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Next year PGF s
Festival Planning Kick-Off Meeting: April 19, 2024 6:30pm at Bharatiya Temple
News Flash:
Shri Rajesh Tambe and Raja Gali will join 2024 Festival leaders team with Shri Adwait Palsule and Jayessh Parmar ! Please welcome them !!
Dear Ganesh Devotees, Donors, Community Leaders and Volunteers,
Namaste & Ganapati Bappa Moraya !
This is an humble reminder and invitation for you and your family to join the Kick-off Planning meeting of Philadelphia Ganesh Festival at Bharatiya Temple on Friday April 19th at 6:30pm. As per our tradition, a light dinner will be served for all. Please join in large numbers to volunteer for the 20th Year Grand Festival this year from Sept 06-16, 2024.
We are very pleased to announce that enthusiasm amongst the volunteers is very high. We chose Shri Raja Gali and Rajesh Tambe, 2 outstanding volunteers of PGF, as Core Team Leaders for the years 2024, 2025 and 2026. With this, our 4 member core team is complete. Let's all work under their leadership and directions to make this year's festival a grand success.
Looking forward to welcoming you on April 19th. More information about the festival and preparation, participation opportunities will be posted regularly on our website: Philadelphia Ganesh Festival
Dhanyawaad.
Sincerely serving HIM,
Mukund Kute - PGF Chair and Founder
Nand Todi - Bharatiya Temple Founder President
Jayessh Parmar, Adwait Palsule, Rajesh Tambe and Raja Gali - Festival Core Team 2024
Dear Volunteers, Donors, Devotees, Leaders and Friends,
Namaste ! Ganapati Bappa Moraya !
With Ganesha's grace and blessings from all of you, OUR festival will celebrate a great milestone of 20th Year, this year! This is a very proud moment for all of us, especially those stalwarts who nurtured this festival since the very first year 2005.
In these 20 years, hundreds of thousands of community brothers and sisters enjoyed coming and working together closely. This festival has inspired thousands of children who absorbed our religious-cultural values like a sponge and united everyone speaking diverse languages like Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Bengali, Gujarathi, Oria, Malayalam, Punjabi etc. We want to continue to celebrate this unity for another 20 years to come! May Ganesha bless us all!
We cordially invite you to join us for in-Person Kick-Off Meeting, on Friday, April 19, 2024 from 6:30pm at Bharatiya Temple.
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Light Dinner will be served. Please forward this invite to your friends and those who would like to enjoy the Volunteer Sewa for Lord Ganesha. Please RSVP to PGFCoreTeam@gmail.com by April 17.
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Many youth volunteers in this list may have graduated out of high school, but we will encourage their parents to seek happiness in community volunteer work at PGF which unites Hindus of all shades.
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Visit the Festival Website for regular updates.
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We will post an Online Volunteer Sign up Link from April 10th on the above website. However, please try to come in person on 19th for a heart to heart meet & greet of volunteers on 19th April.
Looking forward to your overwhelming participation in the Kick-off Meeting on April 19th evening.
Philadelphia Ganesh Festival 2024 - 20th Year
September 06, 2024 (Start) to September 16, 2024 (Visarjan)
IndiaFest (2-days): September 14 and 15, 2024
This year, Shri Vikrant Kamble and Chandramouli Raghuraman are going to bow out of the festival's 4 member core team of leaders. Festival applauds their leadership and dedication in serving Ganesha for the past 3 years. In the true spirit of sewa, they will now mentor new volunteers taking various festival committee leadership roles henceforth.
We need to select 2 new leaders to join the core team along with current members, Shri Jayesh Parmar and Adwait Palsule. We hope senior volunteers will listen to the call of service from Ganesha and step forward to join the festival core team. We will announce the names as soon as we hear from volunteers. Dhanyawaad.
Sincerely In service to Lord Ganesha,
- Mukund Kute, Nand Todi and 2024 Festival Core Team of Volunteers
Dear Ganesh Devotees.
Namaskar !
There are multiple opportunities to offer your sewa at HIS feet, and a few such opportunities are mentioned below.
