sesh,
not sure what pdc means. is it pre authorized monthly deposit or contribution? if so, yes that is what i meant. it is a very good way to run a charity organization, which has regular expenses to meet.
apart from that, there are event collecitons. like deepavali special - an annual or bi annual extra effort to raise more money on a onetime deposit for specific goals.
going door to door on a constant basis, or waiting for ad hoc money before it can be committed (ie not knowing your capacity to give) would, i think, eventually wither away.
personally, i think, that the majority of our community were poor, till about a few generations ago. hence, we do not have the traditon or the advice in our religious practice to focus on charity.
the learned will always find stanzas where charity is espoused. but what i mean is a mandatory organized and methodical need to give.
the fact that we are even considering it as a community is good. for there is some dabbu left in the vessel after our needs are satisfied
personally, i think, we are among our most prosperous now. as a community, in india, we are among the most middle class, which is where we should be.
the effort that you propose, must and definitely must, only target the poorer sections, who are motivated. there will always be a section who do not have the drive, in any group. there is no point feeling sorry for them.
surprisingly our wealthy appear to leave endowments for veda patasalas. i have met a few youngsters, who are very contented to go there, and seek a career in vaideeham. which is okay.
the ones, i feel for, are those, who have the drive, and do not have the financial wherewithal to foot the professional college expenses. those are brains, that should not be wasted.
and now a days, i come across appeals for health related stuff. apparently, our group population is aging, and there is a need for some to need assistance for proper medical care.
again, since the broad spread of the community, and due to sparse numbers, edifices at one or more places, may confine that their services are availed of only by a few of us.
to focus, initially, as a do good, for the tamil brahmin diaspora, it may be more suitable to come with a different business model - one suggestion is to have recommended centers for medical assistance.
another would be to take a stake in an educational institution in karnataka, where tamil brahmins qualify as a linguistic minority.
the reason for this, is again, that while our strength is our mobility, focussing on tamil nadu alone might not quite spread the wealth. and might bring untoward and unwanted attention, which we can do without.
our need to eke out a living has indeed given us opportunities to prosper far and wide. i do not see it as a consequence of political winds. but then this is my opinion.
which comes back to my final caution. it may be best to avoid giving this charity any political colour bordering on vairagyam.
please ensure that vivekam governs all your actions, and as such, results in an inclusive crowd, who can identify with the good deads of an umbrella organization, and defintiely downplaying the inevitable philosophical / political differences which appear to crop up within minutes of any intoroductions within our tribe.
a big challenge. considering the tone and often acrimonious debates of the past, here and elsewhere, in other tamil brahmin forums. we are indeed an excitable lot, more on dispensing hot and not necessarily a fragrant air
best wishes sir.
