By Kat Haydarzadeh

Santa Monica, CA, February 24 – On Thursday, February 18, PAAIA NexGens from L.A. and Orange County gathered at the Huntley Hotel Penthouse in Santa Monica for their monthly mixer.  A diverse group of over thirty people, members and prospectives turned up for this fun and hip occasion.  Amir Bagherpour, the organizer, says these events cater to a wide range of people:  “We break the demographic barriers; it’s both students and professionals, twenty-something to forty-something.” A NexGen himself, he’s organized over six events in the last year, ranging from a visit to the Getty Villa to hikes at Temescal Canyon.

The benefit of these mixers is they combine two goals in casual settings.  “It’s a way for us to represent our community while having fun and socializing,” says Amir. He adds, “PAAIA NexGen allows us to stay connected with current members and at the same time reach out to potential new members, all aimed at supporting the Iranian-American community.”    Amir even ran into his cousin Bijan Esfandiari whom he hadn’t seen in two and half years because of the mixer’s ideal location.  “By virtue of showing up, we have a commonality besides being related!  Also, there’s an altruistic atmosphere, so it’s conducive to people identifying with each other.”

There was talk of the exciting Census Awareness projects and potential NexGen events, such as organized wine-tastings and Sunday barbeques.