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Chapter 28. Activities in Rest of the World
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Dhiru Shah who came to the USA for higher education was in Los Angeles from 1949 A.D. to 1954 A.D. The following are Dhiru's comments about his experience as a student in early 1950's A.D. "Having studied in Kenya and then India, to arrive in New York and then in Los Angeles was both exciting and bewildering as culturally and physically it was a totally different atmosphere. When our batch arrived in USA, it was the beginning of international students coming to pursue higher education in large numbers. Americans were very hospitable and made our stay a pleasant one. We got invitations for dinners, for short stays with Americans in their homes, to speak to various groups and so on. I will never forget those wonderful gestures. While at university in India, very few students study and also do part-time jobs, while in the USA the majority of the students have part-time jobs while they study. No job was below their dignity as long as it was well performed. The idea of dignity of labor and self-reliance amongst student left a deep impression on me."
Satish Panachand Bharmal Shah of Plano Texas an engineer by profession came to Stanford, California in 1959 A.D. for studies and practical training. He stayed for two years and returned to Kenya. Satish returned to the USA with his wife, Surya, and two daughters, Seema and Shilpa, in 1972 for permanent settlement. He worked for the U.S. Government Agency for International Development and he was the first Asian to rise to the level of the Senior Foreign Service (Executive) and served as Director of A.I.D.'s Regional Office in Nairobi and Development Resources Offices for the Middle East.
Gulabchand Khimchand Raishi of South Hadley Massachusetts a physician by profession came in 1963 A.D. He was the first Oshwal to marry in the USA, an Oshwal girl, Anila daughter of Juthalal Vrajpal Shah of Mombasa, Kenya, in 1966 A.D. Their son, Parag, is the first Oshwal boy born in the USA in 1967.
