The Ekal Vidyalaya foundation held during "Ekal Sandhya: Donors Appreciation Day" on the evening of May 20 at the Holiday Inn in Mansfield, MA.  The warm and welcoming event was a delightful evening for attendees filled with inspiration, fabulous music and a great dinner. “Appreciation” was central to the evening as each donor no matter what the amount was acknowledged and thanked. Over $100,000 were raised during the pledge drive. More than 400 people attended the event.

Thanks to consistent hard work put in by the Ekal team that includes  President Ram Nehra and his wife Nishi Nehra, Avinash and Ritu Agarwal,  Dr.Anil and Himani Chawla, Anit and Poonam Gupta, Rishi and Niti Kapoor, Abhishek Kumar, Sudhir Parikh, Dr.Harshad and Chetna Sanghvi & Rahul/Ankita Shah and many other families for several years and the new energy infused by Chairman Mr. Puran Dang, the fundraiser reached a new level this year. 

The money raised will go toward Ekal Vidyalaya's cause of supporting the education of the poorest and most disenfranchised population in remote Indian villages. The organization has about 36,000 schools in operation throughout India, with a goal of establishing 100,000 by 2016, which would impact 36.5 million students.

The organization's main fund-raising push is based on donors providing $1 per day for a year to fund one school for a total of $365. With 30 to 40 students at each school it equates to only about three cents a child.

According to Puran Dang, chairman of the New England branch of Ekal Vidyalaya, the $100,000 raised at "Ekal Sandhya: Donors Appreciation Day" will specifically support 260 schools and 8,000 students.

Ram Nehra, President of the New England region who has served as a passionate ambassador for Ekal Vidyalaya for many years emphasized the importance of Ekal Vidyalaya. “It is 65 years after independence from the British rule and still 300 million people, a number that is equals to the total population of USA, can't read or write their own name.  It is a national disgrace.  He appealed to every one to support this noble cause."

The plea was heard loud and clear.  The chief guest Amar Sawney, a very successful and yet very humble entrepreneur was tremendously moved by the cause.  He donated $10,000 but reminded everyone that giving money was a small thing compared to the tremendous effort of the volunteers in India who run such an organization is tremendous for it brings education and opportunity to so many underprivileged. 

Over 21,000 dollars were donated by many members of the Navani family that runs the eClinic. When Girish Navani spoke of the importance of education in his own life that transformed a simple boy from a remote village to a successful entrepreneur it tugged at many heart strings.

Dr. Manju Sheth was also a special guest for the  evening and appreciated the work of the Ekal Vidyalaya. 

The event was very elegant. Shobha Shastry of Alankar Décor provided a beautiful backdrop.  A professional Bollywood music group provided very high quality music. Audio was provided by Jawed Wahid. Vinod Kapoor of Masala Art provided a dinner that would fit a fine wedding. 
 
The event owes a lot to the support of many volunteers. Harish Dang did a lot of promotion for  the event on Sounds of India Radio.  Also we must thank Navneet Sharma  took beautiful pictures to commemorate the event.   Mr.Thomas Kelly, Director of Catering, at Holiday Inn Mansfield provided excellent service.

Jharna Madan and Geeta Singh served as emcees for the event and Ranjani Saigal ran the pledge drive. The unique thing about the Ekal event that differentiated from most other fundraisers  is the fact that the Ekal team  acknowledged every single donation and their gratitude is visible. A dollar donation was taken with the same reverence as a $10,000 donation.  

Ram Nehra and Puran Dang's own families made significant financial contribution to the cause.  Young Astha Agarwal, and Somil Sanghvi    dedicated members of the Ekal made passionate appeals that was most moving and brought a lot of donors. 

Mr. and Mrs. Girish Mehta who run the Indian Caring Circle were much moved by the pledge drive. “I came thinking we will donate for a school but then I was so inspired that I changed my mind and donated for five schools at the event,” said Mrs. Mehta. 

"I never knew Ekal is such a big organization doing such a wonderful work in the remote areas of India.  It was worth coming all the way from RI,” said Dr. Mohinder Paul. Dr. Paul is a very talented photographer who donated many prints or his work to the fundraiser. Sales of the photos went towards the collections.

A touching donation came from a freshman at Mount Holyoke. "Last year at my high school graduation party I collected all the monies I received as gift and donated it to support two schools. This year I have some earnings from part time jobs and I would like to support one school."

We wish Ekal Vidyalaya foundation great success and hopes it grows from strength to strength for its strength is India’s growth.