Organizers of CRY Houston and Gala Committee members take a bow at the function held on March 3 at the Sugar Land Marriott.

SUGAR LAND: CRY, Child Rights & You America [CRY America], a 501c3 non-profit that works towards ensuring underprivileged children their basic rights, hosted their Annual Houston Gala Dinner on March 3rd at the Marriott Town Square in Sugar Land to bring people together for the cause of children’s rights.

Speakers included emcee Meena Datt, Houston Consul General Anupam Ray, Fort Bend County Judge KP George and Special Guest Indian film actress Tanishaa Mukerji to amplify the voices of underprivileged children.

Tanishaa is known for her works in Indian movies, Bollywood and Telugu and Tamil films. She is the daughter of filmmaker Shomu Mukherjee and actress Tanuja Samarth and the younger sister of Bollywood actress Kajol.

The Gala was attended by 240 guests and raised over $125,000 which will be directed towards grass roots projects working on critical children’s issues.
Apart from raising awareness for the cause, guests enjoyed the evening with dinner, cocktails, silent and live auctions, entertainment, music and dancing. Performances by Arzan Gonda, Executive Director of Rhythm India and her students during the program and the Bellaire Jazz Band during the social hour. added spark and were much appreciated by all the guests. They got up to dance at the tail end of the gala to the msuic of DJ Sage.

Auction items donated by famous Indian artistes included a beautiful painting by Prakash Deshmukh; fashion ensemble Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla; a boxing glove autographed by World Champions; a Star Wars Movie Poster signed by 12 Cast Members; a Marvel Universe Picture autographed by the late Stan Lee; cricket bats signed by star players Saurav Ganguly and Sehwag were popular and sold out quickly by auctioneers Dr. Subodh Bhuchar and Abiya Malhotra.

The Gala Committee composed of Dharam and Priya Bali, Juuhi and Prakash Ahuja, Dina and Sameer Patel, Neeraj and Gauri Seth, Geetha and Bala Balachandran, Dr. Tina and Dr. Harish Pariani, Chetan and Radha Patel, Ritu and Kunal Nadkarni and Devina and Dilip Bhojwani played a key role in enabling a sold out and successful event.

Event sponsors included Object Win, Vantive Inc., Wise Men, Wells Fargo Advisors, Shipcom Wireless, Ailings, ANB Systems, Murali Santhana Photography, Sage Productions, Rhythm India and Verandah. A special shout out to the media for their ongoing support – TV Asia, Star TV, Radio Dabang, Indo American News, Voice of Asia, Meena Datt Radio and India Herald.
Millions of children are denied their rights on a daily basis. CRY America works with grass-root projects, communities and local government bodies to ensure children have quality education, healthcare, and protection from child labor, child marriage and issues which hinder their development.

Shefali Sunderlal says, “CRY America believes that “YOU” can empower children’s dreams and be ambassadors of change for children’s rights. Your support allows us to ensure that thousands of children are able to go to sleep educated, healthy and protected. With the support from over 25,000 donors & 2,000 volunteers, CRY America has transformed the lives of over 716,386 children across 3,755 villages and slums.”

She appealed for people to join CRY America as donors, volunteers and supporters and visit http://www.america.cry.org for more information.

Shoba & Hiren Joshi with their chief sponsors and supporters at the Geetanjali Fundraising Gala on March 15 at India House.

BY DR. SARITA MEHTA

HOUSTON: Shoba Joshi and her son Hiren Joshi’s Geetanjali Radio show hosted its Annual Appreciation & Fundraising Gala on March 15 at India House.

The was attended by like-minded guests, music lovers and supporters gathered to enjoy the fun-filled musical evening. The evening was filled with melodious live singing anchored by the talented brother of Shoba, Bansi Chabria, a versatile singer and Sharada Akunuria, the award winning singer, who was featured as one of the nine US-based personalities in Telugu Times 9th Anniversary edition.

The duo captivated the audience with the rendering of some memorable old Hindi songs to an informal gathering, which joined in with the singers. The audience also appreciated a raffle of several items, including designer His and Her watches, and the dinner catered by Dawat Catering.

Geetanjali Radio (KXYZ AM 1320) has been on the air since 1992 with the support of advertisers and local Houston listeners. For over 26 years, Shoba Joshi has been on the airwaves providing the best of classic Bollywood music and helping the community get connected with India and Indian culture.

The program began with a Ganapati Bhajan sung by Sharada followed by a ceremonial lighting of the traditional lamp. John Espinosa (Hiren’s wife Casey’s uncle) emceed the event and invited special guests Jugal Malani, the President of India House and the Grand Sponsor for fundraiser, Vijay Pallod of Hindus of Greater Houston, Dr. Arun Verma, of Seeta Ram Foundation, Dr. Harshad Patel, Ashok Garg, Swapan Dharyawan, President of Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Nisha Mirani, President of ICC, Harsh Kumar of India House, Pankaj Desai, Naran Chawda; President Ekal Vidyaliya, Madhan Mohan Patel, Gitesh Desai, President Sewa International, Jay Deshmukh of Chinmaya Mission and Manohar Gidwani of Banke Bihari on stage to light the lamps. Milani congratulated Geetanjali Radio on its 26 years of successfully hosting the program, and praised Shobha and Hiren for their efforts.

Gitesh Desai, who was recently awarded the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman Award for 2019, the highest honor conferred on overseas Indian by the Government of India, was honored with a ceremonial shawl by Shoba Joshi. Ken Mathew Councilman from Stafford since 2006 in his brief speech congratulated the Geetanjali Radio. Sri Preston Kulkarni, who ran for Congress in a close race against Pete Olson, congratulated Shoba and Hiren, adding ”we are blessed to hear the amazing voices of two very talented singers Bansi Chabria and Sarda Akunuri.”

Shoba and Hiren Joshi extended their highest appreciation for the support to Geetanjali Radio to the Grand Sponsors Jugal and Raj Malani, Dawat Vatering for the delicious food, Krishna Sounds’ Darshak Thacker for the sound system, Touch of Elegance by Sara Dugal for decorations, Sudhakar Roy for photography, and Indo American News as well as the other Indian print and TV media for their year-round support.

Yogi Patel is President of the Ekal Vidyalaya Houston chapter for 2019-2020.

HOUSTON: Yogesh (Yogi) Patel connects easily with people and has a flair for organization – two talents that will serve him well in his new capacity as Ekal’s Houston Chapter President for 2019-20. An inner recognition that he has been “blessed with opportunities in life and is in a position to do something for others” also factored significantly in his decision to assume the leadership role.

Yogi’s association with Ekal began when his friend Naren Chavda asked him to help organize and emcee an Ekal fundraiser two decades ago. This sparked his interest and he became a donor. On his return to Houston after an overseas assignment, Yogi became actively involved with Ekal. The decision to retire in 2015 and “not work for monetary gains” cemented this commitment.
In 2018, when the Ekal Houston leadership decided to host a Gala, a first for the Houston chapter, they asked Yogi to take the lead. He took up the challenge and with the “support of dedicated volunteers and generous donors” raised a record one and a half million dollars.

