INVINCIBLES PUNJAB UNITED DERBY UNDER 13s ACHIEVEMENTS, PUNJABI LISTENERS CLUB’S 28th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATED IN PRESENCE OF SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB JI
HM LORD LIEUTENANT OF DERBYSHIRE WAS GUEST OF HONOUR, HM DEPUTY LORD LIEUTENANT OF OXFORDSHIRE ATTENDANT THE EVENT
(Samaj Weekly)- Invincibles Punjab United Derby Under 13s achievements of winning all 5 KFF summer football tournaments at Walsall, Birmingham, Leicester, Bedford and Derby – and Punjabi Listeners Club, which has raised thousands of pounds for good causes as well as organised turban tying and Punjabi writing competitions for young people, kavi darbar, national Punjabi conference was celebrated in the main hall of Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara, Princess Street, Derby on 24 September 2023 from 12.30 = 1.15pm.
HM Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire Mrs. Elizabeth Fothergill CBE spoke from the stage of the Gurdwara Sahib and
congratulated -Punjabi Listeners Club’s 28th Anniversary and the excellent programmes they have organised to encourage Punjabi Youth to be connected with their language and religion – Punjab United Derby Under 13s for scoring 77 goals in 25 games, winning 24, drawing just one game. Mrs. Fothergill also praised the charitable work done by the Singh Sabha Gurdwara in times of need. HM Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire presented a beautiful trophy to the team managers Mondash Singh and Satnam Singh and Medallions and very special Punjabi Good Bags containing booklets on Sikh Religion, Punjabi Language and Culture as well as chocolates and sweets.
HM Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire Mrs. Surinder Kaur Dhesi praised the team for their great achievements and
thanked the parents, relatives and coaches for all their encouragements and support to the football team. Mrs. Dhesi also pointed out that Punjabi Language and Sikh Religion classes are held in Banbury. General Secretary of the Gurdwara Rajinder Singh Purewal was pleased with the efforts of Mr Virk in promoting Punjabi Language and sports. He was also pleased with organisation of the special celebrations today.
HM Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire and HM Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire were presented with A Saropa each {Garland of Honour}. HM Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire was presented with a colour framed photograph of The Golden
Temple 1833 and book called HARMANDAR House of God which had message from the late Her Majesty The Queen in
the VISITORS BOOK section of the book.
The celebrations event raised £201 for UK charity Khalsa Aid International who assist everyone in times of need such as
earthquakes, flooding etc.
Punjabi Listeners Club’s Co-Ordinator Tarlochan Singh Virk pointed out that although it is great Punjab United Derby Under 13s team performed remarkably at every tournament, the reason for holding the celebrations in the presence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is that the players, managers and supporters take a very keen interest in their mother tongue language so that they can learn about their rich history, religion and culture. Being Bi-lingual increases chances of better employment prospects. Mr Virk was very impressed with the Sikh youth learning and performing Shabad Kirtan {religious Hymns} regularly at the Gurdwara Sahib and thanked the guests, Gurdwara Management Committee, Khalsa Aid Volunteers and each one who donated and the exceptional football team of Derby for making the event very successful and memorable. Dr. Daljit Singh Virk OBE managed the stage perfectly.
