Jan 2022, Vol. 5, No. 1

Dear supporters of Sevalaya USA,

Happy New Year! As we reflect on 2021, we are thankful to our Sevalaya supporters for their generous contributions. This new year brings some new changes and some not so new challenges.

In 2021, Sevalaya USA’s Project Education supported the education of 543 students at the Mahakavi Bharathiyar Higher Secondary School. In addition, a generous donor funded two projects (upgrading the kitchen and pantry areas in Kasuva campus), where around 2000 students and a hundred seniors are served free lunch everyday. Funds were also provided for buying sports equipment for the students.

A big shout out to Vasavi Seva Foundation, San Francisco Bay Area, for funding two humanitarian projects, the renovation of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa Senior Home in Kasuva campus and the installation of pavements at Image, a home for mentally challenged in Thevaram, Theni, Tamil Nadu.

Thanks to a generous donation from a supporter, Sevalaya, India has undertaken a construction of a 5044 sq. ft. new senior home, accommodating 30 senior citizens, in Zamin Endathur in Tamil Nadu. The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the home was performed on March 24th, 2021.

We are excited to announce ​​the funding of a new project, Vocational Training Centre at Pattinampakkam, a neighborhood in Chennai, where most of the residents depend on fishing for their livelihood. With a very generous donation from a donor, a corpus fund has been set up to support the operating expenses of the center. Sevalaya India conducts computer training classes and tailoring classes for young men and women, enhancing their employability. The center also conducts tutoring and karate classes for children.

In October 2021, 48 supporters signed up for the RunWalkForSeva virtual fundraiser and ran in the rain, climbed mountains, hiked trails in Africa, and walked on local roads and in local parks. They raised enough funds to support seven students for one full year, which includes school supplies, classroom materials, uniforms, books, extracurricular activities and also support part of teacher salaries.

Board Member, Anandi Lakshmikanthan, visited the Sevalaya office in Chennai and met with Sevalaya founder Mr. Muralidharan. Mr.Muralidharan shared that the schools, which have been closed for in person instruction for more than a year after the Covid-19 breakout, have reopened and that children are being given masks and are practicing safety protocols to keep everyone safe.

Thank you for your overwhelming support for our Holiday Fundraiser for the San José Family Shelter. We donated pillows, comforters, sheets, bath mats, sanitizers, groceries, and other items worth $2000.

We need your support to continue our work. One easy way to support Sevalaya is to shop on smile.amazon.com. It is the same Amazon you use and the products and services are the same. Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ and select Sevalaya USA from the charity list. Whenever you shop on smile.amazon.com, Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice.

We are also looking for volunteers to join our team. For additional information, please visit us online at sevalaya.us and facebook.com/SevalayaUSA.

Sincerely,

Sevalaya team

Aug 2021 VOl. 4, No. 2

The second wave of COVID-19 in India has had severe consequences in the form of increasing number of cases and reduced essential supplies. There is a critical and immediate need for oxygen cylinders and oxygen concentrators in government hospitals and COVID Care Centers. In addition, the lockdown restrictions have resulted in unemployment for many, particularly the daily wage and migrant workers. Supply of dry ration is also affected as lockdowns can significantly impact the ability of families to afford meals. In Chennai, Sevalaya is undertaking relief activities with the support of donors and corporations and distributing dry rations and pre-cooked food. Sevalaya members have been working with hospitals and primary health centers in Chennai, Kancheepuram, Chengalpet, Tiruvallur and Nilgiris, procuring and distributing medical supplies. Sevalaya is also operating ambulances and distributing oxygen concentrators with help from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs.

To support these efforts, Sevalaya USA has set a fundraising goal of $50,000 to get Oxygen concentrators and personal protection kits. A total of $ 33,000 has been raised so far. Sevalaya would like to thank all the donors who made this possible. We also would like to acknowledge the following donors:

● Ankitara Foundation, USA for their donation towards the purchase of 6 Oxygen Concentrators for Government General Hospital, Tenkasi.

● Board member Venkatesh Prasad, USA for his donation towards the purchase of 3 Oxygen Concentrators.