As President, his priorities are to create awareness about Ekal’s work in combating illiteracy in rural India among the Indian diaspora and build a closer relationship with donors. He will also focus on promoting many young professionals who joined the Ekal movement at the 2018 Gala. Presently, he is prepping for Ekal’s fundraiser event on June 1 at Cullen Performing Hall, UH – a Bollywood musical program with artists from India.

A native of Mumbai, Yogi came to the US in 1970 to pursue his college education. He obtained his Bachelors and Masters in Chemical Engineering from Tri-State and Oklahoma State Universities respectively. He worked in the Oil and Gas industry for over 38 years including assignments in Oman and Azerbaijan and retired from BP in 2015.
A career highlight was his role as Organization Capability Manager in BP. Yogi was tasked with boosting the competency of the workforce and developing people, a job he found deeply fulfilling. Ekal seemed like an extension of this project.

Holding himself as an example, Patel emphasizes education as one of the keys to success in life. 70% of India’s population lives in villages with many lacking access to education and opportunities. No nation, he notes, can be prosperous or productive without an educated workforce.
Early this year, Yogi and his wife Darshana visited five Ekal schools in Gujarat and Jharkhand and interacted with the children. Both were struck by their keenness to learn, the discipline with which they conducted themselves and above all by the potential he saw in them.

When asked what they would do with their education, they responded with aspirations of being engineers, doctors, police officers, teachers or serving in the army. Ekal, he witnessed, was providing them the opportunity to do so. Yogi’s sense of purpose of expanding Ekal’s vision and mission was reinforced that day.
The Ekal movement with its one-teacher-school structure started in the late 1980’s with 60 schools near Dhanbad funded by the late industrialist Madan Lal Agrawal. It is a measure of Ekal’s success and effectiveness that there are 83,000 schools today in villages and tribal areas educating two million children annually (with more than 50% girls) and an annual growth rate exceeding 30%.

Apart from free schooling, Ekal also provides vocational training, digital competence and agricultural education. Its Gramothan Resource Centers teach tailoring, carpentry and pottery and provide Ekal on Wheels (mobile buses fitted with computer stations to impart digital skills to children and young adults). Ekal’s underlying mission is to make the villages prosperous by skilling them; this in turn stems migration of youth to cities and urban areas.
When not busy with Ekal’s work, the new President loves a game of tennis and golf and much to his wife’s delight often dons the chef’s hat. His wife Darshana, who enjoys interior designing, also lends her talents to Ekal.

Ekal USA Secretary and past Ekal Houston President Naren Chavda says “Ekal Houston is privileged to have Darshana and Yogi devoting their time and energy to elevate Ekal.”

India’s Iconic ‘Gandhi Peace Prize’ for Ekal

Senior Ekal Trustee M.L. Jain (left) receives the Gandhi Peace Prize from President Ram Nath Kovind as PM Narendra Modi looks on.

NEW DELHIi: “Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation (EVF)”, the largest global organization dedicated to integrated village development in rural India, was recently honored with the prestigious National Award in India for social work. On February 26, “Ekal Abhiyan Trust” (Ekal’s umbrella organization) was bestowed with ‘Mahatma Gandhi Peace Prize’ for its contributions in providing education to rural & tribal children and for empowering gender social equality in remote parts of India.

This prize is conferred by the Govt of India under the Chairmanship of Hon. Prime Minister. The ceremony took place at the ‘Rashtrapati Bhavan’ in New Delhi and was graced by the Hon. President of India, Ram Nath Kovind as well as Hon Prime Minister N. Modi. On behalf of ‘Ekal’ the award from the Hon. President was received by M.L. Jain, a senior trustee of ‘Ekal Abhiyan’. This unique Honor carries a grant of Rs 1 Crore, a Citation and a Plaque to commemorate the distinction. This prize was instituted in 1995 on 125th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi to highlight his concept of ‘Gram Swaraj Model’. In his laudatory message to “Ekal”, PM Modi commended its efforts to give educational opportunity to children in tribal areas and empowering rural women-folks.

Currently, “EVF” has been supporting 82,000 Ekal-schools across rural-tribal pockets of India and grooming almost 2.2 million children – more than half of which are girls.

HOUSTON: Holi – the Indian Festival of colors signifies the advent of spring, the victory of good over evil, the joy of friendship, and equality for all. On Saturday, March 16th, on the grounds of India House, we saw a perfect blend of it all at Vibha Holi 2019. Despite the weather, the grounds were awash with color as an enthusiastic crowd of different ages, nationalities and ethnicities came together and celebrated Holi amid music and dancing.

Organized by Vibha, in association with Tara Energy, the event was hosted by the rocking team of DJ Dholi Deep and Malikka Ghei. The five-hour free event included live performances by the melodious group – GlobalDesis; rocking bollywood style dance performances by local Houston dance groups including flash mob dance and others by Khushboo Dance group, Katy Bollywood Dance Academy, Goan Group, Shri Natraj School of Dance, Kusum Sharma of Kalakriti Performing Arts, Noopur Group and Arya Dance Academy. Prerana Chitlangia, Mrs. India Texas rocked the show.

The delicious food booths by Mirch Masala, Godavari, Gayatri Bhavan, and Tacos n’ Frankies and lots of prizes and giveaways including Alexa by Divyendu Singh of New York Life Insurance, two Samsung Tablets by Radio Dabang, free water, T-shirts, clappers and more did not fail to keep everyone happy.
The Moonwalk and Obstacle course had the kids jumping along with the Knocker Ball that had them rolling on the ground. Murali Santhana, the official photographer for the event vividly captured the moments.

At the pinnacle of it, with the sun out and everyone beyond recognition with colors on their face, hair and clothes, the mood in the ground was so catching and celebratory that it was difficult for anyone to hold still and not be moved by the gyrating dancers and rocking music.

Vibha Holi 2019 was organized by the dedicated efforts of Vibha Houston volunteers. Vibha is a non-profit, non-religious, non-political, and a volunteer-driven organization with the mission to educate, empower and enable every individual who wishes to make a positive difference in the life of underprivileged children.

All proceeds from Vibha Holi 2019 will go directly towards funding projects supported by Vibha in India and US that align with Vibha’s vision of helping every underprivileged child attain his/her right to education, health and opportunity for a brighter future.

This well executed event was greatly supported by Rajesh Desai of Namaskaar Entertainment, GlobalDesis artists, Darshak Thacker of Krishna Sound, Kalakriti, Murali Santhana’s photography and Col. Vipin Kumar of India House; and sponsored by Tara Energy (Title sponsors), Sterling McCall Toyota (Platinum sponsor), New York Life Insurance, Radio Dabang (official media partner), Manyavar Mohey of USA and Hotstar,

For more information about Vibha and for volunteering opportunities, visit www.vibha.org or https://www.facebook.com/vibhahou/ .

HOUSTON: Rish Oberoi is excited about joining Ekal Vidyalaya Houston as Zonal Development Director since it involves two of his favorite things.
Making a difference and flexing his fundraising skills.

