Greetings,

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I’m writing to you in my capacity as a Convener for the forthcoming 17th ATA Conference & Youth Convention, to be held in Washington DC from July 1st thru July 3rd, 2022. This convention is going to be an immersive 3-day event for all Telugu-speaking diaspora living in the United States with full of meaningful connections, riveting ideas, revealing discussions, playful celebrations, and exciting cultural programs. I strongly believe that our Telugu culture binds us to our close ones and keeps us connected to our roots. It is important to stay connected to one’s roots to stay happy in life. If you have an understanding and value of your own culture, then only you can respect other cultures in the world. While accepting other cultures is a positive thing, we must also preserve our own native culture.

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Left to ourselves, our cultural traits have aided us in creating wealth and prosperity for society. There is perhaps a no better way of spreading awareness of our culture than by bringing the youth and adults from different generations together on to one platform. The Telugu culture has been passed on from many generations leading us to what we are today. But of course, not all values have remained constant. As the convener, my motto is to give utmost importance to the young generation of Indian Telugu origin and bridge the cultural gap between them and their earlier generations. The reason all these matters is because our youths are our biggest asset and our culture is not meant to be preserved, but shared, learned, and developed.

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I do hope you can make time in your busy schedule to attend the conference and be part of this wonderful experience. See you then. Thank you.

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Sincerely,
Sudheer Bandaru
Convener
17th ATA Convention and Youth Conference