IGNITE- 2013 !

Warning: This post is a description of preparations and after-effects of IGNITE-2013. IGNITE is a Career and Personality Development Workshop organised at JNV, Balehonnur! If you don't belong to the JNV community, you might not understand a single word in this write-up.

This blogpost goes out for all the members of JNV, Balehonnur.

Prologue:

@Electronic city on a gloomy Sunday evening

4 of  us,batch-mates at JNV, met at Electronic city and started a conversation. Of all the topics we discussed, JNV was the prime point of this talk.

One of us said, “This time, we’ll go to JNV and attend alumni meet. It’ll be a get-together for us and we can also visit JNV, meet teachers and staff. What say?”

Rest of us agreed.

20th October, 2013 @ Cubbon Park

The first call for IGNITE-2013 was through Facebook. Few of the alumni members met up in front of the Central Library, Cubbon Park. Diganth Anna spearheaded the brain-storming session. Before the discussion started I (and most of my batch-mates) was not aware of IGNITE’s significance and holiness. Here started an amazing saga. We had a fine extempore midst the drizzle. Last year's feedback from Kids was considered in the planning. We, somehow, laid the rough plan for IGNITE. (Thanks for the Lunch, Nadig Anna.)

In the coming days, through Google Group, we all discussed upon the plans and executing them in the best way possible. Conference calls, every now and then, helped us to collaborate. WhatsApp, Facebook and Gmail were all saviors for us.  It reminds me of the unbeatable chemistry and understanding that we JNVians have. It was a great learning period for me, personally. To speak up, To listen, To differ, To support and To grow – We were a great Team. From deciding upon the Title to Tag-Line, Fonts to Timings we had it all sorted out. The Blue-Print was ready (Almost)

Teaser/Short Movie

Then came the task of creating a Teaser for IGNITE. We collected the photos and videos from past 8 IGNITEs. Using the best possible tools and limited time, we started preparing the short movies to show the legacy of IGNITE. ( Thanks to Sampath Anna for the collection of photos/videos.)

Sessions/Speakers

It was really tough to finalize the topics and select the speakers for the same. Each and every thing was critically discussed. The content and it's presentation was taken care of. (Thanks a lot, Raviprakash Anna for coordinating and guiding us.)

Games/Activities

Our Batch was given the responsibility of arranging Games/Activities. We had to plan and execute activities coherent to the content of each session. Activities were supposed to keep up the tempo of students and lighten-up the sessions.

17th November, 2013
We all met up at Lal Bagh to decide upon the games. I was overwhelmed to see the enthusiasm. Many ideas were suggested and few were finalized.

It was heartening to hear, “GP, I’ll take that responsibility. We’ll do it in a proper way and let it be very useful to the kids.”

Each game had an owner and the Volunteers strength increased. The next few days went on discussing the topics for debate,buying the logistics and planning the execution.

25th November, 2013
The Promo videos were shared with the Alumni through Facebook. We received good feedback for the same.

As we were nearing to the D-Day, the excitement started increasing. We had a long list of tasks - Finalizing the sessions, selecting the speakers, getting props for games, editing the PPTs, fine-tuning the games, coordinating with JNV Staff and many more. We were racing against time. Thanks to Srikanth Anna for taking the lead.

26th November, 2013 @JP Nagar

Few days before IGNITE, I had been to our Senior’s place. (Thanks to Karthik Anna, Rudresh Anna, Shankarnag Anna, Nagraj Anna, Ramanujam Anna, Arjun Anna, Ravindra Anna). We sat the whole night to prepare slides for presentation, time table for the day etc..

I still remember what our Seniors said, “Just imagine, you are going to talk to your brother/sister about what next? What would you say? If you care for them, prepare well and convey the message properly. Plan it. Every second is important. Anyway you have spent a lot of time on this, execute it in a good way.”

IGNITE- 2013  (30th November, 2013)

IGNITE started off with an inaugural function and screening of the short-movie that we had prepared. All the sessions went off really well. We felt satisfied with the way things turned out. The reception and student’s feedback was incredible.We had sessions on Leadership, Team-building, Confidence, Communication and Presentation. A brief information on scholarship and loans was provided to students. The supplementary games/activities were awesome. Later in the day, we opened the session for questions and feedback.

We got a fine chance to inspire our juniors over there. We were stunned by the talent pool at JNV. Their knowledge levels, skills, aspirations, hunger for achieving something big made us more enthusiastic.

After-Effect:

Students expressed their views on IGNITE. We got a tremendous feedback from Kids. I could see a lot of change in them. Teachers saw a tremendous improvement in students after IGNITE and conveyed the message to us.To get inspired is good but to inspire others is something incredible. To inspire kids, guide them with all the little knowledge we have, visiting the alma mater, being selfless and to be a part of legacy makes me feel proud about myself.

A mere thought of a get-together with batch mates went on to become a memorable experience. 

I know, we are all busy with the day-to-day schedule. There are deadlines at office, you need to visit your hometown, meet your friends and several other commitments to accomplish, but why not spend some time for this noble cause. JNV has given a lot to us, its time for us to give something back to this holy institution. Bringing in a change, guiding our younger generation in a proper-path, telling the kids "We are with you!!" matters a lot. IGNITE was a great learning curve for me. I got to re-unite with my batch-mates, meet our seniors, visit JNV, talk to staff and students. Next day, we were part of Alumni meet. Played Volleyball and Football in the leisure time. We went on a small picnic to places near-by Sringeri. All in all, it was one of the best weekends. Events like this make you feel 'Life is worth Living'.

P.S: A big thanks to all those who contributed and attended IGNITE. 
A special thanks to Abhay, Archana, Ashwini, Divakar, Hemesh, Namitha, Pramod, Punith, Ramaswamy, Praveen, Sahana, Sandhya, Supriya, Vidya for always being there for me. We had a fine time.
(Sorry if I have missed any names)

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