As Development Director, Rish’s job involves rallying support from Corporations, strengthening donor base, coordinating with other Ekal Chapters on projects and events and tapping young professionals who want to give back. The young 27 year old has joined Ekal to promote the organization’s work of uplifting India’s rural and tribal areas through literacy and vocational skills.
This “wanting to make a difference” here or in India was always important to him, Rish says, of his motivation to work with Ekal. He is highly inspired by Past President Barack Obama and like him, Rish too wanted to do something to better the world.

In 2016, after graduating with a Bachelors in History and a minor in PoliSci from the University of Houston, Rish joined HISD as an Associate Teacher while working for his Teacher’s Certification. It proved to be a short stint as he soon grew disillusioned with the state’s handling of the public school system and its failure to be effective for marginalized communities.
It was evident to Rish that several things were wrong in society and he believes that “it goes back to who’s running the Government.” Perturbed, he called up the office of Mark Gibson who was running for the 22nd District Congressional seat and volunteered for the election campaign. It was totally new territory for Rish and a formative learning curve for him. Gibson didn’t win but Rish got his first taste of politics and a possible career.

Over the next few years, Rish worked as a Policy Aide in Speaker Straus’s office and crisscrossed Texas as Director of Operations and Travel Aide in Mike Colliers Lt. Governor campaign. However it was with Congressional candidate Sri Kulkarni that Rish truly got in the thick of campaigning and fundraising. As Kulkarni’s Finance Director, their campaign raised over $1 million in four months – a record and double the initial goal.

Rish also picked up some useful skills from summers spent behind the cash counter as his father, Ricki Oberoi, owns several franchises of fast food chain Wendy’s. It was an excellent training ground for tangible lessons such as keeping “a cool head with less-than-reasonable customers” to connecting with people.
More importantly, he realized that business wasn’t his cup of tea and said as much to his parents. They were understandably taken aback at first, but were always supportive of his decision to carve out his own path.

Rish plans to visit a few Ekal schools in India to see for himself how the organization runs 83,000 schools and touches the lives of two million children. He is drawn to Ekal’s concept of not only providing free schooling but also vocational training, digital competence and agricultural education to farmers.

As a millennial himself, he’s partial to the Ekal on Wheels – a program that uses mobile buses with computer stations to impart digital skills to children and young adults.
During his me-time, Rish enjoys going for music festivals and cheering for the Houston Rockets. He’s also a major history buff and travels to Canada to see his girlfriend Alysha whenever he can.

Executive Director Rachna Khare welcomed two Daya clients and Daya counselor, Hareema Mela to the stage for an open discussion about the clients’ experiences and the role that Daya played in the recovery.

HOUSTON: Chaired by Daya Board Members, Aparna Asthana, Annu Naik, and Shamza Matin on March 31, 2019, Daya held Shine – Celebrating the Light of Survivors to raise funds to support South Asian victims of domestic and sexual violence in Houston. As a result of outreach by Honorary Event Chairs Salma and Riaz Siddiqi, and Sandhya and Naresh Sabhnani, this year’s sold out gala welcomed over 600 community members.

The program was led by emcee, Vikas Shah, MBE, an entrepreneur and professor who traveled for the event from Manchester. Against a stunning backdrop of twinkling lights, Daya Board President, Sheela Rao welcomed the audience and acknowledged the many staff, board members, and volunteers that make up the Daya Family. She gave special thanks to Daya’s partners and funders that allow Daya to do their work. Mr. Shah then read an official proclamation from the Mayor’s Office, naming March 31, 2019 “Daya Day” in the City of Houston.

Executive Director, Rachna Khare spoke of the complex challenges and barriers that South Asian survivors face when seeking help. She welcomed two Daya clients and Daya counselor, Hareema Mela to the stage for an open discussion about the clients’ experiences and the role that Daya played in the recovery. One client discussed the barriers she faced in shelter and mainstream agencies. A year of rental assistance from Daya has allowed the client to rebuild her life. She now has a full-time job and can independently take care of her four children. The second client spoke of the in-law abuse she experienced and the impact the abuse had on her own family in India. Through mental health counseling at Daya, she was able to rebuild her self-confidence and is now living independently and is finishing dental school. Ms. Khare challenged the audience to take ownership of domestic violence as a public health crisis.

Daya board members gathered around President Sheela Rao (center) for a group photo. Credit: Slyworks Photography

Mr. Shah then took the stage to illustrate how community donations impact in the life of a survivor. A donation of $1000 provides six months of trauma-based professional counseling, $2500 gives a legal retainer fee for immigration and family law cases, and $10,000 provides an entire year of rental assistance for a client and her children.

After dinner, filmmaker and activist, Leslee Udwin, took the stage. Ms. Udwin spoke passionately about the making of her film, India’s Daughter. Ms. Udwin introduced the audience to Think Equal, her initiative to teach empathy and equality to children in the formative, developmental years. Ms. Udwin ended her inspirational speech with a call to action, urging the audience to shine the light on domestic violence in our community.

Daya is aiming to raise $400,000 for the gala. To donate, please go to https://www.dayahouston.org/what-your-dollars-can-do. Daya empowers south Asian survivors who are trying to break the cycle of domestic and sexual violence and reclaim their lives.

Jagat Kamdar (left) , Subodh Bhuchar (third from left) and Dinkar Chheda (right) of Open Forum radio talk show with Zahid Dewji (in hat) a local stand-up comedian.

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA

HOUSTON: A large part of the charm of these three unlikely radio talk-show hosts is that they like to mix it up on the air, even letting some local supporters sit in as the lead anchor when one of them is away. The word ‘Open’ fits their approach nicely to the free-ranging, purposely loose-knit program as they allow a free flow of ideas on the air every Saturday afternoon for two-hours.

If Jagat Kamdar is the Thinker, and Subodh Bhuchar the Jester, then Dinkar Chheda is the Doer (I’ll name them collectively as “the KBC consortium “) in the most unlikely collaboration of personalities, an on-air Odd Trio. They are widely popular in the desi radio market for bringing up topics without quite drawing their own conclusions, and listeners can call to pipe in on.
And so it is a mark of their popularity that for the past decade, the KBC consortium has been able to hold ‘fun raisers’ to gather funds to support the program, which runs mostly with very minimal regular marketing in an already tight desi radio show market. It’s a little like NPR with a gala mixed into it.

The Open Forum Fun Raiser held this past Friday night, April 5 at the Zoroastrian Association of Houston center on West Airport Boulevard fit the personality of the KBC and the show as the setup had been stirred up from those held at the ZAH for the past four years. Guests still showed their support by writing checks and getting a load of raffle tickets (several winners were announced later in the program) and then munching on appetizers from Dawat Catering (which also served the buffet dinner, Mahesh Shah supervised it himself).

Ratio2, a band rocked the lobby with Richard, Ana and of Ratio2 performed in the lobby.

