Friends of the OCHS (FOCHS) update
FOCHS
Monday, 12 July 2010
In December 2008 a gathering of CED alumni in Leicester became the inaugural meeting of the Friends of the OCHS-Leicester (FOCHS-L). Since then, monthly fund- and awareness-raising activities have been held and 30 kind Leicester Friends have signed up for monthly standing orders.
As the FOCHS-L developed from our CED courses, it’s not surprising that the events have been largely educational with lectures on Hinduism in its modern contexts. Extra special thanks are due to Raj and Ramila Chauhan of Aartus and their team for making this all happen.
Inspired by the work of the Leicester Friends, Nitin and Meena Sodha decided to replicate the success in Birmingham with similar events bringing people to the educational ethos of the OCHS and helping some of those Friends become regular donors.
Inspired by the work of the Leicester Friends and the Birmingham Friends (a pattern is developing), Pratik Dattani, Prashant Joshi, Dipesh Patel, and Dhruv Patel have got behind the formation of a City of London Friends group. The direction of Friends groups is driven by its members and the City Friends group organised a one-day summer school, ‘A Day of Leadership from Indian Sources’ in Oxford on 7 August.
The Friends of the OCHS has become one of the most dynamic aspects of life at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and a key part of our bridge-building ethic.
If you would like to participate in an existing group or start a group in your area, contact Lal Krishna at lal@ochs.org.uk.