WZCC in Houston

With Houston celebrating the 10th anniversary of its Zarathushti Heritage and Cultural Center (ZHCC) this year, the annual general meeting (AGM) of the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce (WZCC) to be held there at the end of the year (December 27-31, 2008) has a special significance. The festivities planned by the enterprising community for this first ever WZCC-AGM in the city of its birth include lavish entertainment, the New Year’s eve dinner dance bringing the whole to a close but with a full day trip to San Antonio and to an oil rig in the vicinity thrown in to reinforce the local touch. These of course have an added cost and interested participants are required to register with Arnavaz or Hoshang Sethna at ahsethna@yahoo.com by November 1, as per the program addressed to Parsiana by WZCC founder director Homi Davier.

They have also got a four-day (January 1-5, 2009) western Caribbean group cruise from Galveston exclusively planned for the delegates to the AGM after the event for which the booking closes on July 30 and payments need to be in by August 15, 2008.

But the Houston Zoroastrians have not put their celebrations on hold till then. "The Global Business Connection,” a day seminar, was organized by committee members of the WZCC Houston chapter under the leadership of chair Behroze Daruwalla at the ZHCC on May 25 when S. M. Gavai, consul general of India in Houston, Homai Daruwalla, chairperson and managing director of Central Bank of India, Dr Atul Varadhachary, president and chief operating officer of Agennix Inc, Rick Pal, founder and managing partner of Emprise Group, Jagdip Ahluwalia, executve director of the Indo American Chamber of Commerce and Minoo Mehta, managing executive with Specialty Medical Supplies were invited speakers. Also on hand to do the honors were WZCC’s founding fathers Rohin­ton Rivetna from Chicago, Sarosh Collector and Davier from Houston as also past chairmen of Houston chapter, Kaemerz Dotiwalla and Zarir Sethna along with WZCC board members Rustom Engineer from Houston and Firdosh Mehta from Weatherford, Texas, as notes a report filed by Houston’s indefatigable librarian Aban Rustomji.

When the Dalai Lama (center) visited UK, the Archbishop of Canterbury held a reception at Lambeth Palace for all the faith communities’ representatives to meet him. As Paurushasp Jila, president of the Zoroastrian Trust Funds of Europe (4th from L, front row), was introduced, the Lama commented on the exceptional contribution of the Parsi community in India

"Gavai recognized and applauded that commerce and business enterprise founded on the principles of integrity and industry is a Zoroastrian hallmark known throughout the world,” writes Rustomji. Homai Daruwalla, who gave the keynote address, was thrilled to find herself amidst a diaspora of Parsi Zoroastrians, especially those engaged in trade and commerce, and complimented the Houston chapter as the only chapter of the WZCC worldwide to introduce a Business Advisory Council. She assured the Houstonians, "tell all your friends and business associates that the Central Bank of India, with its network of 3,300 plus branches, will render all assistance to you for promoting your businesses in India within the (official) perimeters.” Earlier, in her introduction, Behroze Daruwalla had lauded the outstanding banker’s many achievements and awards, noting, "she stands tall amongst very few professional women bankers… considers herself fortunate to inherit the legacy of the bank’s visionary founder Sir Sorabji Pochkhanawalla” who established the bank in 1911.

Top: WZCC Houston chapter committee members with "Doing Business Globally” seminar speakers; 2nd row and bottom right: exhibits at the ZHCC; Bottom left: Homai Daruwalla (left) and Behroze Daruwalla

After a quick lunch followed a panel discussion with four eminent business giants who talked about the "twin engines of Asia’s growth — China and India.” Minoo Mehta, who has opened new markets and expanded his product sales of diabetic disposable supplies and monitoring systems, gave his viewpoint about the hidden cost of conducting business with language barriers, cultural differences and government regulations to win market share in a fast moving environment. Ahluwalia, who has more than 30 years of teaching, manufacturing, business management and consulting experience, focused on helping leverage the opportunity offered by India in today’s global marketplace. Pal gave an inspiring speech detailing his past successes and the research involved in opening a manufacturing unit in China. Varadhachary, whose biotechnology company based in Houston is entering the second phase of development for the treatment of patients with lung cancer, emphasized the impact of globalization on the Houston economy and community, and noted that India was providing part of the research statistics since it now has resources and capabilities to conduct clinical trials which are acceptable to the Food and Drug Administration in USA.

Dr Roshan Bhappu of Arizona was presented the WZCC Outstanding Professional 2008 award declared earlier in Poona, India, when he had been unable to attend. Bhappu recalled his interest in mining and metallurgy and said he always kept in mind the advice Dastur Dhalla gave him "to cultivate both natural and human resources but to make sure you don’t pollute the environment.”

An open forum with lively questions and answers followed from the attendees who ranged from business owners to representatives of community organizations from Houston as well as WZCC members from Chicago, New York and Florida. "A clear message evolved: Business, business and business was the only way to set goals and to experience success not only for financial reasons but to lead a fulfilling life where one can accomplish and contribute to the community at large,” writes Rustomji. Houston committee members of WZCC, Ken Bhappu, Kershaw Khumbatta and Darius Wania introduced the speakers and thanked all for attending the seminar.

The afternoon ended with participants viewing an exquisite "Treasures” exhibit that was amazing in its enormity and elegance. Artfully arranged by Behroze Daruwalla and Meher Rustomji along with their team members, it traced the history of the exodus of Zoroastrians from Iran to Gujarat, highlighting the Indian barons of yesteryear as well as present-day giants like Tatas and Godrejs. Artifacts on display included religious objects, silver and copper antiques from Iran and India, saris with Chinese embroidery patterns...

Houston’s penchant for organizing informative and vibrant seminars that speak to and influence the lives of younger generations is reason enough to celebrate.

Compiled and written by Arnavaz S. Mama