This year, as guests mingled, Ratio2, a band rocked the lobby with Richard (from Wales) and Rog (an Indian) on guitars and Ana (another Indian) doing vocals – all wearing shades – pumping up the room with songs from their CD “Without You” which they had on hand for sale.

On the far side of the hall, in contrast, two teenage Indian girls – Ananya Somani, 13, and Khushi Shah, 16 – concentrated to listen to their inner force as they painted canvases (a Ganesh and a skyscape) blindfolded, a unique memorization-hand technique they had learnt from Ananya’s mother Deepa. Their final works were impressively precise and sold at the auction later in the program.

To start off the KBC Consortium came onstage for brief introductions and appreciation of their major sponsors and quickly turned the mic over to Bhuchar who asked for a 10-second collective silent prayer for all those who suffer from chronic diseases. His wife Sonal, who last year actively organized the event, was absent this year and her declining health was no doubt on Bhuchar’s mind.

The one thing that has been close to KBC’s heart is keeping the party humorous and once again this year they brought in a local stand-up comedian Zahid Dewji, who also is Bhuchar’s patient (“I’ve seen him in and out of his clothes – for physical checkups,” laughed Bhuchar, an internal medicine physician) and he did a 45-minute set full of shimmering anecdotes and observations.

Ananya Somani, and Khushi Shah, painted canvases blindfolded, at the dinner with their moms.

Following dinner, the raffle draw and auction kept everyone’s attention. “The paintings were auctioned for $500 for both and the raffle sales netted $800 which we will donate to the Keep Us Fed charity in Montgomery County,” said Chheda. “We met our goal of raising over $50,000,” which is an amount that allows the show to coast through the year.

At the tail end of the program, Hardik Jani and his group lit up the hall with hot Bollywood tunes that soon had the guests who remained dancing till midnight

From left, Pratham Houston President Asha Dhume (with husband Pankaj) with honoree Vijay Goradia (with wife Marie), Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor and Pratham USA CFO SWtantra Jain (with wife Bimla).

PRESS RELEASE

HOUSTON: On Saturday, April 20, 2019, more than 900 guests attended the dazzling Pratham Houston ‘Sold Out’ gala – celebrating 20 years of Pratham USA and raising a record-breaking $4.5 million – the largest amount by an Indian-American charity. Pratham is dedicated to improving the quality of education for underserved children and youth in India and has reached over 60 million individuals since its inception.

The elegant Hilton America’s ballroom played host to an insightful and engaging evening kicked off by a touching video tribute to gala honoree Vijay Goradia – local businessman and humanitarian, who established Pratham USA in 1999 after visiting a small preschool in the slums of Mumbai. One of the highlights of the night was a lively conversation between Goradia and Pratham co-founder and president Dr. Madhav Chavan, former University of Houston professor.

Pratham Board poses with actor Anil Kapoor

“Like I would bet on an established company over a startup, by investing in an NGO like Pratham, I am investing in the future of tens of millions of children,” explained Goradia, who pledged $1 million at the benefit. “It has a proven track record, continues to be well managed and grow.”

Local luminaries and gala underwriters Bimla and Swatantra Jain, who were also recognized for their longstanding commitment to education, made a commitment of $1 million to support the construction of a vocational training center in North India.

“This is our city’s 20th annual gala, and every year we see an increase in participation and enthusiasm for Pratham’s innovative programs,” said chapter president Asha Dhume. “Many people are astounded when they learn that of the 26 million Indian children who enter first grade each year, nearly half will reach fifth grade unable to read or write. Pratham is working to solve this learning crisis.”

Pratham Advisory Board member Dhiren Pratham Advisory Board member Dhiren Shethia, Pratham USA Founder Vijay Goradia, Pratham Founder Dr. Madhav Chavan

Celebrity guest Anil Kapoor was visibly moved by the tremendous show of support: “It’s a privilege, it’s an honor, it’s an emotional moment for me to be here listening, observing, absorbing emotionally the kind of work Pratham has done for 20 years!” exclaimed the Bollywood superstar. “I’m feeling really very small compared to all of you and all the people who have done so much for such a noble cause and for such a great organization. It proves that Pratham is one of the world’s best organizations.”

The event, hosted by mistress of ceremonies Nicole O’Brian Lassiter, featured inspirational speeches including a sincere address by local businessman Ali Dhanani who contributed $1 million last year to Pratham. Program beneficiary Mamta Dawar’s heartfelt message encouraged the audience to support Pratham so girls like her can find their voice and strength. The magical night wrapped up with lively entertainment from the dance group Rhythm India and a fashion show by leading Indian designer Anita Dongre presented by Raaz. A sumptuous plated dinner provided by Daawat catering was appreciated by all the guests.

A fashion show by leading Indian designer Anita Dongre was presented by Raaz

The gala co-chairs were Peggy and Avinash Ahuja, Indrani and Hemant Goradia, and Shital and Bhavesh Patel. Prominent attendees included Consul General Dr Anupam Ray, Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, Andrea and Bill White, Anne and Albert Chao as well as many other community leaders and philanthropists. Corporate sponsors who have been supporting Pratham’s transformative work for over a decade included Wells Fargo, Ascend Performance Materials, Packwell, Amegy Bank of Texas, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Fidelity Family Office Services, and PKF of Texas, all of which have been supporting Pratham’s transformative work for a decade.

Pratham USA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a consistent four-star rating from Charity Navigator that seeks to raise awareness and mobilize financial resources for our work in India. For more information, visit prathamusa.org.

By Jawahar Malhotra

SUGAR LAND: Over the years, the Club 24 Plus events has not been so much the program that will follow but the anticipation of the venue where it will be held. In the past few years, each of the social club’s signature philanthropy and Diwali events has been held, through a long rotation, at the homes of its members and each has been more superlative than the other, as if trying to outdo one another.

This past weekend, the venue was exceptional as C24+ held its annual Philanthropy event on Saturday, April 27, where members hand out donation checks to their favorite charities. The setting was at the tastefully decorated home of Asheet and Alka Yagnik who threw open their large backyard complete with a swimming pool and tiki-torches for the event. The social hour, dinner and check donation were held in the outdoor yard under deep blue skies with entertainment afterwards bt the very talented and skillful magician Robert Berry who made many minds spin with his disappearing card tricks and China Rings tricks.

C24+ President Alpa Shah emceed the program and gave thanks to her organizing committee and recognized her other Board members and committee chairs including long-time founding member Ashok Garg.

“A few like-minded people got together in 2006 and formed a club for people who would not only like to socially connect with each other, of course before Facebook, but also make a difference in the society in whatever small way they can,” said Alpa Shah. “Thus the idea of the Philanthropy event shaped up. And today we are gathered to celebrate this highest characteristic of humanity. Philanthropy is not about money… it is about feeling the pain of others and caring enough about their needs to help. True wealth is, good we do in this world. Charity begins at home. With that thought on mind, Club 24, encourages their members to donate and reciprocates their effort by matching part of their donation.”

