OZCF Gala Raises a Phenomenal $868,000  for Atashkadeh  Construction – Our Time is Now

In a dazzling display of community spirit, the Ontario Zoroastrian Community Foundation (OZCF) hosted a spectacular gala on November 11, 2023, at the Mississauga Convention Centre to celebrate the ongoing construction of our consecrated Atashkadeh and future Atash-e-Adaran fire temple. This historic evening, attended by nearly 500 enthusiastic guests, marked a monumental fundraising success, generating an impressive $868,000.

Meticulously organized by our dedicated volunteers, the gala was hosted by our young and dynamic emcees, Xarius Jasavala and Aiden Silliphant, featured live and silent auctions and a live band. The night began with a Remembrance Day tribute, followed by the National Anthem sung by Shanaya Patel and heartfelt Din-no-Kalmo prayer recited by young mobeds, before dinner was served and the live auction began. Our energetic crowd buzzed with excitement during the auctions. We then heard inspiring speeches from Adil Bhesania, OZCF President, who welcomed everyone, as well as Phil Sidhwa, Place of Worship Advisory Committee Chair, and Marzi Byramjee, Fundraising Chair, about the current state of construction, and the power and impact our community achievements have on future generations to come.

Our professional auctioneer conducted our live auction with many exciting prizes donated by members of our generous community. The call for donations triggered a breathtaking flurry of generosity, with donations ranging from $150,000 to $100, and from contributors ranging across the age spectrum with passionate speeches and dedications. It was an awesome feeling to witness contributions from younger participants, donating whatever they could, instilling confidence in the future upkeep of our place of worship by the generations to come.

The OZCF’s 10-acre property in Oakville, Ontario, Canada Is destined to become a self-sustaining revenue generating complex, fostering the growth of Zoroastrianism in North America. Planned are a seniors retirement home, commercial and retail buildings, museum, classrooms and ample parking. Your continued generosity will help build a consecrated Atashkadeh to accommodate the expanding Zoroastrian community in the Toronto area and support the ordainment of Zoroastrian priests.

We send a huge THANK YOU to the generous guests, volunteers and contributors whose support made this year’s gala a resounding success!

Inspired to contribute?

Visit www.ozcf.com or contact philsidhwa@hotmail.com or marzi@regalpresscanada.com. Together as a community, we're propelling the vision of a vibrant Atashkadeh closer to reality!

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The World Zoroastrian Chamber of Commerce (WZCC) Toronto Chapter is proud to announce the next meeting at the OZCF hall.

We will hear from four entrepreneurs who all started their businesses during the COVID years. The challenges they faced and where they are today. If you are an entrepreneur who started a business during the COVID years, please contact: afreed.mistry@gmail.com to be a speaker at the event.

Event Date: Saturday, Nov. 18th, 2023 @ 1:00 PM

Location: OZCF, 1187 Burnhamthrope Road E., Oakville, ON

Event Fee: Free

Please sign up to attend the event:

Attend the Event

Agenda: 1:00 pm - Registration and Networking (snacks will be served) 1:30 pm - Announcements and Introductions 1:35 pm - Hear from the Enterprising Entrepreneurs 2:45 pm - Networking with members 3:00 pm - End Meeting Speakers:

Anaheez Karbhari Anaheez Karbhari is a UX Designer based in Toronto, Canada. She is the founder and owner of Jaan Joon, a small baking business that blossomed during the rise of the pandemic. As a self-taught baker, Anaheez enjoys the process of innovation while paying homage to traditional Persian & Indian palates. Honey, saffron, pistachios, rose and cardamom are some of Jaan Joon’s staple flavor profiles. Anaheez specializes in unique goodies such as bite-sized truffles, macarons, and cookies, and is now shipping across Canada & the United States.

Diana Daver Diana is the owner of a small business called JustSoaps by Diana. She makes handmade organic soaps in small batches. These soaps are packed with natural goodness and are devoid of any harmful chemicals like phthalates and parabens found in commercial soaps which are all carcinogenic and cause more harm than good. Diana’s soaps contain glycerine (which is a natural compound derived from vegetable oils and is known for its moisturizing properties), organic essential oils, skin friendly ingredients and are as natural as possible. Since these are as the name says “just soaps” they contain no preservatives, foaming agents and toxic scents. These soaps  do have a small shelf life like all things natural and for all good reasons. They are perfect for all skin types and for all ages. What’s more is that these soaps are easily customizable too. They make for very unique and personal gifts as an added bonus.

