I've always been mesmerized by New York City and I could never put my finger on why. Is it because of the sights and sounds? Is it because you can eat authentic birria tacos from a food truck for breakfast and on the same city block grab a french croissant for lunch? Is it because it's the city that literally never sleeps? In the moment it's difficult to understand why, but looking back, NYC provided me with a connection to my cultural heritage that no other city can match. As an example, the last Krajan wedding in Sydney was about 6 years ago...which also happened to be mine! Since wife and I have been married we've attended more than 10 weddings across that same time period.
All that to say, living in a city like one makes it difficult to ignore your cultural heritage as you're constantly reminded about it...whether it's the barrage of flyers inviting you to a lounge featuring amazing Albanian singers, the virtually unlimited number of options where you can purchase burek & chevpa, the Albanian flags hanging off Mercedes Benz's and BMW's rear view mirror or those dreaded summers where you're faced with 3 weddings in as many weeks...we're Albanian and it's impossible to run away from it.
I've always loved Kraja but found difficulty identifying how I could support our community. For a while I did nothing about it. About 2 years ago I joined an Iftar dinner hosted by the previous administration and speaking to the members in the council I was excited by the work and effort they were putting in. They had a real, impactful presence on social media, the Albanian School 'Meso Shqip' had opened up providing students with a meaningful education. Shoqata Kraja were collaborating with our brothers and sisters Shoqata's Ana e Malit and Ulqini and most importantly, women had representation in the council. I left with a real sense of inspiration and excitement at the future of Shoqata Kraja. Several months go by and I finally join the organization.
The idea of a new website bubbled up during a council meeting and we were all in agreement that a refresh was required but we had a difficult figuring out what benefit it would unlock for our community. Over time we uncovered challenges related to the existing website:
Didn't function well when viewed on devices such as iPads and mobile phones
No ability to create an area for Members Only
It was difficult to donate and were only accepted via Paypal
Editing the website was virtually impossible without significant expertise
No ability to implement an online store
Most importantly, no ability to communicate with Donors
We took all this into account when designing the new website, and way way more. I'll explain in detail at a later date but in the meantime, please make yourself at home!
Lastly, I'd like to thank Sami Kanaqi and Venera Gjenashaj for providing me with the creative freedom & the opportunity to give back to my community, Drenica Perashi who joined Shoqata Kraja 5 weeks ago & worked tirelessly to bring my ideas to life and finally my wife, who dealt with me while I spent countless evenings burning the midnight oil turning those many thoughts into reality.
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