The first meeting with a community often brings a mixture of feelings of enthusiasm, curiosity, and a little nervousness. It has an important role in forming the initial impression.
On Friday 11 October 2024, U-GIS (Unisba Global Inspired Society) held the first meet of U-GIS 2nd Generation. This event was called “Inaugural Party” and attended by many participants consisting of U-GIS members, and International Office family.
“U-GIS will bring a breakthrough in globalization for Unisba and that is something to celebrate. So is a person’s commitment when they want to move to contribute towards globalization. Therefore, the Inaugural Party was held as a celebration of this. In order to be able to move together as one, it is necessary to get to know each other which is the focus of this part of the activity.” said Pak Rama as the Founder of U-GIS.
Inaugural party is divided into 2 types, namely formal and informal, and are held in 2 different places.
Formal
The first part is the formal part. This part is held in the meeting room on the 8th floor of the Deanery Building. The meeting room becomes lively and fun from 3 pm to 6 pm.
With 36 participants in attendance, the formal seating plan is a classic curve, just like a Wi-Fi signal.
Led by Pak Rama, we also did a kampai (cheers) with canned drinks that had been provided. This was a symbol of shared vision and appreciation between all of us.
Earlier that week, each member was instructed to bring something that showed ‘this is me.’ Then we presented it each, not forgetting the hopes for U-GIS. We call this “Show and Tell”.
“Best welcoming I’ve ever had; I’ve never been welcomed so enthusiastically by a community I didn’t know before; being allowed to explain the representation of myself from the items I brought was the best, in my opinion. All the best for Pak Rama….,!!! And team…” said Rafid, U-GIS Gen 2 member.
Then, suddenly, a video was shown, and it turned out that the contents were messages from U-GIS alums for other members. The video touched everyone. The door opened and we had Andara!, one of the best members of U-GIS Gen 1. This was a surprise for everyone, especially the members of Gen 1 and, of course, Pak Rama.
“I waited in the toilet so that no one would find out, hahaha, then Teh Atha picked me up,” said U-GIS alumni Andara.
Next, we prepared some small long papers that would later be written with several hopes from each member and formed into a star shape called “Wishing Stars.” Everyone seemed enthusiastic to do it. After that, we took a break to pray.
“Everyone has their own wishes, and everyone deserves their wishes to come true. With this Wishing Star, I hope that UGISIAN’s wishes will come true at the right time..” said Io, U-GIS Gen 1 member.
Informal
After resting and praying, we moved to the terrace of the LPPM building on the 5th floor to continue the second part, namely the non-formal part.
In this section, we have fun with everyone; there are various rounds to chat and get to know each other. With all the food and drink available, we did it until we lost track of time. From 6 pm to 9 pm, we spent all that time talking to each other.
There are four rounds during this session.
1. User’s choice
This round requires new members to choose an old member to learn and discover unique facts about them.
2. Deep Talk
This round occurs among new members to talk about past experiences or other deep things.
3. Read the Card
In this round, some cards contain challenges. The members will discuss their experiences according to what is written on the card.
4. Meet Our Activity
The final round, led by the monthly pacemaker, contains sharing about the U-GIS to-do list for this month.
“The brightest future of U-GIS depends on ourselves, so give remarkable and outstanding self for it,” said Sely, Pacemaker of October.
“It was fun to meet many new friends; they are much more than I expected. My favorite moment would be the sharing session with the members, I found out a lot of new insights from different perspectives,” said Dhya, a U-GIS Gen 2 member.
“It seems like this is hell for introverts😅” said Daffa, a U-GIS Gen 1 member.
Those are the moments in the “U-GIS 2nd Generation Inaugural Party”. This first meeting is the gateway to building relationships, fostering a sense of togetherness, and starting a journey to achieve community goals. A strong community always starts with small, meaningful meetings.
“Be chaotic, be mindful, don’t be demure. We should scream louder about U-GIS and internationalization. Bless you all, and good luck ❤❤” said Andara, a U-GIS alumni.
Welcome to the family! U-GIS Gen 2.
