What is the purpose of this Alumni Meet?
The Alumni Meet seeks to bring together all the alumni of the Sathya Sai Institutions who currently reside in North America for the first time, in order to determine how we, as a unified body, can do service to our communities, support our Alma Mater, and serve the Sai Organization.
Why is the Alumni Meet being held in Chicago?
To plan and hold a successful meet on such a short time frame, we needed to identify a host city which met certain specific requirements: 1. Must be central to US (both coasts) and Canada, where the significant majority of Alumni live. 2. Must have an experienced local Sai center for support. 3. Must have a large airport with non-stop flights. 4. Must have a sizable local alumni population to do local planning. Chicago, Columbus, Nashville and Detroit were all considered, and Chicago was selected based as the best choice based on the above criteria.
Why is the Alumni Meet being held so quickly, with only 2 months advance notice?
One impetus for this event is the upcoming January 1, 2010 "old students" program in Prashanti Nilayam. We wish to use this Alumni Meet in part to prepare for the Jan 1 program, hence it needed to take place in October or November of this year. Since November is filled with Sai activities (Akhand Bhajan, Swami's Birthday) and Thanksgiving, etc., early October was determined to be the most optimal period. In the future, more notice will certainly be given.
Why is there an insistence on alumni traveling for this Meet and spending a lot of money on travel and other costs, given the recessionary environment?
This is certainly a difficult time for many, and every effort is being made to keep the costs of this event to a minimum. However, all of us meeting together in person is a critical ingredient to the success of this event. The whole point of this is for us to come together. We hope to provide financial support for those who require it, but ultimately, each person has to make the decision whether to spend money on this event or not, for himself.
Will webex or other remote participation functionality be provided for those who cannot attend?
The program is being structured around in-person participation, and may not translate easily over webex or other such devices. We therefore ask everyone to make every effort to come and join us in person.
For those who are genuinely unable to attend for various reasons, such options will be considered closer to the event. But for now, it is critical that all of us focus our energy on coming together.
Who are the planners of this event? Why isn't the decision-making transparent?
Everyone is welcome to join in planning this event. If you are interested in helping, please send an e-mail to info@saialumni.org and you will be invited to our weekly conference call (Tuesdays, 9:30pm EST). Also, through these FAQs and other means, we hope to make the planning process more transparent.
If I have suggestions or feedback, where should I direct it?
You are requested to send all feedback to info@saialumni.org for now. We are in the process of setting up a discussion forum on this site, at which point you can simply register and use the same.