Office of the President
Bali Cultural Association - USA 

March 31 2015

Dear Members and Supporters,

On behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of Bali Cultural Association - USA (BCA-USA), I extend warm greetings and invite you to the BCA-USA 28th Annual Convention scheduled for the Memorial Weekend from Thursday May 21st - Monday May 25th 2015. Our hosts have been relentless in their collective efforts to ensure that this year's event is a blast and that it raises the bar one notch higher. I can feel the buzz in the air!

Beyond Our Challenges: Navigating the Future

The theme of this year's convention is, "Beyond Our Challenges: Navigating the Future." Last year, we had elections. Elections provide an opportunity to select new leaders to stir the affairs of our association. Leaders come and go but the association remains. The challenge for each elected officer of this association is to leave the organization stronger and better. This time is no different and we must not lose our focus but remain steadfast in our individual and collective endeavors, so that BCA-USA remains the pace setter of Cameroonian cultural associations in the Diaspora.

In over a quarter of a century we have grown from a small family reunion to a large organization with over 275 registered members. With our growth, has come new challenges which we need to address in order to build a robust future for our association. Part of navigating the future is ensuring that our governing documents are aligned to reflect this growth and changes within the association, and the expectations of the society in which we operate. We equally need to work hard to develop innovative ways to attract and retain our membership and to raise funds for our many projects back home. In addressing these challenges and indeed, in navigating the future, we must strive to succeed together. As one of our African proverb goes, "one hand, cannot tie a bundle". I remain confident that our exemplary solidarity and commitment to this association and its mission will enable us move beyond our current challenges to ensuring a future that is resilient for BCA-USA.

I am also pleased to announce that Reverend Father Sama Francis Muma, will be our keynote speaker at this year's convention. Fr. Sama has been a BCA-USA member since 2010 and is an ordained priest for the Archdiocese of Detroit, Michigan for eight years. He will be elaborating more on the theme of our convention by looking at how we can best make use of our varied backgrounds, diverse experiences, opinions and beliefs, to facilitate the building of a stronger and better association.

Continuing our tradition begun in Minnesota 2012, the convention will span 5 days with a traditional folktales and riddles "meet and greet" on Thursday night organized by the Cultural Committee, following with get-healthy sporting activities coordinated by our Health Committee on Friday morning. Later on Friday, the Fundraising Committee will host our Annual Fundraising Gala: The Night of Glamour which this year has been themed "Elegance with the Stars". The highlight of this year's convention will be Saturday's General Assembly Meeting coordinated by the General Secretariat during which we will amend our Constitution and Bylaws, to reflect our changing infrastructure. This is a convention not to be missed as significant changes that will affect us will be decided at the general assembly. I am certain that you will not want to miss being part of this history-making assembly as after this convention BCA-USA will be different and looking beyond the 21st Century. Conventioneers and our supporters will be treated to night of non-stop entertainment by top DJs in town during the annual party hosted by our Houston Chapter later on Saturday. The BCA-USA Prayer Line initiated by Rev. Pam Fomunung and coordinated by our first ladies and many others during the year will coordinate a non-denominational prayer service on Sunday morning. And later that evening the Cultural Committee will host a cultural jamboree showcasing our traditional attires, dances and songs. The evening will b graced by all our traditional dignitaries here in the Diaspora. We conclude on Monday with a mouthwatering BBQ hosted by the Houston Chapter at a local park.

The 2015 Convention Planning Committee (CPC) has been working with various committees and the host Chapter to put together a great program that has been sent out already. I could not have asked for a better team of dedicated, selfless and hard working men and women from our beloved association! Thank you! You are truly the reason we are second to none, when it comes to convention hosting. I will forever, be indebted to you all, for the sacrifice you are making to ensure that our 2015 convention is a successful one.

I invite you, your family and friends, to join us as we use this weekend to celebrate our successes and to deliberate on concrete ways to forge ahead beyond our challenges for our collective future!

Thank you and I look forward to seeing you all at the Westin Houston Memorial City come May 21st!

God Bless BCA-USA.

Alex Koila Ngati
National President, BCA-USA