● Donor and supporter Mr. Dhamodaran and his friend Mr. K. Venkatesan for organizing, coordinating with Vasavi Seva Foundation and delivering 6 oxygen concentrators to Sevalaya for distribution to hospitals.

In addition, the 1983-1987 batch of the College of Engineering, Guindy raised funds for an Oxygen Plant at the Gudalur Government Hospital with 100 LPM capacity. This project was implemented by Sevalaya members and ensures that 20 hospital beds will get access to permanent oxygen supply at Gudalur.

Since the lockdown of 2020, the Mahakavi Bharathiyar Higher Secondary School has been closed and the classes have transitioned online. This has created urgency around the need for appropriate devices for students to allow them to participate in distance learning. With the help of donors, Sevalaya raised $600 towards the purchase of Smartphones for use by students. Four students from Standard IX and XII were selected from Mahakavi Bharathiyar Higher Secondary School and presented with a smartphone in July 2021.

We also wish to express our deep gratitude to the following:

● Mr. Vijaianand for his endowment which supports the education of 9 students.

● The Hindu Community and Cultural Center of Livermore for a grant of $500 to continue efforts.

● The team of Preethi Srinivas, Yunhan Wang and Paul Irish for volunteering their time to redesign the Sevalaya website.

One easy way to support Sevalaya is to shop on smile.amazon.com. It is the same Amazon you use and the products and services are the same. Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ and select Sevalaya USA from the charity list. Whenever you shop on smile.amazon.com, Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice.

We are also looking for volunteers to join our team. For additional information, please visit us online at sevalaya.us and facebook.com/SevalayaUSA.

Sincerely,

Sevalaya team

January 2021, Vol. 4, No. 1

Dear supporters of Sevalaya USA,

Happy New Year! The year 2020 will be remembered for the challenges created by the pandemic which have been felt deeply worldwide. Through this incredible adversity, the strength and resiliency shown by Sevalaya supporters is greatly appreciated.

In 2020, Sevalaya supported 543 students at the Mahakavi Bharathiyar High School. Some of the activities made possible by your support include two

fundraisers to help Sevalaya students get access to technology during the COVID lockdown of schools and two alumni fundraisers that helped set up endowments and smart classrooms. In addition, Sevalaya USA donated items like Ensure, whole wheat pasta, canned vegetables, fruits and sauces, crackers, Brown rice, granola bars, peanut butter, canned salmon and tuna, nuts, cereals, pancake mix, etc. to the Community Services Agency in Mountain View.

We thank the alumni from the 1995 ECE batch of PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore for their generous and thoughtful donation. They celebrated their 25th year reunion by raising funds to support one Smart Classroom (a Smart Classroom includes an ACER Dual Core PC, projector and an interactive board) at the Mahakavi Bharathiyar Higher Secondary School. The alumni group has also set up the following endowments which will provide continuous support to Sevalaya.

• Educational Sponsorship for 3 children

• Living expenses for 2 children

• Sponsorship of dinner once a year

• Living expenses for a senior

In 2020, some of the funds came through fundraisers hosted by Sevalaya supporters. Our thanks to Sundar Vaidyanathan, Sundar Ramanathan and Prema Ranganthan for their Facebook fundraisers. We are grateful to Preethi Srinivas of Google for hosting a fundraiser to raise money to buy Chromebooks and smartphones for the students who do not have access to technology at home. Schools have been closed for almost a year due to Covid-19 and this donation helps students with their distance learning. We would also like to thank her for initiating the revamp of our website.

We appreciate our donor and supporter, Mr. Kathiravan Ezhilmannan, (Prabakar Sundarrajan) who presided online as the chief guest at the Pongal Celebrations at Sevalaya India on January 13, 2021 and gave a humorous and inspiring speech to the students.

Sevalaya USA board members attended the Pongal celebrations virtually and observed the cultural program performed by the students of Sevalaya.

We need your support to continue our work. One easy way to support Sevalaya is to shop on smile.amazon.com. It is the same Amazon you use and the products and services are the same. Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ and select Sevalaya USA from the charity list. Whenever you shop on smile.amazon.com, Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice.

We are also looking for volunteers to join our team. For additional information, please visit us online at sevalaya.us and facebook.com/SevalayaUSA.

Sincerely, Sevalaya team