Nine charities which have traditionally received the support of the C24+ members once again came to accept their checks from the donor members. The C24+ members matched a portion of each donation. Each recipient gave a short speech about their charity and its work. The nine charities that received the checks were Interfaith Ministry’s Meals on Wheel program, Daya, Pratham, Cry, Ekal Vidyalay, Save a Mother, The Kinkaid School, the Rotary Club of Memorial Spring Branch and Ovarcome.

Snacks and dinner were by Dawat Catering (whose co-owner Mahesh Shah did double duty as a member) and Bijay Dixit of Unique Photo Images.

The Ekal on Wheels mobile computer lab , shown with volunteers. Ekal Houston’s Ramesh Shah and wife Kokila are shown on extreme right

Houston: The Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, USA is a registered, tax-exempt (501C), nonprofit service organization dedicated to bringing education and village development to rural India. Ekal is the largest grassroots, Non government organization (NGO) operating in remote and tribal villages of India. Ekal currently operates 85,000+ schools in as many villages across the entire nation educating over 2.5 million children annually, more than half of them being girls.

Ekal launched special projects to further develop villages as self sustaining social and economic units:

• Ekal Tailoring Centers (ETC) train women to earn a living, raising their self-esteem while sewing clothes for themselves and their families. Currently, there are 15 main centers and over 70 satellite training centers.

• Gramotthan Resource Centers (GRC): where, apart from skill training, the centers have demonstration units which showcase their agricultural techniques like organic farming, solar repairs etc.

• IVD (Integrated Village Development) is a concept for empowering and uplifting the rural and tribal sections of the society thereby making the entire village a self sufficient unit.

• The Telemedicine project, first of its kind in Ekal with support from Johns Hopkins University, is bringing expert medical advice to the doorsteps of remote villagers in Odisha.

• Ekal on Wheels (mobile computer lab), E-shiksha (which imparts digital literacy using tablets). Each van has 9 laptops to teach 18 trainees at a time.

• As of 2018, Ekal also helped create 60,000 rural self-sustaining trade jobs.

As part of a series of annual concerts across North America, Ekal Houston is hosting a special fundraising performance by the Saregama famed Vishwanath Batunge and group on Saturday, June 1, with dinner at 6 PM followed by entertainment at the University of Houston, Cullen Performance Hall/ Student center, 4800 Calhoun Rd, Houston TX 77024.

Clockwise from top left: UNICEF Honorary Chairs Leela and Nat Krishnamurthy with Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner at the Gala held on Friday, May 3 at the Post Oak Hotel; Sue Lester flanked by Margaret Alkek Williams (left) and UNICEF USA President & CEO Caryl Stern; Mayor Turner with Dan and Susan Boggio who received the Helena Pantaleoni Humanitarian Award for their tireless efforts for the Houston chapter through their Boggio Fund for UNICEF programs.

HOUSTON: The 6th Annual UNICEF Gala was held at the Post Oak Hotel on May 3 to a ballroom full of the cream of Houston society drawn to the common cause of helping children worldwide. Honorary chairs for the event were the Houston power couple of Nat and Leela Krishnamurthy (also a Director of the UNICEF Southwest Region) who have been active in the organization since the chapter started.

The event was held in the newest five-star hotel Post Oak at Uptown Park, named after the boulevard itself, where guests were escorted in and had their runway pictures taken before entering the ballroom. Part of the fundraiser featured silent auction items whose increasing bid prices rolled over on an electronic tickertape billboard hoisted on an elevated stage at the entrance to the ballroom. After a sumptuous dinner, the remainder of the large-ticket items were auctioned off live by Stephen C. Lewis. By the end of the evening, the gala raised over a million dollars for UNICEF.

The emcee of the event was television personality Debra Duncan. Caryl M. Stern, President and CEO of UNICEF, USA illustrated the organization’s work with the story of a young boy in a refugee camp in Jordan who never complained even as he shared his biscuit with his sister. She described the Kid Power program which emphasizes “Kids Helping Kids” events and shows that even Houston kids can make a difference to other less fortunate kids overseas.

Joining her onstage, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner (who sat with the Krishnamurthys) added “these are our children, wherever they may be. Children are our message to the future.”
The gala honored Susan and Dan Boggio, its largest contributors, who were presented with the Helenaka Pantaleoni Humanitarian Award by Stern. The award is named after the late Polish American silent film actress who raised more than $113 million in the 26 years she headed UNICEF, and is the mother of actress Tea Leoni.

Dan is founder and Chairman of PBK Architects, a national design firm, and along with his wife has created the Susan and Dan Boggio Fund for UNICEF programs. They narrated a short video of the field work they have done over the past year. “We are 99.1 per cent the same, but we live in a world where we lose 16,000 kids a year worldwide,” explained Susan. “UNICEF is already there making a difference.”

The Margaret Alkek Williams Humanitarian Award was presented by Williams herself to Sue Smith in memory of her late husband Lester Smith who died this past March. Lester was an oilman and generous philanthropist who was known for his playfulness and deep pockets.

Together, the couple recently gave a whopping $50 million to the Texas Children’s Hospital and were generous with other charitable causes too, including UNICEF. Lester loved dancing and in his memory, as the guests left, they were given complimentary copies of his book “You Gotta Dance like No One’s Watching.”

As the evening ended, The Garden State Guys performed a golden oldies tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and soon filled the dance floor. NextGen hosted a silent disco after the party.

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA

HOUSTON: It is a testament to the persuasive power of his philosophy of life and harmonious coexistence that Rabindranath Tagore is immortalized the world over in one manner or the other. In the Bayou City, his presence has been felt since 1974 when the Tagore Society of Houston was formed around the nucleus of a growing Bengali community that has since made its mark through other events and structures, chief among them the Durga Bari Temple in far west Houston.

Every year there is an Annual Tagore Talk gathering with prominent speakers (this year it is on June 1 at India House). In 2013, the TSH along with the PfP Industries and Techno India Group created a Tagore Grove in Ray Miller Park (on Eldridge near Briar Forest) where a 76-inch tall bronze statue of Tagore on a pedestal graces down benevolently upon you.
The two people behind PfP – Ruma and Asoke Acharya Deysarkar – had formed the Tagore Center Foundation when they pursued the statue project. But their love for Tagore and his vision of international peace and harmony went much further as five years later, in May 2018 – almost coinciding with Tagore’s birthdate – Asoke bought a 14.6-acre plot of land west of Dairy Ashford at Brantrock with the intention of building an ashram-like environment, modeled after Tagore’s residence Shanti Niketan near Kolkata.

Both Ruma and Asoke are chemical engineers who have built very successful businesses for themselves after they settled in Houston. In 1998. Ruma founded a geotechnical services consulting firm – Ground Technology – and ran it for 20 years, eventually selling it last year, liberating herself to follow up on the personal project of the Deysarkar Family Trust Fund to build Shanti Niketan on the Bayou through the Tagore Center Foundation. Asoke founded PfP in 2003 and continues to run what is now listed in the Top 100 companies in Houston.

