IP Isaac Palathinkal's speech to delegates of the 2014 International Convention in Chennai, India during IP Night Banquet.

1. IP NIGHT
Ym.Isaac Palathinkal
International President 2014-15

2. Introduction and gratitude
• A warm good evening to all of you.
• Now, we have covered almost 65% of our scheduled
time at the convention.
• However this session happens to be the most
important one in my Y’s dom, when I am addressing
the Y’s fraternity from the whole world, as their
International President.
• I thank PIP Jacob Cherian for presenting a very
colourful picture of me.
• I hope and pray that I will live up to the expectations
of all of you.

3. • I do hope that you are enjoying the Indian hospitality,
traditional Indian culture, the Indian food and the Indian
weather at this time of the year, all of which could be
quite different from what you enjoy at home.
• We are extremely thankful to all of you for your precious
presence here, taking tedious journey from far and near
and adjusting to the time and climate.
• I thank you all, the cream of the Y’s Men community , for
elevating me to this position.
• I thank my colleagues in my club, District, Region and
Area for grooming me to occupy this position. I thank my
ICMs, ISDs, AP Troika, RD Troika, DGs, my home club
President and all other officers and friends who are
attending this convention and participating in this IP
Night Banquet.

4. The person that I am:
Before going into my traditional speech on my
dreams and aspirations “My year ahead”, let me
first be a bit personal with you, then move on to
introduction of my personal guests and then to my
dreams.

5. • I am a posthumous child. My father died on 1st
August 1947 and I was born on 8th August, one week
after my father died.
• Thereafter, in my childhood, my home meant my
mother and my elder sister apart from my grand
father who died when I was 9 years.
• When I was 10 years of age, my mother sent me to
the local YMCA Secretary with a letter from her and
Five Rupees as the Boy’s Branch membership fee,
with the intention that I should become a disciplined
youth joining the YMCA, not falling into undesirable
traps.

6. • What she did to me will ever be remembered with
gratitude in my life. My association with the YMCA
helped me a lot in developing myself. I started playing
Basket Ball there and ultimately I became a District
team member and Captain of College Basket Ball
team because of the basic training I received in the
YMCA.
• My mother lived with me or rather I lived with her till
she left us for her heavenly abode at the age of 94.
She was extremely happy seeing me developing into
the leadership positions in Y’s Men, step by step.
When she died, I was Regional Director. All the
blessings my family received and now we receive are
because of her prayerful life dedicated to me and my
sister.

7. • In my child hood, me and my sister had a good and loving
company of our three first cousin sisters, who lived with
us on all school vacations, along with their parents who
took great care for us. More than first cousins, the three
were sisters to us. We grew up together, we loved each
other and cared for each other. I am extremely happy that
all of them, except one, are now here with their spouses
in this august audience.
1955 2005

8. • I did not tell you about my wife Susan. She is behind
every success of mine in my entire life after marriage.
She always encouraged me in my Y’s life, with no
complaint, what so ever, that I was reaching home
very late or leaving her at home alone, when I was
travelling for my Y’s Men work.
• Then comes my son and daughter, who grew up in
Y’sdom and now lead pleasant and busy life.
Unfortunately, they could not come here and meet
you all. We love our grand children, all grand
daughters, more than we cared for our children.

9. In a nut shell, we live a happy and contented life with a
prayer to the Almighty to lead us for the rest of our life
also.

10. My personal guests here in the audience:
Let me now introduce my personal guests to you.
• My wife Susan
• My sister Shanti and her husband
Dr.Poonnose

11. • My cousin, the eldest of the three, I mentioned
earlier as equivalent to own sisters, Susheela and her
husband Thomas
• My other cousin, the youngest of the three,
Dr.Laitha and her husband Thomas
• The other cousin among the three is Shanta, who is
Mumbai and unfortunately could not come here.
• My niece Preetha and her husband Anand
• My nephew John
• Susan’s first cousin Lalitha and her husband Kunju,
who live in Chennai.

12. My dreams and aspirations
“My year ahead”

13. My dreams and aspirations
“My year ahead”
My theme as IP for 2014-15: “Talk Less, Do More”
My slogan: “Do it Now”.
I believe, this theme and slogan together will
encourage all Y’s Men, Menettes and Youth/Lings
together, through out the world for doing more and
more service to the community rather than going on
talking about it and that such services will be provided
without any process delay as per slogan ’Do It Now’.

