This Saturday, December 10th, the 2011 Ontario Softball Cricket League Champions - Cricketer's Cove - will be holding their Annual presentation Dinner & Dance at the very popular Coconuts Restaurant on Steeles Ave (at Keele St.). Hosted by Kishore (one of the main sponsors of the cricket team for the past five years) and Pete, the show gets underway with dinner at 7:00 pm.
The program will include live Tassa drumming, live dances and music by DJs.
Cricketer's Cove is one of the 29 teams in the Ontario Softball Cricket League that won the 2011 Grand Final defeating Rems in the September 25 playoff at the Lancaster Public School Ground.
For info, contact Rambo 416-219-4436, Billy 416-451-5923 or Kishore 416-795-9599.

Guyanese born Ashook K. Ramsaran has been unanimously elected President of the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) International at elections held at at GOPIO's Biennial Convention 2011 at the Renaissance Woodbridge Hotel in Iselin, New Jersey, USA. The convention was held from November 18 thru' November 20, 2011.
Ramsaran succeeds Lord Daljit Rana (UK) whose two-year term expired just preceding the elections on November 20.
The GOPIO elections were held for positions in the new two-year term in the GOPIO International Executive Council. The results of the elections are: Ashook Ramsaran (Guyana-USA) - President; Sunny Kulathakal (India-Bahrain) Executive Vice President; Dr Piyush Agrawal (India-USA) - Senior Vice President; Inder Singh (India-USA) - Chairman.
The election of Ramsaran as President is significant as it's the first time since GOPIO's formation in 1989 that a PIO (born in Guyana) has been elected to that office.
The new President is three generations removed from his indentured foreparents. He emigrated in 1968 to USA where he earned BSEE and MSEE degrees in electrical engineering. He progressed to Vice President of Engineering in an international communications company before establishing an electronics manufacturing enterprise in New York. Ramsaran is married to Camille (formerly Camille Parvati Ramgadoo, also of Guyana) and they are parents of two sons, Arnold Mahendra and Gerald Rajendra, residing in USA; and two grandsons, Jaden Ashook, 6, and Gavin Lakshman, 4.
Ramsaran contributed significantly to GOPIO's structural and organizational improvements; refinement of the by-laws, policies, guidelines and mission statements of GOPIO's councils; the development of chapter and council reporting formats; criteria for GOPIO's annual awards and its Human Rights Council. He is also Co-Editor of GOPIO's semi-monthly newsletter.
Ramsaran is on St. John's University's Caribbean board of Latin American Studies and collaborates on a series of seminars and conferences on immigrant issues. These include: "Coping In America – Caribbean East Indians in USA"; "Empowering our Immigrant Neighbors"; "Challenges and Opportunities Facing Immigrants of Indian Origin from the Caribbean". He also collaborates with New York City Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs on annual events on immigrant experiences in New York. He was accorded a special recognition by St. John's University in 2007 and a scholarship for Diaspora studies was established in his name.
Ramsaran is featured prominently in several local, national, regional and international publications. He was recently in Toronto, Canada as one of the most influential persons of Indian origin in North America, and was accorded the International Leadership for Promoting Global Harmony Award on November 21, 2011 in London, UK.
Ramsaran collaborates extensively with India's Ministry of Overseas Indians Affairs on global Indian Diaspora matters and the annual Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) events. He participated at each PBD from 2005 onwards. He was the Convenor of GOPIO's highly successful 20th Anniversary Convention 2009 in New York. He was honored in 2009 by New York City Special Proclamation for outstanding services and for his contributions as an immigrant. He was recipient of the highly acclaimed 2010 "Asian Heritage Award" in New York.
Ramsaran was instrumental in GOPIO's successful large scale global petition to the Government of India resulting in drastic reduction of excessive fees and procedures for surrender of Indian passports. He also collaborated on petition to the US Government for reduction of penalties for overseas accounts. Ramsaran collaborated with the Government of India to construct the Kolkata Memorial (unveiled on January 11, 2011 in Kolkata) in recognition and remembrance of Indian laborers sent to British colonies from 1834 thru' 1920.
For his many notable contributions and exemplary service to the global Indian diaspora, Ramsaran was accorded the prestigious Government of India's Pravasi Samman Award (PBSA) by the President of India on January 9, 2011 in New Delhi.
In accepting the office of president of GOPIO, Ramsaran remarked: "I am truly honored to be elected as president of GOPIO and I am grateful to GOPIO's global membership for your trust and confidence in me and my abilities. I look forward to working closely and collaboratively with everyone to expand GOPIO's outreach and address more critical issues of interest and concern of the global Indian community".

By Arti Panday
November 18, 2011 marked a momentous occasion for 190 students, of all ages and nationalities, who attended the Academy of Learning graduation held at the Montecassino Hotel in North York.
The evening was filled with accolades for the graduates as well as those who helped them throughout their learning experience.
Migrating to Canada from Guyana in February of 2010, Shelly Ann Hookumchand managed to complete her diploma, with honours, in nine months. She was one of three valedictorians chosen to say a few words on behalf of the graduates.
"It was a tough ride for some of us who had to make the decision to go back to school in order to gain success in this blessed country of Canada," said Hookumchand, who graduated from the Downsview campus as a Community Service Worker, "Honestly, I wasn't quite ready to go back to school but A.O.L. prepared me to finish with great success."
Hookumchand is now teaching grades five and six classes and counselling students, aged eight to 16, at Cathedral Christian.
Mark Alvero, a Network Administrator who graduated from the Warden and Sheppard Campus, and Susan Rashidi who completed her diploma as a Personal Support Worker at the Albion and Islington Campus, were also recipients of the valedictorian honour.
As a "Career and Business College" founded in 1986, the Academy of Learning provides students with the opportunity to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing market. The Academy of Learning has established over 80 campuses across Canada. Each year, a collective convocation is held for the 10 campuses across the GTA and York Region.
With a focus on health care and technology, the Mississauga campus students boast an outstanding 91 per cent graduation rate and an employability rate of nearly 93 per cent.
"Our campus is entering our silver jubilee of 25 years," said Mississauga campus Director, Sunita Vyas. "With small classes, flexible schedules, and classes starting every Monday, students have an option as to when they start."
The guest speaker, Executive Director of the Ontario Association of Career Colleges, Paul Kitchin had some important advice to share with the graduates.
"In order to succeed, you have to have to be determined, work hard, look to various support mechanisms, and attach yourself to people committed to success," Kitchin said.
At the age of 23, he learned that he was affected by two eye diseases that took away 95 per cent of his vision within 12 months. His story about challenges and how to overcome them in order to attain success is what he used to reach out to the graduates.
Using "Path" as an acronym for "perform, attitude, training, and health," Kitchin challenged the graduates to take that "path" and use it every day.
Following the scroll presentations, the men and women of the evening took part in a procession out of the hall, which marked the end of the ceremony and the commencement of a new journey for the graduates.