Dr. Armita Bhesania Drs. Armita and Adil Bhesania - two young sibling entrepreneurs have started a dental clinic in Mississauga, ON. Armita will be speaking at the WZCC event.  She went to dental school and graduated from Dalhousie University in 2019. She then did an additional year of intense training at Mount Sinai Hospital downtown Toronto. Adil and Armita always knew they wanted to buy a dental clinic together and serve the community in whichever way they can. After 2 years of constant searching, they finally found a clinic they loved and are proud to call it their own. Churchill Smiles Dentistry is located in Mississauga.

Farah Ardeshir Farah Ardeshir was born and brought up in Mumbai, India. She has done hospitality management but unfortunately, was never taught any baking in her program. She is a self-taught baker and has opened "M5 Bakes", a certified home based business, which makes delicious and fresh, made to order cakes, cupcakes, desserts, sweet and savory treats. She also offers vegan and gluten-free cakes and cupcakes. In 2020, she got her calling to embrace the healing journey and educate in the natural and therapeutic form of hypnotherapy followed by other healing and spiritual modalities. Farah was attuned as a Reiki Master at the age of 18 years. Taking all these experiences ahead, she has now started a holistic health and wellness practice called "Spark the Light Within." Farah now focuses full time on these 2 businesses. Her aim in both her businesses is to make people happy with her baking delicacies and holistic healing.

Regards, WZCC Toronto Chapter Team

The OZCF are thrilled to announce that they are embarking on an exciting journey to build their place of worship, and they would like to invite you to join them in this endeavor.

To celebrate this milestone, OZCF are organizing a grand gala event on Saturday, November 11th, at the prestigious Mississauga Convention Centre. The event will commence at 6:00 pm, and they cordially invite you to attend.

The gala promises to be an unforgettable evening filled with joy, cultural performances, and a chance to connect with fellow community members. It will also serve as an opportunity to raise funds for the construction of OZCF's place of worship.

Date: Saturday, November 11, 2023

Time: 6:00 pm onwards

Venu: Mississauga Convention Centre

Ticket Price: $150 per person

Contact for Tickets:

Gulrukh

cawasgul@gmail.com

647-787-0237

905-542-0237

To purchase tickets, kindly reach out to Gulrukh, OZCF's dedicated coordinator, at cawasgul@gmail.com or call her at or 905-542-0237. Gulrukh will be delighted to assist you with any inquiries or ticket purchases.

Your presence and support at this gala event will contribute significantly to the realization of OZCF's dream. Together, we can create a place of worship that will serve as a sanctuary for spiritual growth, community bonding, and cultural preservation.

Click Here to read our sponsorship opportunities.

FEZANA Religion Education Committee invites you to

Lived Zoroastrianism:How Zoroastrian Women Practice Religion in the American Diaspora

A conversation with Dr.Paulina Niechciał

Time: Saturday Oct 28, 2023

9:00 AM Pacific |12:00 PM Eastern

The lecture will discuss the anthropological study conducted among Zoroastrian women settled in the United States of America, which since the mid-20th century has been accommodating migrants and refugees practicing Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrian migration is connected with the transfer of religious practices to the new continent and their transformation and reevaluation in a new context. As institutional Zoroastrianism has been male-dominated, it is particularly interesting to explore how women transform religion through their practices and how they challenge the traditional way of understanding Zoroastrianism.

The perspective that inspired the study is a lived religion approach that captures the changes and diversification of religious practices in everyday life, highlighting the way individuals practice religion. In 2019, as a recipient of the Kosciuszko Foundation Fellowship, hosted by the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at the Indiana University in Bloomington, Dr. Paulina Niechciał conducted fieldwork within her research project ‘Lived Religion’ in the Context of Migration: The Case of Zoroastrian Women in the USA. The qualitative interviews collected within the project were conducted among the first and second generations of female immigrants, who identified with a Zoroastrian community and had at least one parent of Zoroastrian origin from Iran, India or old Parsi colonies. Conducted in different states, including Illinois, California, Texas, Kentucky, and Ohio, the study reflects on the diversity of American Zoroastrians, subsequently indicating some general trends in the transformation of their religion.

About Dr. Paulina Niechciał

Paulina Niechciał is an assistant professor in the Center for Comparative Civilization Studies at Jagiellonian University, Poland. She completed her M.A. degree both in Ethnology (2006) and Iranian Studies (2008), and a Ph.D. degree in Sociology (2012). In her doctoral thesis, based on field research conducted among Zoroastrians in Tehran, she analyzed the issues of collective identity. Her academic interests cover the anthropology and sociology of religion and the contemporary cultures of Persiante societies of Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan. She authored academic journal articles and book chapters on minority and identity studies and a monograph in Polish titled Zoroastrian Minority in Modern Tehran: On Collective Identity in the Context of Shi’a Domination (2013). Her most recent research interests focus on modern Zoroastrianism within a gender studies framework.