14. DO IT NOW – Why?
“I shall pass through this world but once
Any good therefore I can do or
Any kindness that I can show to any human being
LET ME DO IT NOW
Let me not defer or neglect it
For I shall not pass this way again”

15. My dreams and aspirations
“My year ahead”
I dream on 6 most important objectives that we should
deliver for our Movement.
• Growth in Membership
• Commitment towards our International programmes
and projects
• Commitment towards Service to the community
around us
• Relationship with the YMCA
• Our association with UN Projects
• Celebration of Y’s Week

16. Growth in Membership
• Our Movement is going through a difficult period.
• We find it very difficult to extend our Movement.
• Growth is static for the past many years.
• We have our vision 2022, for our birth centenary
year 2022. By then, we aim to reach the membership
of minimum 50,000, spread in at least 100 countries

17. In order to realise our Vision 2022, let us do an introspection
• What are we doing for Extension and Membership
Conservation?
• Are we serious enough in our attempts?
• Are we finding lame excuses for the static membership?
• Please do an introspection, wake up and do the needful.
• The Movement should live and continue, even after we leave
this world.
Growth in Membership
My dream is that we should reach a membership of at
least 33000 by the end of 2014-15
and then 10% increase every year
My
Dream

18. Commitment towards our International
programmes and projects
• We do have many noble projects being done
continuously for the community.
• Out of these, our Time of Fast Global Project and Roll
Back Malaria are the most outstanding.
• Endowement Fund is needed for our own organisational
growth, especially because we face shortage of funds
for our growth.
• The other International Projects are also equally
important.
I dream that our Y’s community is going to
continuously support these projects and increase their
contribution at least by 10% , every year

19. Commitment towards Service to the
community around us
• We live in a community where there are many who
need help and solace.
• Even in affluent countries there are those needy, may
not be monetarily, but morally and mentally.
• Are we serving them to best extent possible by us?

20. • I know of a Region which excelled in this activity. They
conduct Fund raising programmes or get donations from
inside and outside.
• During the last three years they supplied 17 Home care
vehicles cum Ambulances to Cancer and Palliative care
units, arranged more than 15,000 free dialysis to poor
renal patients and Donated 5 Dialysis machines. Doing it
in three years was not a mean thing.
• I understand, this year, they are going to support 100
open heart surgeries free of charge, donate 14 houses to
the poor in a place named ‘Y’s Men’s Village’ and more.
• There is a lot to learn from them.
• I know of some Regions and Areas excelling in this type of
service.

21. I dream that all Regions will come with similar
programmes to help communities in their own place
or support such activities in places far away from
them, where it is genuinely required.
In total, they donated 17 Home care
vehicles cum Ambulances to Cancer
and Palliative care units
‘TALK LESS, DO MORE & DO IT NOW’

22. Relationship with the YMCA
• Our relationship with our foster parent YMCA is
mutually most important to both of us.
• We see a much more lively co-operation between us
than in the past. At various levels, we have already
signed Principles of Partnership and Memorandum of
Understanding between us, at APAY level.
• Let us not leave it there. Let the YMCA and YMI come
out of the shell and start the real co-operation.
I dream that at least 30 new Y’s Men’s clubs will be
formed this year with the support of YMCA and that we
will return the help by supporting Change Agents
programme of YMCA and by sponsoring new YMCAs.

23. Our association with UN Projects
• RBM in association with UN and International Red
Cross has brought to the forefront in our global
service to the needy.
I dream that our support for RBM project will grow
multifold in the coming years and also that
we will collaborate with other world organisations
in making our services available for development of
the mankind and to make the world a better place
to live through our environment enriching
programmes.

24. Y’s Week
• As we are aware, our founder Paul William Alexander
was born of 8th December 1888. I thought it prudent
that we celebrate the week Dec 7th to 13th 2014 as
‘Y’S WEEK’ by all Y’s Men through out the world.
• Areas have already accepted this concept and opted
either the week Dec 7th to 13th or other weeks more
convenient to them.

25. • Maximum number of Public Relation (PR) activities by
Clubs at local or District level. Our motto ‘To
acknowledge the duty that accompanies every right’ and
the community service activities, we take up based on
our motto, to be made known to the public through
suitable means.
• Choose this week as a week for inauguration of fresh
major community service programmes.
• Treat the week as the ‘membership extension week’ of
the year and induct members in groups to our
clubs/Movement.
• Collect maximum amount of donations for our
International projects RBM and TOF GP during this week
What I dream for the Y’s Week are:

26. Well, friends
Every good thing has to end up
somewhere ….
Here ends my dreams ……….
My dreams on ….
• Growth in Membership …..
• Commitment towards our International programmes and
projects …..
• Commitment towards Service to the community around
us …..
• Relationship with the YMCA …..
• Our association with UN Projects ….. and
• Celebration of Y’s Week …..

27. Individual efforts can make wonders.
But, collective efforts can create history.
Let us create history.
TALK LESS, DO MORE
DO IT NOW

28. Thank you,
Tak, takk, Tack, спасибо, Aitäh,
Kiitos, Danke, ačiū, ขอบคุณ, ありがとう,
감사합니다