallil
Ancy Illickal
Metty Moolakkattu
Laly Manappuram
Matt Odirakallumkal
Jackie Mathew Odirakallumkal
Youth Leaders:
James Thomas
Joshen Thottam
Jaison Medayil
Samuel Joseph
Naveen Unni Madathil
Linda Mathai
Rina Jacob
Maria Makil
April 14th, 2016
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Upcoming KCYLNA Events
The KCCNA Family Convention will be held in Houston, Texas
from August 4-7, 2016. Our board has begun making plans to
make this event a great success! This will be the third and final
national event for the KCYLNA executive board’s 2015-2016
term. It will be a bittersweet end to our tenure in office, but we
are looking forward to showing the youth of our community what
we have in store. We always seek and welcome innovative ideas
for activities or projects, so don’t hesitate to contact us. We hope
to have the continued prayers, support, and love of our members
and adults of our Knanaya community as we continue to
organize enriching events for our youth.
April 14th, 2016
Volume 1, Issue 2