Join Zoom Meeting

FEZANA is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Lived Zoroastrianism: A Conversation with Paulina Niechciat

Time: Oct 28, 2023 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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Meeting ID: 894 3548 7277

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NAMC institute of Zoroastrian Studies

We are pleased to announce our upcoming course:

Click Here To Register

UPCOMING SATURDAY

On the third episode Prof. Vevaina welcomes Dr. Céline Redard a Lecturer for the Institute of History of Religions at the University of Strasbourg, France.

Dr. Céline Redard is a Lecturer for the Institute of History of Religions at the University of Strasbourg, France. She obtained her PhD from the École Pratique des Hautes Études in Paris in 2010 with her doctoral thesis being an edition, translation, and commentary on Vidēvdād 19. Subsequently, she was a Research Assistant at the Collège de France in Paris from 2008 to 2014 and was awarded a Marie Curie Fellowship at the University of Liège in Belgium from 2014 to 2016.

From 2017 to 2022, she was a Postdoctoral Researcher attached to the Multimedia Yasna (MuYa) Project funded by the European Research Council and directed by Prof. Almut Hintze at SOAS (London). Dr. Redard is currently carrying out her research on the Gujarati ritual directions in the Avestan manuscripts with the aim of studying the transmission of rituals in India from the 16th century until today.

"Zoroastrian Conversations" is envisioned to be a Charlie Rose-style interview show that would feature Yuhan Sohrab-Dinshaw Vevaina (Bahari Associate Professor of Sasanian Studies and Fellow of Wolfson College at the University of Oxford) interviewing academics from around the world working on Zoroastrian and Parsi Studies, the history, languages, and cultures of early Iran and cognate disciplines.

The interviews would be conducted on Zoom and moderated by FEZANA and would serve the function of introducing the global Zoroastrian communities to the most respected and up-and-coming scholars working in these fields.

These ‘Zoroastrian Conversations’ would also serve as a forum for community members to learn about the research and teaching being undertaken by professional academics and would serve the purpose of both public engagement and education.

The central premise would be an informal chat, perhaps every two months, where the scholar chatting with Prof. Vevaina could tell us a bit about their background, entrance into the field, their research interests, things they find fascinating about Zoroastrianism and Zoroastrian communities and their wish lists for what projects they would like to undertake in the future.

The two new hires in North America at the University of Toronto and UC Irvine have agreed to participate and such a forum would allow Zoroastrians the world over to listen to and learn from our newest professors and many other speakers from all over the world in the months to come.

Join On Zoom

FEZANA is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Zoroastrian Conversations: Prof. Celine Redard with Prof. Yuhan Vevaina

Time: Oct 7, 2023 9:00 AM Pacific | 12:00 PM Eastern Time

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 874 3973 0140
Passcode: FEZANA
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We are reaching out to the community at large to ask for your generous support to help raise money to assist with the medical costs of Ervad Shahzad Darayus Hozdar who has been diagnosed with high-grade Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), a condition in which bone marrow does not produce enough healthy blood cells. This puts him at a high risk of developing Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow. Any amount you can donate will make a huge difference in his life.

Unfortunately, Shahzad’s younger brother passed away at the age of 20 from AML. The family is devastated to face this nightmare again and is terrified of losing another son. Shahzad is a young Dastoor who is a kind, gentle, and loving person. He has a bright future ahead of him, and he deserves a chance to live. The only curative treatment for MDS is a bone marrow transplant, but unfortunately, Shahzad does not have any siblings who can be his donors. His best option at this time is to take medications that can slow down the progression of the disease and improve his quality of life.

The family is very grateful to Dr. Antia and Dr. Jeyhan Dhabbar, Hematologist and Haemato-Oncologist who are treating Shahzad free of charge at the Parsee General Hospital in Mumbai, India. They have recommended that Shahzad needs to start taking medications that can reduce the risk of MDS transforming into AML. However, this medication is very expensive and each injection costs about IRS. 80,000.00 (CAD $1,302). Besides injections, he also needs a bone marrow transplant, and they are approaching Tata Memorial Centre for a donor.

His father recently met with an accident and is gradually recovering and regaining his speech. For some, misfortune comes with vengeance, and he lost his job.

Please help us save Ervad Shahzad and receive his family’s as well as Ahura Mazda’s Blessings.

You can make your donation directly below:

Account No: 032001008110
Name: SHAHZAD DARAYUS HOZDAR
IFSC Code: ICIC0000320
MMID: 9229510
Account Type: Savings
Bank: ICICI Bank

We appreciate your kindness and compassion in these difficult times for the family - Thank you in anticipation of your generosity.