India Post News Service

NEW YORK: Make friends, drink - and indulge in Chocolate at MadameX! … and when it's over, everyone gets to go dancing at Bar Via. What more can we offer you? How about the good Karma of helping India's poor youth learn valuable job skills! Well, that's a peppy invitation for a charity fundraiser by Lend-a-Hand India.

That Lend-a-Hand, a New York-based grassroots organization that provides education and vocational training for poor youth in India, believes in mobilizing the youth to contribute towards its noble cause is not surprising considering the innovative Chocolate tasting event it held recently at an upscale and hip joint like MadameX in Soho, in downtown Manhattan.

Despite the presence of many of the organization's volunteers at the event, nobody spoke about Lend-a-Hand or its activities or actively solicited funds. "We don't believe in talking about ourselves at our fundraising events," says Raj Gilda, co-founder of Lend-a-Hand India. "We want the youth to believe in the cause in a fun way.

They learn about us all they need to through our emails and our website. So they wouldn't be here if they did want to be associated with the cause." Gilda's strategy apparently works going by the elbow room only space that was available in the packed to capacity lounge, with a typically diverse New York guest turnout for the chocolate tasting.

The only real talking was done by Jackie Gordon from Divalicious Chocolate, who led the tasting session, explaining in great detail the best way to enjoy chocolate. Lend-A-Hand India's mission is to make a difference in the lives of the poor through self help.

According to its website, it creates better access to education, vocational training, career development, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities by partnering with grassroots non-profit organizations, community groups, and local governments.

Lend-a-Hand was the result of the personal journey and experiences of Co-founders Sunanda Mane and Raj Gilda. After working in the social development sector for over ten years in various parts of India, Sunanda moved to the United States in 2000. She had already decided that she would remain in touch with the work that she had started in India.

For Gilda, besides making a successful career in consulting and banking, his primary interest was to get involved in social activism to bring change in the lives of poor and underprivileged people. Together they worked to bring into reality the dream of Lend-A-Hand India.

The network with friends and well wishers and linkages with the non-profit sector in India and the United States helped Lend-A-Hand India launch its program without much delay. Due thought went into selecting "Youth" as the focus area of work. Three projects were launched in 2004 in partnership with grass roots non-profit organizations covering about 600 beneficiaries.