Summary of Feb. 10 Open Meeting at OIA Hall


On Feb. 10, 2003, the Board of Directors of the Organization of Istanbul Armenians held an open forum meeting to discuss any and all matters of importance to the OIA members before they were officially considered at the General Assembly Meeting on Feb. 21. The following is a summary of the meeting that I have jotted from memory. It is not intended as an official transcript of the meeting, or to express any opinion on the matters discussed. Please attend the General Meeting on Feb. 21 at OIA Hall to discuss these and other topics.

- Murat Kazanci


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- WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE BUILDING?

The first item of discussion was the state of the OIA Hall's renovation. According to the Board and Building Committee, the cost of renovating the entire building would cost about $500,000. Of this amount, a little over $100,000 has been collected, and this figure is expected to increase once all accounting for the fiscal year is complete. The Building Committee felt confident the money could be raised in a reasonable time if the Organization is fully behind the project.

Some members asked the board to consider the idea of making partial renovations to the building with what money we already have. They argued that bringing the building to a decent condition as soon as possible was vital to retaining interest and membership in the Organization. They feared that by the time we raised $500,000 and renovated the building, there may not be anyone left to fill it.

Others, including those representing the youth and future of the Organization, expressed their desire to see building renovations done as quickly as possible in order to hold events there, especially for the youth, and attract new members. The building committee estimated that full renovations to the building would take less than a year once the permit process was started.

A question was raised as to whether the OIA considered the current building its permanent home, and whether it was worth spending a half million dollars on it if it would be sold in the coming years. To this, the majority response was that after 25 years of the Organization's existence, the Board had purchased this building with the full intention of making it the OIA's permanent home.

- WHAT'S IN OUR FUTURE?

Discussions about the necessity for renovations to the building led to a general discussion about the future of the OIA itself. Declining interest by current members and disassociation by the new generation were cited as the biggest threat to the Organization's future. Those in attendance admitted their children and grandchildren felt little connection to Istanbul or a "Bolsohay" identity. A widely accepted response to this concern was that in the future, in order to survive, the OIA would perhaps become a more general Armenian Organization, perhaps for Armenians in the San Fernando Valley or some other purpose. Nonetheless, it's history and origins would be preserved, and, if built, a splendid OIA Hall could serve the Armenian community, in one way or another, for years to come.

- DON'T FORGET THE KIDS.

Members of the Sports Committee expressed that the most important factor for the future of the OIA was to involve children from a young age, to get them used to being together and being a part of the Organization. They asked for a greater degree of involvement from the Board in organizing events for children as well as support and participation by the general membership to make sure the events were a success. They stressed that it was necessary to make the building child-friendly, with televisions, games, etc. so that it would be a place the children desired to visit after their sports leagues, instead of a fast-food restaurant.

As mentioned earlier, the Youth Group (YGIA) expressed a similar desire to make the building presentable enough to hold events in. They also urged those in attendance to spread the word about their activities, including a basketball tournament which will begin in late February.

- WHERE HAVE ALL THE DOLLARS GONE?

Members of the Scholarship committee questioned the Board as to the status of available scholarship funds, and asked for a more detailed accounting of these funds. The scholarship committee felt the amount they were allowed to award each year seemed arbitrary, rather than following a set formula. For the first time in recent memory, the members of the Scholarship Committee resorted to raising funds themselves, amounting to half of the money awarded, because the Board gave them half the amount they had given a year before.

The Board acknowledged that a full accounting of the scholarship funds, from both the trusts and general scholarship fund would be available at the General Assembly meeting. They further explained that approximately $150,000 was borrowed from scholarship trust funds in order to finance the purchase of the building, under an agreement that the Board would pay interest to these funds for the period the money was borrowed. In order to uncomplicate the accounting of scholarship funds, the Board said that it was their intention to also put the general scholarship fund under the management of the Board of Trustees, in which case the Scholarship Committee would be able to deal with them directly on all issues of funding.

- CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?

Throughout the discussions of the above topics, representatives of various committees expressed the importance of the work they did for the Organization and asked the Board to better support them in their respective efforts. For some time the discussion turned into a war of words as to which committee's efforts were most important to the purpose and the future of the Organization. However, it was widely agreed that each committee did what it could for the sake of the Organization as a whole, and that one committee could not survive without the others. The consensus was to view the various committees' efforts less as competition and more as teamwork.

- WHO'S UP NEXT?

Before the meeting adjourned, nominations were taken to fill posts opening up on the Board of Directors as well as several of the Executive Committees. Elections will be held during the General Assembly meeting on Feb. 21.

- MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD.

All members who would like to voice their concerns about the above topics or anything relating to the OIA should attend the General Assembly meeting and elections on Feb. 21. It is vital for the Board of Directors and the various committees to know what the members expect from the Organization, so that they may better serve their needs. What would you like from the OIA? What do you expect? What changes would make the OIA more interesting for you? Voice your opinion Feb. 21 at OIA Hall.