Toronto Malayalee .ca

We are an active group of Malayalees in Toronto, initially started by friends who know their friends. That’s right it started as a chain of friends, each of them knows at least some of the other members personally. We once in a while go for picnics on public holidays such as Canada Day or a family reunion during long weekends. One of us takes instant initiative to have a reunion and others helps out.

The group is now growing significantly within a short duration of time; thanks to the popularity of the website on search engines which is a factor to certain extend. Our primary focus is to help new immigrants settle in Toronto and make them feel at home. However, it doesn’t end there. Once in a while we organize workshops for the community to develop new skills and guide them to be successful. Soccer Koottam, which is a subset of Toronto Koottam, is an active forum during the non-winter days. Every Sunday morning we are on the ground with a soccer ball – great time to relax and spend good time with other members in the community.

So are we an association of Malayalees? Not really; we are just a koottam (group) of friends which keeps on growing. We intend to keep it that way.

Do we conduct cultural programmes? Yes we do. Some of our friends are really talented and once in a while they share that talent with others during some of the reunions. These reunions are venues for our next generation to learn about the culture and values that we bring from Kerala. We do not host any for-profit programmes. However we do cooperate with other associations in Toronto to spread the news of their programmes and increase their participation.

Really, nothing much. Just giving back to the community. We are either successful Toronto Malayalees or those in the path of being successful. We have come a long way to reach this stage. We had received some help or learned the hard way to get here. Many a time we have come across friends who struggling to get into the right track. Give a helping hand. Be generous.