Club 65 Seniors Learn to Cure Their Illnesses and Stay Safe
By Jawahar Malhotra
HOUSTON: The members of Club 65 got a few good tips at their monthly meeting this past Saturday at the Bayland Community Center on Beechnut and these weren’t the usual everyday tips either. They heard from two law enforcement officers on how to stay safe and from an acupressure specialist on how to remain healthy.
The meeting was arranged by C65 President Paru McGuire and Indian Muslim Association of Greater Houston Board Director Rahat Kale. One of the officers, Deputy Sheriff Nasir Abbas had previously been honored by the IMAGH at last year’s Eid Milind Gala. The Acupressurist, Neeta Sheth, who was visiting from a trip to be with her daughter in New York, was a late entry speaker brought in by local Houstonian Dr. Indu Jain.
The meeting began with the other police officer, Harris County Constable Pct. 5 Corporal Waqas Farahshah, 32, speaking about his background, Born in Karachi, Pakistan he arrived in Houston in 2000 and went to the Police Academy, graduating in 2009. He is one of two South Asian officers in Precinct 5, with two more in Precinct 6 and another three in Precinct 3.
Asked a lot of questions about traffic tickets and safety, Farahshah (speaking in Urdu) gave some good advice about being stopped by an officer, especially at night. He suggested turning the dome light inside the car on, rolling down all the windows to cut down on reflections and glare and keeping your hands where visible so that the officer felt safe in approaching the car.
Nasir Abbas also added to the safety theme and both officers said they were available to render assistance to the community and gave out their cell numbers. Abbas has been with the Sheriff’s office since 2009 and is the first South Asian Deputy Sheriff. He has formed the International Police Officers Association in December 2017, of which he is the president. He estimates there are 40 South Asian officers in Harris County.
Neeta Sheth has been involved with acupressure since 1978 and has been in practice in Ahmedabad, Gujarat for 20 years. She estimates that she has trained 9,000 students and gives many seminars in India, Australia, Canada and the US, with the last one in California. (The next day she gave a seminar at the Keshav Smriti on the city’s west side).
Sheth gave a brief description of what acupressure was and how the whole body’s function could be distilled down to the hands. She showed techniques for easing pain and discomfort as well as lingering problems and also sold some massaging kits.
Lunch was prepared by IMAGH volunteer Shaheen Vora and her mother and served after the vent.