PGF is pleased to start a new dance competition (Ganarang ) that provides competitive opportunities to showcase your best talent, win trophies based on judging combined with neutral judge and audience poll. There are 2 dance forms: 1. Indian Classical Dance form 2. Folk & popular dance form
3 Age Categories: Bala Gana (Age 5 to 11), Kishor Gana (Age 12-18), Tarun Gana (Age 19 and above)
Ganarang Guidance Info: https://www.philadelphiaganeshfestival.org/ganarangguidelines
Signup: Ganarang Singup form
Ganarang Volunteer Open Positions: Apply by email to pgfganrang@gmail.com
Volunteer Driver HELP WANTED for Parking Shuttle:
We need Volunteers to drive 12-passenger and 15-passenger vans. The 2- hour slots for driver volunteer Sewa, are generally between 6 pm to 10 pm on weekdays and from 11 am -11 pm on weekends. We will provide some training, and all volunteer drivers will be covered under Temple Insurance. please fill out the form using the link - Volunteer Shuttle Driver Signup
PGF 2023 Volunteer Signup
Please sign up to volunteer in committees of your interest using the link - General Volunteer Signup
Participate in Ganesh Procession
Children from Balvihars, Indian Classical Dance Schools, Youth groups from Indian Cultural Associations from neighboring schools, College students and young adults are invited to participate and perform dances on Ganesh Aagaman (Arrival) and Visarjan (Immersion) Procession events, slated to run on Sept and Sept 18 and 28th respectively. Please sign-up for Procession dances using the online form - Procession Signup form
Deadline is August 31, 2023. Note - These spots fill very quickly.
Sponsor and participation in key Religious events:
As part of the Religious Events, we would request all devotees to participate in the auspicious poojas that are conducted once in a year during the 10 days of the Ganesh Festival. Please sign up your interest for sponsorship using the online form - Religious Puja Sponsorship Link
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Gauri Pooja - 20 Sep 2023, 21 Sep 2023, 22 Sep 2023 (Starting 5:00 pm)
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Ganesha Maha Abhishekam - 23 Sep 2023 at 9:00 am
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Ganesha Pooja by Children - 23 Sep 2023 at 3:00 pm (FREE)
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Ganesha Vivah/Kalyanam - 24 Sep 2023 at 9:30 am
Perform Sangeet Sewa, Nritya Sewa in Deity Hall:
Interested students can send email to pgf.sangeetsewa@gmail.com by Aug 31, 2023
Join the PGF Youth Committee (YCOMM) & Join us for the YCOMM Fun Day:
Our Annual PGF YCOMM Fun Day will be on Saturday 26th August from 4pm onwards at the Spring Valley Park [https://goo.gl/maps/ypTNhnrArYLDMg1dA].
Please enroll in the YCOMM team and join an exuberant group of kids of all ages. YCOMM Volunteer sign-up link YCOMM Volunteer Signup
Host and Hospitality (H&H) Committee:
We are looking for families who can host artists, help in transportation to and from the airport as per their schedule, and help on actual performance day. Being a Hos for the artists, is a unique experience ! Please send your interest to support the H & H committee at PGFHostAndHospitality@gmail.com
Please look forward to more information thru future Bharatiya Temple (BTI) emails and updates on Bharatiya Temple website (b-temple.org) or Festival Website, www.PhiladelphiaGaneshFestival.org about Festival Programs, Parking Information, Volunteer Task Sign-up, Health Precautions etc. Looking forward to welcoming you and serving you!
Ganapati Bappa Moraya ! Mangal Murti Moraya !!
Sincerely In service to Lord Ganesha,
Philadelphia Ganesh Festival 2023 Core Team
Adwait Palsule, Chandramouli Raghuram, Jayessh Parmar and Vikrant B. Kamble
Why is Philadelphia Starting Ganesh Utsav on 18th and NOT 19th?
Answer: PGF follows the US based Panchangam for Philadelphia City. The decision is based on sastras like Nirnay Sindhu or Dharma Sindhu and DrikGanita, the Sun & Moon rise/setting times in Philadelphia. As per Philly Panchangam, the 4th Chaturthi Tithi is witnessing the required Madhyanha Kaalam Muhurtam on Sept 18th. We are therefore starting the celebration on Sept 18th.
