Move to set Blues foundation at Valvettithurai

BLUES FOUNDATION FOR BETTER FUTURE

VALVETTITHURAI

Introduction

It is a known fact that many VVT people always dream about the welfare of VVT and its people. Whenever they meet in a group, they discuss about the current situation, the past glory and how we can work towards a better future. As a result of these discussions there had been some efforts which were successful to some extent. But these efforts had been piece-wise and we have so far failed to build a strong platform to utilize the funds, expertise and the hard work to the maximum level. For a variety of reasons, we have not yet mobilized a large number of potential donors and have not embarked on planned and sustainable youth development program.

Currently the state of affairs in VVT can be improved tremendously. It is a sleeping town. It needs to be woken up and guided in the direction of progress. As a start we want to concentrate on the development of the children. With more input and support from members we will be able to address various other aspects with respect to the future of VVT.

We propose to start a charitable organization known as  'BLUES FOUNDATION FOR BETTER FUTURE'  with membership.

People who are keen to become ordinary members will need to pay Rs 100,000/= per year. While we understand and appreciate this is not a small sum, the idea is to attract  people who are   motivated and keen to give back to VVT. These people will be given the responsibility of running the Foundation. The Foundation is also keen to attract persons who have the time and motivation but may not have the financial means to become ordinary members.

Although the information about the Foundation will be widely circulated, no undue pressure will be applied on anyone to become a member. We request people to become members on their own without waiting to be approached.

We expect many  overseas people to join as members.

There will be two kinds of people associated with the Foundation.

          (i)  Donors  : These people are the backbones of the Foundation. They contribute money, time and energy to run the place, and 

       (ii) Beneficiaries: These people directly receive benefits such as educational items, sporting items, educational tours and nutritional foods.

Together, they will work harmoniously to achieve the objectives of the Foundation.

Name:  

BLUES FOUNDATION FOR BETTER FUTURE, VALVETTITHURAI

Vision

To build a healthy, united, strong and cultured Valvettithurai

Mission

·         To gather  people who are concerned about the future of VVT, and

·         to provide educational , sporting and recreational facilities/opportunities to youngsters in a safe and vibrant environment

which will help

·          raise the children's academic expectation, self-image and self-esteem

·          unlock the potential of the children

·          help children to achieve lifelong successes

·          strengthen the family unit

·          strengthen the community spirit

·          contribute to the health and vitality of the community

·          develop  friendly relationships with  communities in and outside Sri Lanka, and

·          make VVT  a  town to be proud of.

Membership

There  are seven types of members (six belonging to Donor category and one to Beneficiary category)

(i)               Ordinary Member:  Anyone who contributes a sum of  Rs 100,000/= or more per year becomes an ordinary member. He/She can be a member of the Executive Council, if elected, and has the right to vote in the election of EC. They have a right to receive the accounts and other information about the Foundation and to take part in discussions about the affairs of the Foundation.

Membership is active for a period of one year from the time the full sum of Rs100,000/= is contributed. If requested by the member , the membership can be extended up to 3 months with a delayed contribution.

(ii)                Family Member :  If one family or group of maximum of four friends jointly donate Rs100,000/= or more per year, they become family members. Each group can nominate one member to be an ordinary member. This ordinary member can be a member of the Executive Council, if elected and has the right to vote in the election of EC.

Membership is active for a period of one year from the time the full sum of Rs100,000 is contributed. If requested by the family , the membership can be extended up to 3 months with a delayed contribution.

(iii)              Associate Member : Anyone who contributes a sum of  Rs 5,000/= or more but less than Rs100,000/= per year becomes an associate member. He/She cannot be a member of the Executive Council and has no vote in the election of EC. They have a right to receive the accounts and other information about the Foundation and to take part in discussions about the affairs of the Foundation.

Membership is active for a period of one year from the time the full sum of Rs5,000/= is contributed. If requested by the member , the membership can be extended up to 3 months with a delayed contribution.

(iv) Institutional Member:   If any Valvettithurai Institution, such a sports club  donate Rs100,000/= or more per year , it becomes an Institutional member. The Institution can nominate one member to be an ordinary member. This ordinary member can be a member of the Executive Council, if elected and has the right to vote in the election of EC.

Membership is active for a period of one year from the time the full sum of Rs100,000 is contributed. If requested by the Institution , the membership can be extended up to 3 months with a delayed contribution.