The vision that the power couple had is now complete, and on Saturday, May 4, they unveiled it at a ground-breaking ceremony on a sunny morning after a heavy rainfall the night before. Nestled under a white tent under an azure sky, and in view of the golden geodesic domed meditation center a block away, the Deysarkars shared their vision with close friends and a few dignitaries like District F Councilman Steve Le and Dr. Anupam Ray, the Indian Consul General. Sanchali Basu, a close friend of the Deysarkars, was the emcee for the event that concluded with a box lunch from Hungry’s.

The Tagore Center Foundation, will include an Early Education Development Center and an Adult Education Center. It will also include a Visual Arts Center, a Performing Arts center, an Open Air Auditorium, an Art Gallery and Fairgrounds. The site work for the roads and pad locations has been completed and the structure design is now being completed.

“This Center will organize, promote and popularize educational, cultural, social and intellectual events celebrating diversity, intercultural harmony, raise awareness of the blend of Eastern and western culture,” said Ruma, adding, “the Center’s philosophy framed on Tagore’s concept of universal humanism, transcendental spirituality and a borderless world.” Asoke spoke briefly on the history of the project, Tagore’s relevance and his influence on Mahatma Gandhi.

“What you see is a dream come true,” said chief guest Dr. Anupam Ray who did the ground breaking ceremony. He noted that he was due to leave this year for another posting and probably would not be able to visit the site again, and added that “This cultural monument is valuable to bind the world’s largest and oldest democracies.”
Philamena Baird, past chairwoman of Houston Arts Alliance and advisory board member of TCF, said she was not familiar with Tagore before but had read up on him and was awestruck how accomplished he was. “He represented humanity and dreamed of universal humanity,” she said.

HOUSTON: Approximately 850 people were witness to a magical musical evening hosted by Ekal Vidyalaya at the U of H Cullen Performance Hall on June 1st, 2019.
The event kicked off with a mouth-watering dinner catered by Dawat Catering, wherein Houstonians found a perfect venue to meet and greet with other patrons. One could sense their enthusiasm and zeal to support and stand by Ekal’s phenomenal grassroot level work.

Ekal Houston had raised about $1.5 million at the Oct 2018 Ekal Gala with a large presence of young professionals. Last night, an additional $400,000 were pledged/contributed by our Bollywood loving, musically inclined patrons.

Vishwanath Batunge along with his team had the audience in ecstasy – clapping their hands, swaying and even dancing to the beats! Vishwanath’s antics coupled with Nayana Sarma’s mellifluous voice and the brilliant percussionist/ tabla/ keyboard team had Houstonians in their grip. The evening melted away into the night with people crying out for more. True to what people had heard from other Ekal chapter events, Vishwanath and team were sheer brilliance.

The Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, USA is a nonprofit service organization. It dedicates itself to bringing education and village development to rural India. With ongoing work in the remote and tribal villages of India, the Ekal movement is the largest grassroot NGO in India.

The Ekal magnitude, reaching close to 87,000 villages, is unprecedented. Education reaches over 2.5 million children annually, more than half this number, being girls. Ekal is marching fast towards its goal to establish 100,000 schools by the end of this year.

To sustain a village as an independent social and economic unit, Ekal has piloted several projects. Ekal on wheels is one of them, wherein, a mobile van equipped with laptops and trained instructors travel to the remote hinterland and impart basic computer skills to the youth.

Similarly, Ekal’s Tailoring Centers train women not only to sew their own clothes but create an opportunity for them to earn a living. One woman can earn 7000 to10,000 rupees per month, bringing economic independence for their families. Gramotthan Resource Centers (GRC) are units which aim to make a village community economically self-reliant by educating and motivating villagers to adopt Eco-friendly life, train farmers on organic farming and promote agro based local entrepreneurship.

Ekal has proposed cohesive development of 30 village clusters under the project called Integrated Village Development (IVD) where Ekal Vidyalayas (One Teacher Schools), Digital Literacy, Health Hygiene, E Shiksha, Skill Training are combined under one comprehensive project.

The night saw a huge support from the local crowd. The Ekal core team was on its feet ensuring people to see for themselves the work done by Ekal. The core volunteers, along with young professionals and youth volunteers worked their heart out showing us that engagement and commitment go a long way indeed. As evident by Ramanbhai Das and his son Divyesh Das’ (of Palace Inn) continued commitment to Integrated village development (IVD) and the support of Mr. and Mrs. Mrugesh Parikh for Ekal on Wheels & Computer Lab, the fundraising event saw significant interest by patrons in sponsoring various projects, taking Ekal efforts to the next new heights while continuing their commitment to schools.

This event was graced by Consul General of India (CGI) Dr. Anupam Ray and his wife Dr. Amit Goldberg. In his thought-provoking speech, CGI mentioned that Ekal is “close to his heart”, as he has visited several Ekal locations close to where he spent his formative years and witnessed village transformations, first hand. He described India as “on the move”- a country that is one of the fastest growing and most dynamic economies of the world, yet also a country which is a “tough” place to live in and which faces many problems. He rightly expressed “Every child reached by Ekal is a plus for progressive India and minus for the counterproductive extremist organisations”.

The CGI further commented that though he gets invited to many charities, the Ekal fundraiser has a tradition of attracting donors for the work being done on ground in India.He admired that what sets Ekal apart is its focus on its work rather than about mega celebrities or sports stars being present at their events.

He also stated that his term in Houston is ending soon and took the opportunity to bid farewell to the wonderful Indian diaspora. He concluded with his best wishes to Ekal Houston team and best regards for Rameshji and Kokilaji, Ekal’s mainstays.

Ekal Houston Chapter President Yogi Patel addressed the crowd mentioning Ekal’s work and its unique position in being “truly a people’s movement”.
He cited an example of stopping an exodus of people from small villages to cities for jobs, who at times in dire situations end up in the city slums. Houston Event Director Dharmendra Shah kept the audience glued to their seats. One of Ekal’s mainstays, Kokila Ji’s speech was very inspiring. Addressing the audience in our national language Hindi, she thanked the crowd as well as invited them to come to the villages and gain a firsthand insight into the work done.

As all good things come to an end, the musical night too drew a close with Vishwanath Batunge getting the core Ekal volunteers to the stage holding hands and singing to the tune of a popular Hindi number. The lines went “Phoolon mein khushboo hain, Is dil mein ik Ekal tu hain, Janmon ke saathi, Hum saath saath hain, Hum saath saath hain”. Such a fitting tune for Ekal’s philosophy of displaying unity in commitment.

Pratham Houston President Asha Dhume with Swatantra Jain, Pratham CEO & National Board member.

HOUSTON: At the Board meeting on May 29, Pratham Houston President Asha Dhume was presented a plaque by Pratham CFO and Pratham National Board member, Mr. Swatantra Jain in recognition of her hard work, commitment and dedication to the cause of Pratham and for the upliftment of the underprivileged children of India.

