The history of Kerala immigrants in Wellington dates back several decades. It is our belief that a dynamic and creative evolution is vital to the growth and welfare of every growing society. This endeavour to bring about the integration of our community within the broader social context and should be able to transcend the diverse religious, social, financial, and educational backgrounds of our members if any. The Wellington Malayalee Association is the outcome of such an egalitarian and enlightened thinking. Checkout our latest events below.
Our Projects
WMA Dhwani 2022
Venue : 2A Udy Street, Petone, Lower Hutt 5012
The yearly Family Fest is one of the most popular events among our people which is mainly focused to showcase the talents of our children and adults. There are online and on-stage competitions conducted with huge participation. Winners receive prices and given an opportunity to perform during the most awaited festival every year – Onam.
Manga Wellington Ponnonam 2022
Venue : Indian Association Hall, Kilbirnie
Onam is the national festival of Kerala symbolizing equality, prosperity and the triumph of good. Since 2009, WMA celebrates Onam in Wellington making it the 2nd largest ethnic event in Lower Island. The Onam sadya (feast) is another indispensable part of Thiruvonam mega event. The Onasadya reflects the spirit of the season and is traditionally made with seasonal vegetables. The feast is served on banana leaves and consists of many courses, include over a dozen dishes including payasam(Kheer or firni) which is a sweet pudding. Also we will have cultural dances and other cultural programs and the event concludes with tug of war game.
One family ticket is for a couple and two children between 5 and 18 years old. Entry is free for under 5 years old.
Malayalam is the mother tongue of Kerala. Learning the mother tongue in a foreign country has its own limitations and the freedom to use it varies. Striving to use Malayalam language as a medium of communication for the young generation has been made easy through having a Malayalam class run by the Wellington Malayalee Association Inc. This is a dream come true especially for parents who are happy to see their kids learn, write and speak in their own month tongue.
The Malayalam class was started in the year 2008 with the mission of teaching mother tongue to the immigrant children. Dr Arun Elias took the initiative to establish the platform for the immigrant parents to encourage their children to inculcate reading, writing and speaking skills in their mother tongue with a nominal fee of $25 annually. We have around 25 students attend the class regularly, which is conducted on a monthly basis at the Johnsonville Community centre.
The purpose of Wellington Malayalee Association is to promote and facilitate the cultural, educational, social and economic welfare of the Malayalees and the surrounding community at large. Aligning with this mission, WMA currently puts together Malayalam classes on a monthly basis. We have been conducting these classes at various different locations for past few years. Malayalam classes for reading/writing skills of our beloved language for our children. This activity is conducted via voluntary help from members of the community and is meant to cultivate and foster our cultural heritage among our children. Here are the details of the first class in 2014:
Day and Date: Saturday, the 2nd August 2014
Time: 5.30 – 6.30 pm
Venue: Johnsonville Community Centre, 3 Frankmoore Avenue, Johnsonville
We have an attendance of around 25 children, most of who can now read and write in Malayalam with a little help. We have 2 teachers who volunteer their time and talents for this great cause.Registration for the classes are open to all children of WMA members for a nominal annual fee of $25 per child.
WM United (Wellington Malayali United) is a wellington based community soccer club. The club was formed in 2012 inaugurated by the delegates of Wellington Malayalee Association Inc. The soccer club is an independent organization formed with the purpose of promoting the legendary sports of soccer specifically focused for Malayalees and other ethnic cultures in New Zealand to uplift a spirit of true sportsmanship with its full virtue of integrity and respect.
WM United joined the Wellington Sunday league organized by Sports zone in 2012. In 2013, WM United won the plate title defeating Porirua Whites with a score of 7-1 to mark the victory for the very first time. This title is an absolute honor to the community as to claim the first Malayali Club in New Zealand to win a plate cup in the Sunday League games. The club is managed by a core committee with Mr Anoop George (Registrar), Prakash Joseph (Club Manager), Richard Thuruthen (Secretary) and Mr Midhun Appu (Treasurer).
The Club has proved its involvement in supporting the community by organizing a Blood Donation charity service under the wings of the ‘Friends of Compassion’. Around 15 members of the club were voluntarily ready to donate blood and have done great service to save lives. WM United is currently looking for new players in the next upcoming seasons. The home ground for the club is Wakefield Park with trainings held on Tuesdays and Thursdays of the week. The club also took part in the New Zealand Pacific Cup Tournament held on February 2014 and made a remarkable achievement to reach the Semi finals to play the mighty SUVA team.
The Club had numerous changes of players with Shyam Menon (Captain) and Satheesh Anandan (Coach) retiring after the 2013 season. Rijo Jerro has been the best player of 2013-2014 season scoring 6 goals for his team. The team is now a mixture of players from all nationalities Somalia, India, Fiji, New Zealand, Solomon Islands, UK, Irish, Slovenia and Russia. The active involvement by the team players, the support from the community and the supporters at each game is the strength of the club.
We look forward for a bright future for WM United and if you would like to be a sponsor or wish to be involved as a player with WM United please email wmunited@ymail.com or locate our website wmunitedfc.co.nz
Saving a life is something that is easy. You may not think that you are capable of saving a life. If I told you that it would take just 15 minutes of your time to save 3 lives? Would you give 15 minutes of your time to save those lives? Every 3 seconds, someone is in desperate need of blood.
We all need blood to survive, but for sick children, accident victims and cancer patients just to name a few – a shortage of donated blood means the difference between life and death. There is no substitute for blood. Blood donors are the only source of blood for these sick people. Their life depends on members of the community donating blood.
Blood Donation service was organized by ‘Friends of Compassion’ a charity service of Wellington Malayalee Association (WMA) in association with Wellington Malayali United Soccer Club (WMU). This charity service was held on 6 & 7 August 2012 at St. Andrews Church, 30 The Terrace. Around 20 people from the community participated in this project and helped the New Zealand Blood Service Center.
Requirement of safe blood is increasing day by day for which regular voluntary blood donation is vital for blood transfusion services. Towards this, we encourage you to join us and be a part of this service on an as required basis. If you would like to know more about this service and work along with the project, please post your brief message and details below.