(v)   Volunteer  Member: From time to time the Executive Council can nominate people who are willing to donate their time and energy as Volunteer members. A volunteer member cannot be a member of the Executive Council and has no vote in the election of EC . They have a right to receive the accounts and other information about the Foundation and to take part in discussions about the affairs of the Foundation.

(vi) Special  Members: The Executive Council can invite anyone to join as a Special  Member. He/She will have all the rights of an Ordinary member. Every time the appointment will be valid for only one year and can be renewed any number of times.

(ii) Beneficiary Member: These people directly receive benefits such as educational items, sporting items, educational tours and nutritional foods. Any VVT student above the age of 12 will be admitted as a Beneficiary member when the student undertakes to satisfy the following conditions:

·         must be a student at any Teaching Institution.

·         must get the consent  of the parent/guardian

·         must study on their own (the School and Tuition times are not counted) for at least 10 hours in a week.

·         must play some active sports for at least 6 hours in a week.

·         must play some brain games such as Chess, Scrabble, Sudoku etc for at least 2 hours a week

·         must take a character test once in a month. (The details of the test is given below)

·         must do community service for at least  2 hours a month (Voluntarily cleaning  public places such as  school,  temple, hospital, beaches are some examples of Community work).

·         must read at least 2 books in a month

Character Test  (for the Beneficiary Members)

The members are expected to excel in the following aspects:

·         Respect the parents, teachers, elders, friends and all the people whom you come into contact with.

·         Have patience when communicating with others. Listen to the others and understand what they are trying to tell.

·         Learn to speak clearly with a soft, but commanding tone. Do not irritate others by speaking very loud and not caring whether the others are interested in what you say.

·         Never use bad words. Do not address others in a rude or impolite manner.

·         Be punctual.

·         Follow up with actions to fulfill your commitments.

·         Be kind to animals.

·         Keep yourself and the environment clean.

·         Whenever and wherever possible, help others.

·         NO   to  alcohol, smoking and drugs,.

Measurement

Marks will be given (out of ten) for each of the above character aspects  and the average of the marks will be known as Character Marks. The test will be conducted on a monthly basis and the top students will be rewarded while the students with less than 5 will be advised accordingly.

For a particular student the grading will be done by 5 people who are selected by the student himself/ herself. The combination of the 5 people will be as follows:

           1   -  Parent or Guardian

            2   - Teachers who teach that student

             1  - A member (other than another Beneficiary member) of the Foundation

             1  - A beneficiary member who is a friend of the student. Two students cannot grade

                    each other.

Executive Council

·         EC consists of a maximum of 10 members

·         These members will be elected by the ordinary members for a period of one year.

·         If  the number of ordinary members is less than ten, all the ordinary members will become Executive council members.

·         EC is responsible for the day to day running of the Foundation and to all the financial aspects of the Foundation.

·         If for some unforeseen reasons, the Foundation cannot continue to function, the EC will decide what to do with the assets and liability of the Foundation. This decision should be taken after proper consultation with all the members.

·         Resolutions at the EC level and the Foundation level will be passed by simple majority. (as many EC members and Foundation members are overseas members ,  a suitable mechanism will be worked out so that all members can vote)

Office Bearers of EC

·         The Executive Council members will elect a Chairman, A Secretary and a Treasurer among themselves.

·         The above positions will be valid for one year.

·         The Chairman will preside the EC meeting and  the General body meeting. He/ She will make sure that the decisions made by the EC and the General Body are carried out.

·         If the Chairman is not present for the meeting, those who are present will elect an EC member as temporary Chairman to conduct the meeting.

·         The Secretary will take down the minutes of all the meetings and will communicate with other members and outsiders.

·         The Treasurer will be in charge of the finances of the Foundation. He will jointly open an account in a respectable Bank with the Chairman and the Secretary. The withdrawal procedure will be determined by the EC and the Bank Manager.

·         In case if the post of Chairman, Secretary or Treasurer falls vacant, it will be filled by an EC member.

Dispute Resolution

If  there is any dispute at any level, the Chairman has the authority to make the final  decision.

If there is a no-confidence motion against the Chairman, it will be decided by a simple majority at the EC level . In this case the Chairman will have no vote.

I can be contacted at :   Tel :   94-778675686

                                           email:   asrajendran@hotmail.com

Please send me any comments you have

Saba Rajendran