Sona's Blog

  Charity Indeed Begins at Home We keep talking about charity but this has to begin in our homes too. This is what I wished to do in my own family. My younger granddaughter Myra celebrated her 4th Birthday with slum children while she was in India. During their next visit, both granddaughters, Aarya 10 years, & Myra 6 years, baked cake, buttered 100 buns, and roasted on Tawa for pav bhaji, which our maid cooked for the slum children's birthday. They served food, got props, and gave gifts to them. While in the USA they make greeting cards and raise funds by selling cards. These are good values spread not through mega-events but through simple acts of reaching out. We request you to join us in our endeavour to spread the message of humanity and oneness. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change you want to see”

  Yoga - An Epitome Of Hope and Growth It is said, "All study and no play makes Jack a dull boy", but when someone lives in such a locality where there is no open space for play, what is the child supposed to do? About 40% of the population of Mumbai lives in slums. Small houses, narrow lanes, open & blocked drainage, filth all over. We run classes for slum children & we face this issue every day. To keep them away from bad health and influences, we tackle malnourishment problems every day by giving them healthy food every day, but can't arrange for open space for the playground. Most of them have stunted growth. 1 of our boys was rejected by the Army authorities due to limitations of his height. This stunted growth also causes inferiority complexes in them. We discussed the matter & finally reached a solution that Yog is the only alternative available to us. We have started once-a-week Yoga classes for our students & hope they keep good health & gain

                                                  Father's Day A Tribute to my Father. One Man Batallion : Late Mr Choithram J Bijlani Once my father was deputed to a village where dacoits used to trouble them for the booty. In order to solve the matter, my dad asked for the help of the battalion, to which the British Govt agreed. Dacoits sent messages to keep the booty at a specific place on a day. Dad informed the department who agreed to send a horse-mounted battalion a day earlier. An insider informed the dacoits about it. 2 days before the agreed date a man came running and informed my dad that dacoits are on their way. The battalion was to arrive the next day. My dad hastily mounted the horse and rode towards their den. Dacoits heard the sound of running hoofs and thought that battalion had arrived and turned back to their den. My dad returned back. Villagers were too scared to come out. When they saw only our father, all came out to find the truth. The next day when the batt

  Bhakti Wadkar stood 4th in 50 m Backstroke on 10 June 2022 Maharashtra Girls Relay Team which included Bhakti Wadkar stood second during Khelo India Contest on 11 June at Panchkula, Haryana. We have not been able to raise ₹27,300 for her swimsuit so far. She has worked very hard and deserves this swimsuit. Please do contribute as much as possible. Every paisa counts www.sonasarovartrust.org

Heaps of Love and Encouragement Often, many people feel arts and crafts are not required for the underprivileged. This is so wrong as all children are indeed the same and there is a lot of talent in that sector too as we have seen in all that we seek to do Children are always enthusiastic and all they need is heaps of love and encouragement. Once a nearby school approached us to enrol our children for the Inter-School Competition for Craft & Art. We enquired from our senior students whether they were interested. All 14 agreed to participate. We were extremely excited as we did not want to force them. Funds were an issue so we worked to make it happen. We bargained with the school being a charitable trust working for underprivileged children. They gave us a 50% discount. We went ahead and much to our delight, out of 14 children, 13 won many prizes. Not just this, they recommended our name for an Etho at H K College for 5 performances. 4 Dances (1 solo & 3 group dances) & 1 T

  Swimming Forward to Success   Very often, poor children, even if talented, often get left out due to a lack of finances, support or both. This is why we always ensure we reach out to them as it is not just studies but all interests that we wish to encourage. When this does indeed take place, we are always thrilled beyond imagination.   Now,  Bhakti Wadkar, daughter of a farm labourer, will be contesting for Swimming Championship at Khelo India from 8 June onwards. This is something she couldn't have imagined some time ago. She needed a swimsuit for Rs 27,300 for which we requested Mr Abhijit More, the father of her classmate to buy for her as time was too short for us to raise funds to buy this for her.   The remaining expenses are being covered by her College. Please come forward and help us repay Rs 27,300 for the swimsuit. Please contribute as much as you can. Please also spread the message in all your circles. For, every paisa counts.   We keep talking of supporting