We are all familiar with the many Hindu and Sikh Temples, as well as Mosques dedicated to South Asians all over the valley.  This month, we had the pleasure of our regular Chai With with the unique United Indo-Pak Christian Church located in Chandler.  Founded on June 21, 2007, it is comprised of Christian Indians and Pakistanis who were members of American Churches and decided to establish a Church where they could communicate in their mother tongues and celebrate the festivals and special events in styles traditional of the South Asian subcontinent.

The current group got together when a handful of the members who knew each other got together and recognized that they come from the common language and cultures of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh and also follow the same Christian faith.  Brother Robert, Brother John, Brother Oliver, and Brother Mustaq who used to hold meetings at Brother John’s house wanted a Church where they could come together, forget the differences of these conflicting nations, and spread the word of their savior, Jesus Christ.  Each member knew additional folks with similar backgrounds and brought those folks to this establishment and the Church grew purely by word of mouth to its current membership of approximately 50 families or 125 members.  It was initially established in a smaller location in June, 2007 and moved to its current location in November, 2007 – needing a larger space as the members grew.

The members believe the Good Lord brought them together and how they met is no coincident, but rather the doing of the Lord to start this Church in Arizona.  Even though there are regional Churches in Arizona such as the Malayalee Church, this is unique in the fact that it attracts people from many countries and regions from within each country.  Members vary from Bangladesh to India to Pakistan and even within a country such as India, members are from Chennai, Hyderabad, Madhya Pradesh, etc.

Their thoughts regarding the diversity in their Church are that they do not recognize themselves as Indians or Pakistanis or Punjabis, etc. bur rather Christians and in Christ, they all become one.  They have members such as Jit Pegani who have been in this country since 1949 and found a home away from home in this Church to members like Jacob who came here in 2008 and found out about this Church in 2010 through Brother John and Oliver.

The United Indo-Pak Church is a non-profit organization with 10 board members who are not elected by rather find a natural fit with their skills to contribute to the greater good of the Church.  For them, the members and officers are appointed by God.  In their own words, “We are human beings and God uses each and every one present here based on their different talents.”  They think of themselves as a hand comprised of a thumb and fingers of all lengths that come together to form a strong fist.  All members and officers are purely volunteers and take no salary from the organization.  Their goal is to provide services for the community, bringing all people together regardless of background.  The Church and its membership is small but they all believe in the quality of people, not quantity.  Every member is somehow involved in the mission of the Church such as helping the poor, providing help to their homelands when they are hit with natural disasters such as floods, etc.

Officers of the Church are Senior Pastor Jit Pegany, Pastor Kevin Jacob, President Robert Anthony, Vice President Brother Oliver, Secretary Brother David Din, and Treasurer Brother Simon Anthony.  Members include Brother Mustaq, Brother John Masih, Brother Nelson, Brother Vivek, Brother Sunny, Brother Leslie Samuel, Brother Sunil, and Brother Edwin.  As can be seen in the names, this is truly a unique environment where people of many backgrounds come together as one.

The Church performs most of its services in English due to the natural language barriers that arise from the diversity in the organization, but often times worship is also mixed with Hindi and Punjabi.  The main occasions observed by the Church are Good Friday, Easter, Christmas and the annual anniversary celebrations of the Church in June each year.  Their upcoming Easter celebrations can be attended on April 8^th, 2012 at 5 PM at 6135 W. Detroit Street in Chandler, Arizona.

Asia Today thanks all the members for taking time out of their busy schedules to shed some light into their small, but beautiful world and wishes them great success in the coming years.  Make sure to catch their Easter Celebrations on April 8^th.

With taxes on everyone’s minds, I spent some time talking to someone with very little time on his hands during this season – C.P.A. Sanjay Jawa.  Sanjay was born in Gwalior, M.P. India, where he completed his high school.  He still remembers his high school teacher, Mr. Shah, who taught the course with such passion, it made Sanjay realize that his passion was accounting as well.  He came to the United States in 1981 and graduated from Central Washington University with a B.S. in Accounting.

After moving to Arizona in September, 1995, he started his own practice in 1997.  A practice he had to start from scratch, building his own clientele required a lot of long hours working and learning about accounting rules, as well as starting a business.  It took almost 3-4 years for the practice to settle, but this being his passion it was well worth it.  Sanjay always had a passion for numbers and helping small to medium size businesses.  He believes the core of the economy is a small/mid-size business and wanted to help them organize their books.  Both his dad and brother are physicians and his dad wanted him to become one as well but once he learned that Sanjay’s true passion was accounting, he supported him fully.

Sanjay’s practice specializes in business accounting, taxes, sales tax returns, payroll, and tax planning for businesses and individuals.  He provides tax services and tax planning services for all states, working year around not just during the busy tax reason.  Not planning or budgeting is a common negative practice that he has seen businesses neglect, which can lead to a closure of a business.  If there are no long term goals and direction on where they would like to be, a business does not achieve its potential.  In addition to not planning, he has seen businesses not invest back into the business and advertising, taking all the money from profit – prohibiting their growth and expansion.  Sanjay has experience handling all types of clients including Physician practices, consulting companies, stores, and gas stations.  He has five employees – two full-time and three part-time – in his two locations in Gilbert and Scottsdale.

Sanjay’s key differentiators are focusing more on long term quality and customer relationships.  He does not take shortcuts and spends time completing paperwork in a timely manner and ensuring no stone is over-turned and all information is presented correctly.  His suggestions to our readers are not to wait until the last minute, because it can make one prone to mistakes.  Ensure that you explain your situation to your tax consultant, including all details and facts.  Before making any decisions, make sure to confirm with a tax consultant.  There are changes with the IRS and taxes yearly and, as an expert that specializes in the field, Sanjay Jawa can help you keep up to date on all changes and provide accurate consulting tips for personal or business related taxes.

A little about Sanjay Personally…Sanjay is happily married to his lovely wife of 17 years, Shailja and they have two children – a seven-year old daughter named Sia and a sixteen-year old son named Sameer.  He loves spending time with his family, watching movies, listening to music, and travelling.  He is the youngest of six and has four older sisters and one older brother.

 Feel free to contact Sanjay Jawa at Sanjay@jawatax.com or call him at 480-831-9545 for all your tax and financial planning needs.  We are grateful to Sanjay for his time during this busy season and wish him and his practice all the best in the coming years.

Chai With….Sanjay Jawa
By Raja Walia
February 27, 2012