Children’s Day is approaching and we couldn’t be happier! School Children have been our focus through 16 years of Mid-Day Meal Programme. We welcome you to celebrate Children’s Day with our 1.6 million Akshaya Patra beneficiaries!  

Childhood – a time of innocence, frolic and carefreeness. The realities of life are at a safe distance, as a child’s world is cocooned by elders and unmarred by experience. A day like Children’s Day is a wonderful occasion, devoted to the most celebratory phase of one’s life.  While the colours of childhood are always bright, the land beyond the mountain – adulthood – always holds much fascination to the young mind. Akshaya Patra’s beneficiaries are no different – their kaleidoscope of dreams for the future shining through in varied hues.

Pithali from Assam loves dramatics and dreams of becoming an actress in Assamese movies. Hailing from Khudradadhi, Assam, this lady also wants to travel the world with her family of five, which includes her father, a seasonal mason; her mother, who stitches beautiful mekhela chadars (Assamese garment) and siblings. Then, there is Rohit from Vrindavan, who wants to be a professional Kho-kho player when he grows up. Now that’s an interesting choice!

In a village on the outskirts of Jaipur, there’s Salim, whose father owns a transport business. They use their donkeys to transport construction material and other heavy equipment. Salim wants to take over this family business, so that his father can retire and relax at home, after all, the hard work he has put in over the years. Down South, in Bengaluru, there’s Madan, who wants to serve the country by joining the Indian Administrative Services (IAS). He takes inspiration from the late IAS officer DK Ravi, whose personality and intelligence he ardently admires.

Chetan from Surat, whose family migrated to the city from Amravati in Maharashtra, wants to contribute to cityscapes by becoming an architect and designing tall buildings. Zinkal, from the city of Ahmedabad, wants to be the face of girl power and join the army to defend the nation. This is a dream that her family too has for her, which she wants to fulfil after growing up. She is an avid sportswoman, interested in track and field events like the long jump.

Akshaya Patra’s meals thus fuel the dreams of its beneficiaries. The organisation also took up a special initiative – Giving Every Dream A Chance – to bring a few of its beneficiaries a step closer to their dreams, by launching month-long mentorship programmes for them, under the guidance of experts. As India celebrates the spirit of childhood and all its children this Children’s Day, the Foundation, which only recently celebrated its 16th birthday on November 11, reaffirms its commitment to secure the futures of millions of children across India with unlimited food for education.

Fan the dreams of school children this Children’s Day. Contribute to strengthening their future.

Glamourous galas and high-profile benefits are well-known methods of charity fundraising, but every endeavour to raise funds need not be grand. A small event in the neighbourhood too can raise a small but significant amount of funds. Akshaya Patra encourages engagement in civic-minded activities for fundraising and we are ever ready to provide guidance and support to those who are interested. If you are looking for some ideas to raise funds, here are some to consider while starting off:

Charity cake and cookies sale
Thanks to the rise of food reality television shows, a number of people are avidly interested in baking. Whipping up delicious treats in the oven can be great fun, especially when done with loved ones. Put your baking skills to good use by holding charity cakes-and-cookies sales in your neighbourhood. We were pleasantly surprised recently when two of our supporters, young girls aged 12 and 13 years, learnt to bake cupcakes and held a sale of these treats to raise funds for our Foundation!

Car wash
Who doesn’t like the sight of a shiny, freshly-washed car? We all do! Get together with your friends, neighbours and all those wishing to join in, and organise a car wash! Car lovers would be happy to bring their prized vehicles and have them freshly scrubbed and waxed. You could also have children put up a lemonade stand nearby to quench the thirst and refresh those attending, and raise some more funds at the event with the help of the little ones!

Cash instead of birthday gifts
Birthdays are a wonderful occasion – they give us the opportunity to usher in a new year with those who are most near and dear to us. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to begin a new year in one’s life by collecting funds for a noble cause? Why not invite cash instead of gifts from family and friends and donate the amount thus collected to charity? It would be a truly memorable way to celebrate one’s life and also inspire others to do a noble deed on significant occasions in their lives.

A singing competition
Are there any troubles that some music cannot lessen? Look to this language of the soul to help you raise fund for those truly in need of your help. Organise a singing competition for a small fee and gift relevant tokens to those attending, so they are always reminded of having lent their voices to do good to society. A competition of this variety can reveal talents that are often hidden, and who knows, they may also lead the lucky, talented few to fame!

Handmade greeting cards
Greeting cards are commonly used for charity fundraising, but there is nothing as touching as a beautiful, painstakingly crafted, handmade greeting card. What could be a better way to express one’s love, admiration, appreciation, best wishes or gratitude, than a unique greeting card with a heartfelt message on it? Those blessed with artistic abilities can put their flair to good use by creating these cards and selling them at events like fairs, family gatherings or at charming little kiosks outside restaurants or malls.

Have you thought up a fundraising idea of your own that you would like assistance with? Let Akshaya Patra help you develop it!