I sha Vidhya along with Dallas Tamil Sangam (MTS) in Texas hosted popular comedian “Crazy” Mohan’s hit Tamil comedy show “Chocolate Krishna” to a full house of about 800 people. A portion of the event proceeds were donated to support Isha Vidhya and the Tamil Association joined hands to raise over $17,000. We are extremely thankful to MTS for choosing Isha Vidhya as their non-profit partner and giving us an opportunity to raise awareness on the need to educate underprivileged children.

Sharing from Dallas Isha Vidhya coordinator:

Ever since I watched the video presentation about Isha Vidhya at the Isha Institute of Inner Sciences, Tennesse, USA, the gleaming faces of the children in Isha Vidhya schools kept resurfacing in my thoughts. When I visited India shortly after that, the strong urge in me to see the joyous faces in person pulled me to the Isha Vidhya(IV) school near Coimbatore. The time I spent at the IV school in Sandegoundapalayam and the experience that I and my niece got were simply priceless. We witnessed the transformation that is slowly happening in really rural areas through high quality education in a joyful ambiance.

Flying back to America, I happened to read a book on the plane titled “Three Cups of Tea” by Greg Mortensen who built schools in the mountainous regions of Afganisthan. The content of the book and the joyful faces of the Isha Vidhya children whom I had seen kept me awake throughout the plane ride. When I got home, I shared my experience about the IV school and the book I read with my 8 year old son and his immediate response was “Mom, I have already read the children’s version of that book; it is called ‘Listen to the Wind’, so are we going to start building schools just like Greg for Isha Vidhya?”. Those words startled me and gave me the inspiration and determination to do our part for Isha Vidhya schools and within a few days, the Isha Vidhya Dallas chapter was born.

In 2011, with children ranging from ages 6 to 14 as volunteers, we went door to door in our neighborhoods, local schools, Boys Scout clubs, etc. talking about IV schools. Children reached out to their families and friends and sought scholarships for Isha Vidhya children. Birthday and dinner parties included discussions about rural education. Their enthusiastic and creative efforts paved the way to support about 75 children in 4 different Isha Vidhya schools last year.

This year, we had a much wider audience. On June 10th 2012, Isha Vidhya Dallas chapter along with the local Tamil Association (MTS) hosted a popular Tamil Play by comedian “Crazy” Mohan called “Chocolate Krishna”. During the show, Dallas volunteers presented about the Isha Vidhya schools and their vision to an audience of over 800, which was very well-received. I am really proud and humbled to say that through our efforts about 100 children will be able to go to Isha Vidhya school this academic year, receiving a world-class education, which will help them empower themselves and their families. Can’t wait to go back to Isha Vidhya school and see the gleaming smiles again!

- Mrs. Anbu Subramaniyan, Isha Vidhya Coordinator, Dallas, Texas, USA.

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