The entire Board recognized the outstanding work that Asha Dhume has done as chapter President raising a record $4.5 million at the annual gala on April 20th. This amount is the highest raised among all Indian- American charities in Houston and also nationally across all Pratham chapters in the US. The dazzling “sold out” gala celebrated 20 years of Pratham USA and honored Pratham USA Founder, Vijay Goradia.

The recognition of Asha was truly special as several past Pratham Houston Presidents were attendees at the Board meeting – Anil Shah, Swatantra Jain, Marie Goradia and Ash Shah.
Asha Dhume thanked the entire Board for this recognition bestowed upon her and acknowledged the support of all donors who have contributed generously to the cause of Pratham over the years.

Please save the dates for the Pratham Holiday Luncheon on Friday, December 6, 2019 at the Junior League of Houston and the Pratham Houston Gala on Saturday, April 18, 2020 at Hilton Americas.

Established in the slums of Mumbai in 1995, Pratham is now one of India’s largest non-governmental education organizations, having affected the lives of more than 60 million underprivileged children in the past two decades. To achieve its mission of “every child in school and learning well,” Pratham develops practical solutions to address gaps in the education system and works in collaboration with India’s governments, communities, educators, and industry.

Pratham USA is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization with a consistent four-star rating from Charity Navigator that seeks to raise awareness and mobilize financial resources for our work in India. For more information, visit prathamusa.org.

BY PRAMOD KULKARNI

Dressed to kill — the ladies came in their fineries to try their hands at Casino games such as Blackjack, Roulette, and Poker.

CYPRESS: Casino Night brings to mind the exciting Hollywood images of Casino Royale and our intrepid hero: 007 James Bond. While only two of the men of Club 24 Plus were dressed in Bond style tuxedos or white jackets, the women were certainly were dressed to kill. And kill they did at the games of chance. The top chip holders were both women.

The men did partake of the casino games, but indulged in cocktails, both shaken and stirred at the luxurious home of Drs. Vanitha and Bharat Pothuri.

Hosts Bharat and Vanitha Pothuri with past presidents Pradeep Gupta (far left), Founder-Director Ashok Garg, Manisha Gandhi and Vivek Kavadi (far right).

Club 24 Plus members displayed intense concentration at the Blackjack table.

Organizer Amrit Singh was among blood donors at the SNC.

HOUSTON: One pitch to give blood is “and be a hero” and for most people it rings true enough to make their way to the Blood Center van. Two Sundays ago, on June 2 – four days before the 75th commemoration of the D-Day – the invasion of Normandy in World War II – the pitch rang true for members of the congregation of the Sikh National Center.

The 20-acre SNC site has been the focus of most of the Sikh community’s efforts to build a master-planned center that would house a Gurdwara as well as a boarding school, auditorium, museum, library, pavilion and residence for priests.
The collection van from the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center pulled up beside the basketball pavilion and the interim gurdwara which has been the focal point of Sunday prayer meetings for the past ten years.

According to one of the organizers, Amrit Singh, the 4th Annual Blood Drive by the SNC was held to commemorate the 35th anniversary of Operation Blue Star during which – from June 1 to 8, 1984 – the Indian military took action to oust militant religious leaders from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. “Of those who attempted donation, 23 were successful, including many first time donors,” said Singh after he had himself donated.

Blood collections are performed by the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center (www.giveblood.org) which encourages the donations in order to replenish the Houston Blood Bank that services area hospitals. To meet the needs of the area community, The Blood Center must collect about 800 donations every day and so it encourages individuals to Commit for Life, to give blood.

BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA

Top Left: Donors to the IMAGH Scholarship fund with Houston Community College Trustee Neeta Sane (second from right). Top right: 6-year-old Omar Patel who read the tiawat Quran, with emcee Shazia Khan.

HOUSTON: Neither the heavy downpour nor the occasion of Father’s Day could dampen the spirits of the 500 invited guests who came to this year’s Eid Milan gala organized by the Indian Muslim Association of Greater Houston and held last Sunday, June 16 once again at the Marriott Hotel in Westchase. And once again, in a continuation from past years’ on its focus on religious tolerance and inclusion, this year, the IMAGH reached out to both Christian and Hindu Nationalists to show how people can co-exist and thrive.

In an echo of last year’s presentation by Dr. Gary Branfman, the rabbi of the synagogue of Victoria, Texas; this year, the featured speaker was a former Marine, Richard McKinney, a veteran who had made several tour of duty in the Middle East. After he had returned to his hometown, Muncie, Indiana, McKinney explained how he was filled with rage against Muslims.

“I had a hatred that was so deep and embedded in me,” McKinney said, “and planned to blow up the local mosque and kill 200 people.” He went to scout out the place and got into a discussion with the imam there, which was the beginning of his conversion to Islam. In two short years, he went from hatred toward Islam to become the head of the mosque. Now he goes around the country to speak and said “people of faith should put your hands out together.” He story was featured on CBS’s Sunday Morning program in March by producer Josh Seftel.

On the other side of the spectrum was the chief guest Ramesh Bhutada, a staunch supporter of many Hindu causes and the national Vice President of the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh and advisor to the Board Hindus of Greater Houston. After the landslide victory of the Bharatiya Janata Party in India and the rise of Hindu Nationalism, which has made many minorities – especially Muslims – uncomfortable and concerned for their rights, Bhutada’s presence at the gala was an effort to show the more moderate side of the BJP and assuage these fears.

Bhutada explained that the HSS was primarily involved in character building of youth. “We wish to have an open dialogue contracry to what is projected in the media and foreign interests who want to keep communities separate,” he went on, adding, “The RSS and HSS want communal harmony among all religions.”

“We cannot look backwards. India’s development cannot be complete without the development of minorities,” Bhutada said. He then described how, four years ago, he was introduced to a young poor Muslim man, Arshad Shaikh, in the old part of Hyderabad and had agreed to help him financially. The young man went on to establish Kalam Center, a vocational training center for boys and girls and now has several branches and many enrolled students.

When it was his turn to speak, the guest of honor Indian Consul General Anupam Ray called Bhutada’s inclusion in the gala and his acceptance to attend “most extraordinary”. He then expanded on the idea of India’s cultural heritage through stories that resonate in the Indian psyche like that of Kabir’s death or legend of Guru Nanak’s death.

“Poverty, disease, internet, technology has no religion,” he declared. “Religion should unite all of us.” He then recited by heart the Preamble to the Indian Constitution, which prominently uses the word “secular” in the opening line. He used the occasion to bid goodbye as he is expected to leave for his next posting as soon as the Government decides what that will be. The IMAGH hosts presented him with a black Stetson as a farewell present.

This year’s theme for the gala was “Strength, They Name is Woman” and a video presentation produced by Fateh Ali Chatur showed clips from speeches by Malala Yousafzal, the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner speaking after receiving the award; Mother Teresa and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaking in Parliament after the recent massacre in a mosque there.

Breaking the speeches up was a segment of entertainment by Indian flutist Pravin Godkhindi who was on the last leg of his 18-city US tour. He performed onstage accompanied by his son Sharaj and older brother Kiran on the tabla and the three had the audience in raptures and mesmerized with their mastery of the flute, adding to their repertoire some Bollywood numbers that they encouraged the audience to either sing along to or clap in beat.

