Hello friends,
Howdy from Houston? I been sharing some exciting news from my end and getting updates from many of you through the social media and other communication avenues. Hope everything is going well and if I missed anything exciting, please don’t hesitate to share with me.
It is December, a month to make this year remember in our life. Like every year, I am contacting you at this time to start our annual charitable giving campaign/fund-raiser. It is our Eighth year and we been joining hands together for last seven years as one family to make a difference in few under-privileged and orphaned kids back in India. Last year, we were able to raise $2530 $in total through all forms of payment which was $1030(68%) higher than year 2010. It was really great campaign by far compared to last 6 years. Out of those funds, we used $1700 to create one endowment/fixed deposit account to sponsor one kid education forever and rest of the amount was to continue to sponsor some of our long time kids in our pool. This year, I am hoping to create one more endowment account and continue to sponsor rest of the kids as well with you all gracious contributions.
We will continue to work with Sevalaya, a non-profit organization in Tamilnadu, India to sponsor the kids education this year as well. It’s an organization which educates hundreds of local village kids and orphans. They also guide them to stand in their feet by placing them in qualified professions and help them start a new life by arranging weddings with a right partner. You will never see this kinda of commitment in any other organization. I know the founder of the organization personally and I was able to visit the kids during Jan 2011 visit to India and spent time to learn more things about the organization. Below are the kids we currently sponsor.
It is a tremendous organization which continues to receive numerous awards every year for various accomplishment and their extraordinary support to the local community. You can learn more about them via this Youtube video and their media coverage here. Sevalaya kids proving their academic skill year and year again by giving 100% pass result in 10th and 12th grade public exams. They also excel in extracurricular activities by clinching various awards. I strongly urge you to check out Sevalaya’s annual report which has full details about last year activities.
Being a continuous sponsors, we become part of Sevalaya family now. It has become our unbound responsibility to continue to help those education hungry kids. So I kindly request you all to open your heart and contribute graciously and continue the tradition of giving by making a difference in these kids life. Every dollar you contribute goes directly to help the kid’s education. Whether it is $10 or $100, there is no limit. A small help goes long way in making a big difference.
You can contribute in two ways easily,
a) Cash/Cheque – Make check payable to my name for amount less than $100. My home address is 10219 Riderdale Park Ln, Houston, TX – 77070. If you are donating more than $100 and need a tax receipt, you can make the check payable to ASTI (AMERICAN SERVICE TO INDIA).
b) Credit card – Use Paypal account helpindia2007@yahoo.com. Only use this method if you cannot pay by check because there is a 7% commission charged by paypal from your donation since we don’t have US non-profit status yet.
One quote says, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it“. I am sure we all are grateful for our good life. We are thankful for it and one of many ways to show our thanks and also welcome the Newyear in a good way is to take the opportunity to give back to the world. Do not just think about making a difference in others life, Take action and JUST DO IT!!
Please try to send your contributions before Dec 31, 2012 if possible. Meanwhile if you can kindly send me a quick email with your planned contribution amount that would help me to plan and seek for more help to reach this year’s goal.
Please do forward to friends and spread the word around. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Thank you and Have a great Holiday Season!!!
Your friend,
Vijai
