The New England Hindu Temple organized a fundraising drive to help the victims of the Tsunami disaster. The initiative headed by Trustee Dr.Seshagirirao Meka , promised to match contributions given by devotees up to a maximum of $12,500.  The temple donated a total sum of $28,606 to four organizations who are providing relief for Tsunami victims.

In a ceremony held at the temple in Ashland on February 27, 2005  the monies were distributed to the different charitable organizations. “The response from the devotees overshot our expectations. We collected nearly $16,000. We added $12,500 as matching funds”, said Dr. Meka as he was distributing the checks. India Development and Relief Fund, Manitha Neyam, Art of Living and AIM for Seva were chosen by NEHTI as recipients of the charitable donation.
“We respect all the work you do. We are grateful to your organizations for reaching out to the victims and providing relief where needed” said Chairman T. Balasubramaniam as he handed out the checks.

 As part of the event each representative described the kind of help their organization was providing. “We have already given $20,000 towards reconstruction efforts particularly in Nagapatanam which was badly hit. We have bought boats, fisher nets etc to help the fisherman. IDRF plans to donate $100,000 to help people in Andrapradesh, Andaman, Nicobar islands and Kerala” said Raghunath Verabelli who was representing IDRF.

Kailas Aravinthan spoke about the help that Manitha Neyam had provided to people Sri Lanka. “The devastation in Sri Lanka was awful.  We are building homes, buying nets  and boats for the fisherman” said Aravinthan.

Charulata Apte who along with Ajay Jain represented Art of Living talked about providing stress relief for victims. “Art of Living believes in a holistic approach to help victims. The Tsunami has caused a lot of trauma. Some fisher folk are now really afraid of the sea. Trauma specialists from the US are working alongside Art of Living representatives to provide stress relief. In addition we are also providing nets and boats to support their livelihood “said Apte.    

AIM for Seva is an organization that is headed by Swami Dayanada in Pennsylvania. “When the disaster struck I was at Swamiji’s Ashram. I was amazed that within a few hours of the disaster, trucks were being dispatched to help the victims. Swamiji was guiding the ground workers in India and it was clear that they were doing a great job” said Kumar Nochur, who is the Secretary of Nehti.

Nehti and the other organizations spoke about how they could help each other. NEHTI President Avu Chockalingam agreed to allow the various charitable organizations to use the temple to spread their message. The temple already has plans for expansion. It hopes to support more educational, cultural and charitable activities. IDRF offered its services to help raise funds for the temple. Art of Living offered to support the education wing by providing Yoga and meditation training.

Venkateshwararao Dhullipalla thanked all for attending the event and hoped for future collaborations.

If you have suggestions for the temple or if you would like to volunteer your services , please send a mail to nehtisec@yahoo.com

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