The IMAGH recognized an individual and organization for their community service: Tasnim Vada, a tireless volunteer who headed last year’s Milan and fashion show, was awarded the 2019 Latafath Hussain Award for Exemplary Community Service and the Houston Chapter of Seva International, a volunteer group that helps people in distress through relief and rehabilitation. Accepting the award was Gitesh Desai, who earlier this year was awarded the Parvasi Bharatiya Award in India, the country’s highest civilian award.

Shazia Khan, a RJ at Radio Dabang, was the evening’s emcee. Opening the program was 90 year-old Tyebji Shipchandler, affectionately known as “kaka” (Uncle); Sarah Shekhani on the US national anthem and Ismet Warsi the Indian and 6-year-old Omar Patel reciting the tilawat Quran. IMAGH President Munir Ibrahim made some welcome remarks and co-founder and past President Latafath Hussain added his special notes of welcome and thanks.

One of the winners of last year’s IMAGH scholarships to three deserving students: Masooma Batool, spoke briefly of what she had been able to do with the award and her future goals. There were video messages from Paru McGuire, the enduring President of IMAGH’s sister organization for seniors, Club 65 who gave a quick rundown of its monthly activities and Mohammed Khan, President of SAYA geared to young people who spoke about that group’s work. This year’s dinner was catered by Nirvana restaurant, whose owner and master chef Salim Ahmed was at hand to supervise.

HC4A directors with Fort Bend County Court Judge Juli Mathew (second from left) and Fort Bend County Judge KP George (third from right).

HOUSTON: The HC4A (Hindu Charities for America, a non-religious 501c charity) “Serve Where You Live” Houston area kick-off event was held at the end of April 2019 at the Sugar Creek Montessori School in Stafford (southwest Houston) and it was a grand success!

Apart from Austin-based founder Mr. Harish Kotecha and stalwart member Mr. Dinesh Vakharia, Honorable Judges K.P. George and Juli Matthew shared their experiences working with underprivileged students and communities in Fort Bend County. In addition, Neeta Sane, Houston Community College Board Trustee shared her knowledge on the HCC system and how HC4A may effectively work in the area of workforce/vocational scholarship support.

Their insights, along with the guidance provided by several key attendees/donors proved extremely valuable for the work of HC4A whose goal is to bridge income disparity through education by a) providing vocational scholarships to economically underprivileged students and b) raise funds for school supplies/school backpacks for the large number of children from underprivileged backgrounds. As Harish Kotecha, the Founder of HC4A put it, “education is important to us and is a passion for us all, and we will continue to support students in our local communities.” Since its launch in Austin back in 2010, Harish Kotecha has now successfully expanded HC4A activities to the Houston and Los Angeles areas.

This charity is “for America.” It is a unique concept; Indians in the United States have long been sending justifiable aid to India, whether it be through donations for specific projects or remittances. HC4A does not seek to replace or supplant such efforts. Rather, the HC4A seeks to increase awareness of Hindu Americans as a charitable group, thereby promoting steps towards tolerance and acceptance across society. By benefiting local American communities and encouraging concerted efforts by all members of the community through charitable action, HC4A has struck a unique chord in Indo-American society. As a result, over the past few weeks, two more Foundation Board members have joined HC4A-Houston, namely, Mrs. Lalita Trehan, the founder of Sugar Creek Montessori School and Mrs. Ruchika Singh Dias of Bollywood Shake.

The HC4A-Houston team is proud to announce that they have raised over $10,000 towards vocational scholarships since the launch event, as well as additional funding for the back-to-school backpacks program. HC4A will be meeting with organizers for both activities on July 1s, and shall be finalizing the logistics. A video highlighting HC4A’s activities is available online at https://youtu.be/hvBbRpASwDA and further information is available on their website at www.hinducharitiesforamerica.org You can also reach out to Sashi Konidena, HC4A Houston coordinator at sashi@hc4a.org if you have any further questions about donations for workforce scholarships or back-to-school backpacks program, or need any further information about the charity.

Readathon participants with Thank You cards made by Pratham kids in India, Pratham National Board member and CFO, Pratham USA, Mr Swatantra Jain and Houston Coordinator of the Pratham Readathon, Manjit Soni.

HOUSTON: Worry. Despair. Hopelessness. These are the emotions running through millions of people in India, as they battle poverty every single day. Today, 75% of the Indian population earn no more than $78 per month. With little to no opportunities in sight, the future generations have no choice but to give in to the endless cycle of poverty and hunger. However, there is a way to break out of the cycle and win this fight: education. But 35% of the population is unable to read and write. This is where Pratham steps in.

Pratham is a non-profit organization that works to educate children in India. It began with a small preschool located in the depths of Mumbai and through their efforts, has now expanded to have schools and learning centers in 20 Indian states, touching the hearts of thousands of kids across the country.

One part of this organization that makes a significant contribution to this goal is the Pratham Readathon program. In this program, everybody, from little kids to adults, can do their part in raising money to educate children in India. This program is national, meaning that there are chapters all over America, including Houston. In this program, local kids will try to read as many books as they can, and in return, their family and friends will donate money based on the number of books read. Through this program, not only kids in India are benefitting, but local kids are also enhancing their imagination and overall view of the world by immersing themselves in the written word and becoming a part of a community that loves reading just as much as they do. In fact, in the 2018 Readathon program, kids in Houston were able to raise $10,000. Given that it only takes $25 to educate one kid, the Houston chapter alone has touched the lives of hundreds.

Recently, on June 23, Manjit Soni, the Houston coordinator of the Pratham Readathon, launched the 2019 Summer Readathon with a dazzling event to welcome all of the children participating. The readers had a wonderful time, where they had a chance to know each other through word games, such as anagrams, that all book-lovers could appreciate. Also, at this event, these ambitious readers had the opportunity to discuss and share their favorite books with one another, encouraging each other to continue to read and contribute to the Pratham cause. Mani Surkari, volunteer coordinator of Pratham USA, particularly recommended an interesting book, titled Beeline, by Shalini Shankar, which explains why kids from an Indian background excel in spelling bees.

One of the most touching moments of this event was the distribution of thank you cards by Pratham National Board Member and CFO of Pratham USA, Swatantra Jain. These cards were made by the children in India who have benefitted from this readathon. As the participants of the readathon received the thank you cards, which were filled with pictures of the kids in India smiling and happily clutching their books to their chests, these participants had the opportunity to see their impact on the lives of others.

As Malcolm X once said: “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” The Pratham organization encourages all kids and adults to join this fight for education, as they work to create opportunities for the future generation in India.

Vaani Gupta is a senior high school student at the prestigious Village School and has volunteered for the Pratham Readathon since the last five years.

So, please join the Houston Readathon Team or start your own team in your area and brighten the lives of underprivileged kids in India.

For more information, please contact: houstonreadathon2019@prathamusa.org or msurkari@prathamusa.org or visit www.prathamusa.org