Elvis enthrals at GOA anniversary celebrations

One of the Indian community’s oldest and most enthusiastic associations celebrates 35 years in Sydney

BY SHERYL DIXIT

The Goan Overseas Association (GOA), recently celebrated a landmark 35 years in Australia. With nearly 400 members in New South Wales alone, GOA also has branches in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth across Australia, all striving to keep alive the vibrant traditions of this still-enchanting seaside state and its unique people.

The anniversary celebrations of GOA began in mid-2011 covering numerous events including golfing, picnics and whist drives, and concluded with the hosting of a Coral Anniversary Dinner Dance extravaganza on June 10. The Grand Royale Function Centre in Granville was the venue chosen to celebrate this significant milestone. Over 350 guests attended the event, with ladies appropriately attired in jade-coral coloured outfits, and the men sporting coral ties in keeping with the anniversary theme. Amongst the guests were Vanessa Afonso (President, GOA Victoria); Chris Da Costa (Vice President); Oscar Lobo, (President, GAA Victoria) and Tony Mendes representing Goans in Queensland. Five founding members and a record number of seven ex-Presidents of GOA also attended.

Guests were presented with a commemorative souvenir, and the event began with the viewing of a specially compiled Anniversary Celebrations DVD which highlighted the rich and varied history of GOA NSW, with its various past social events, cultural and sporting extravaganza and a brief history of its humble beginnings by founder member, Alvito Coutinho. Tony Colaco, President GOA NSW, welcomed guests in his speech, highlighting the achievements of the Association.

It was an evening of dancing and music, ably compered by veteran Master of Ceremonies, Cyprian Fernandes. Following a delicious Goa-themed dinner, awards were presented to young people who had excelled in academics with each prize winner awarded a cash prize and commemorative plaque to mark their achievements. A commemorative glass vase was presented to Sandy Antao for her dedication and efforts in maintaining the photo album of the Golf Annual Days over the last 25 years.

The anniversary cake, a splendid 3 tiered cake tastefully decorated in the coral-jade theme was then cut by Tony Colaco, accompanied by visiting interstate GOA dignitaries and ex-presidents of the association. The formalities concluded, the evening’s entertainment began with renowned ‘Goan Elvis’ Jose Fernandes, making a dramatic entry in full Elvis gear much to the delight of the attendees.

Dessert brought back the flavour of Goa as the Anniversary fruitcake was followed by a round of delicious bebinca, a traditional sweet. Raffle tickets and novelty rounds added a touch of excitement with winners carrying away enticing prizes.

It was a memorable evening of dinner and dancing, interspersed with rousing Konkani mandos and Portuguese folk ballads, all of which brought back memories of swaying palms, sea breeze and the enviable laid-back lifestyle that epitomises Goa. The evening was reminiscent of nostalgic memories and reminded the guests of Goa’s rich heritage, as they reluctantly left the venue with happy hearts and tired feet.

While the Sydney branch of GOA was founded a mere 35 years ago, the actual organisation is among the oldest, if not the oldest, of Indian associations with a branch in almost every country of the world, numbering over 150 internationally. GOA in Nairobi, for instance, has been around for a whopping 115 years!

Since its inception in 1977, the organisation has played a pivotal role in actively promoting the rich Goan culture and tradition to build a unified community in Sydney. “Our current membership base amounts to approximately 250-300 people, but we stand firm by the edicts stated in the original GOA Constitution that membership to the association is open to anyone, not just those born or associated by birth, in Goa,” emphasised President Tony Colaco.

“Anyone who loves Goa or its people, regardless of nationality, religion, caste or creed is welcome into GOA. Among our most recent members are those from the Gujarati community, and origin people have been inquiring about membership,” he added.

The reason for this could be simply because of positive associations with Goa and its people, with a feeling of enjoying the traditions of events that extend beyond the religious and ritual.

“Some people enjoy our dances, others come to our golfing, bingo and whist events, and nobody is turned away,” said Tony, with disarming conviction.

“We welcome members who enjoy the Goan way of life, and are accepting of anyone who wishes to enjoy and keep alive our culture and tradition. In fact, one of our founding members was Irish!” he added, enjoying this reporter’s surprise.

While Goa comprises of several villages and on meeting a fellow Goan, it is inevitable that one will be asked: “From which village are you?”, GOA members do not differentiate between various village events. Instead, they support individual village celebrations such as the feast days of saints, etc., while collectively celebrating events such as World Goa Day. And of course, the association helps out needy members of the community in Australia and India. A good example of their involvement in aiding the community comes from the period of unrest following the student attacks in 2008-09.

“In response to the Government of Goa’s concern regarding the safety of Goan students travelling to Australia, we reached an agreement that every student landing here should contact a member of the association, and they are given help in terms of advice, accommodation, and are even supplied with numbers of people to contact if they encounter any trouble,” revealed Tony. This initiative is still in practice for students, and has even extended to individuals looking for a sense of belonging in an alien country.

Tony and his committee members are looking forward to a few exciting events in the coming few months. Prime among these is the celebration of World Goa Day on August 18, which marks the day when the Konkani language was officially included in the sixth schedule of the Indian Constitution. In true Goan style, the day-long celebrations will include Konkani theatre, mando singing and dancing, group musical performances, raffle draws, bingo, etc. The only hitch to the running of this event is a seeming lack of good Goan catering. “As Goans we love our traditional food and while our volunteers have been generous with their time and efforts, we are on the hunt for good caterers for our various events, who will provide us with authentic Goan cuisine,” said Tony.

Other plans include the Mango Cup in September, a cricket competition currently involving the Manglorean, Anglo-Indian and Goan communities. “We would like to invite other Indian communities to also participate, making the event more broadbased and involved,” stated Tony. GOA’s vibrancy, involvement and proactivity are a great example of how an association should run, for its members and for the wider community.