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In recognition of May as Mental Health Awareness Month, VT Seva Bay Area ( a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization ) is proud to host its Second Annual Mental Health Awareness Walkathon specifically geared towards Teen Mental Health. Date : April 30th, 2023 Time : 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM Venue : Almaden Lake Park, 6099 Winfield Blvd San Jose, CA 95120 Join us as we walk to raise awareness about the importance of mental health especially in teens who are at a critical phase in their life's journey. All proceeds benefit Netra Vidyalaya , a VT Seva supported school with a state of the art technology for visually challenged children empowering them to be self-reliant. We are excited to host Dr. Kalpana Nathan and Suryakala Jandhyala who will chat with us about mental wellbeing for teens and ways to cope in the post-covid era . Guest Speaker Kalpana Nathan, MD, CPE, LFAPA, DipABLM - Diplomate, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (Added Qualifications in Addiction and Forensic Psychiatry) Diplomate, American Board of Lifestyle Medicine Adjunct Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine Chief Medical Director, Scrivner Center, Mental Health & Addiction Services, Mountain View, CA Guest Speaker Suryakala (Kala) Jandhyala - Certified Integral coach from New Ventures West Passionate about guiding people through their life exploration, whether it is exploring different career opportunities, improving communication with self and others, prioritizing your tasks and so on CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) volunteer trained to represent children who have experienced abuse and neglect as they navigate juvenile dependency court systems The fee is $20 per person. All of the proceeds will go to Netra Vidyalaya, a school for visually challenged children in India. Join us on April 30 to raise awareness on importance of mental health & wellbeing and make a positive impact in every teens life.

‘’The art of communication is the language of leadership ’’- John Maxwell On Feb 26, 2023, 50 youths attended our online workshop and learned amazing tips and tricks from the expert Toastmaster and the founder of Speaking Masters LLC., Mr. Raju Brahmandhabheri . It was a great experience with an interactive session. Public speaking techniques were shared with the youths. Youths were preparing their speeches with the techniques they learned in the workshop and presented their prepared speeches in the in person session on March 5, 2023 at Novi Public Library. Mr. Raju Brahmandhabheri is supporting VT Seva Public Speaking Workshop for 3rd time in a row. One student got inspired by VT Seva causes and the speeches from other students, wanted to showcase her skills and help VT Seva cause, so she signed up for the workshop right there itself. Mr. Srinath Karnati welcomed everyone, Public Speaking Committee member Ms. Architha Kramadhati introduced Mr. Raju. Priya Jaisankar introduced Mr. Cliff and went through the guidelines about the speech presentation. Harish Jaisankar , VT Seva Detroit Youth Board volunteer Emceed the whole event in a nice engaged way. VT Seva volunteers Mr. Jaisankar Kannan, Ms.Aarthi Karthik, Mr. Venkat Pisipati Oviya Jaisankar, Amogh Pisipati, helped in various areas like checkin, time keeping and media. Two wonderful judges Mr. Raju Brahmandhabheri and Mr . Cliff Suttle gave tips and feedback to all the students who presented their speeches Raju Brahmandhabheri is passionate about public speaking and communication skills and has been part of Toastmasters International (the platform to improve Public speaking and leadership skills) since last 9 plus years and achieved the DTM(Distinguished Toastmasters) award- the highest educational award in the Toastmasters program. To pursue his passion of teaching public speaking and communication skills to the kids, he founded Speaking Masters LLC , a public speaking and communication skills coaching institute and has been teaching these skills Mr. Suttle is the founder and president of ExciteYourAudience.com a company dedicated to world class business/audience communications. He is the author for three books "The Meeting Mastery System," "The Anti-Elevator Speech," and the fantasy novel "Necro." A popular freelance writer, Mr. Suttle has written numerous articles for print and multi-media publications and has been read internationally by millions and translated into more than 20 languages. He owns multiple business for over 25 years and has consulted for many Fortune 500 companies including, General Motors, Ford Motor, IBM, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Kodak, Xerox, Rockwell International, Commerica, Metlife, and more. Mr. Suttle has received over 100 awards for speaking and is a popular speech writer and lecturer on topics ranging from technical to motivational and earned his B.S. in Management Information Sciences from the University of Michigan and is a certified Peak Performance Consultant. At the end our continuous supporter and sponsor for Public Speaking Workshop Mr. Chandrasekar handed over plaques to Mr. Brahmandhabheri and Mr. Cliff. Thanks to Mr. Raju for continuous support. Overall it was a great session all the students and parents liked the session and appreciated all the efforts. Mr. Sudheer Koppu gave a thank you speech. Blog Written By: Priya Jaisankar Blog Published By : Nandini Cheemalamarri

VT Seva is organizing its 2nd yearly Table Tennis & Badminton Tournaments this year, on April 22nd, 2023, from 9:00 AM EST at Sparc Arena Sports & Recreation in Novi, Michigan . All proceeds from these tournaments will go towards the schools in India for the visually challenged children at Nethra Vidhyalaya and the Tribal School children. VT Seva supports Nethra Vidyalaya schools for the Blind in India in order to provide higher education to visually challenged students and enable them to be independent and compete with other students. It also supports the remotely located Tribal Schools in impoverished communities and, provides access and opportunities to quality education healthcare, and enables them to live with dignity & pride. Date: April 22nd, 2023, at 9:00 AM EST (check-in at 8:30 AM) Venue: Sparc Arena Sports & Recreation , 42775 W 9 Mile Rd, Novi, MI 48375 Link to general guidelines and rules of the game: Please go through the guidelines and rules before your register: Registration page: Come join us and play for the cause. For more details, please contact: CONTACTS: Harshini: 248-895-2301 Sirisha: 313-910-0317 Venkat: 313-587-8011 Srikanth: 248-302-8873 Srinath: 949-232-9477 Suresh: 734-612-4961 Email: detroit.director@vtsworld.org For volunteering opportunities, please contact: Vanitha @ 248-227-3094 & Keerthy @ 503-789-4709 If you would like to sponsor for the event or company sponsorship or to place your business logo, banner, or any other type of promotion, please contact detroit.director@vtsworld.org / Srinath@ 949-232-9477 or Sudheer @213-399-2315 VTSEVA TABLE TENNIS (AND/OR) BADMINTON TOURNAMENTS LIABILITY WAIVER FORM Participant Waiver & Liability Agreement I understand that there are risks associated with playing all sports and field-related activities. In consideration for the privilege to use the Sparc Arena facility and/or attend the VT Seva Detroit Table Tennis (and/or) Badminton tournament(s), my participation indicates that I assume the risk of any injuries that myself or my children/wards may sustain while participating in any VT Seva sponsored sports activity and for any injuries which myself or my children/wards may sustain while on the premises of Sparc Arena, Novi, Michigan. I assure that I am, or my child is physically and mentally able to participate in the physical activities and have been examined by a licensed medical physician within one (1) year prior to attending this clinic/camp. By registering for the tournament, I am signing this Waiver and Liability Agreement. I acknowledge that I HAVE READ AND FULLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE TO ALL OF ITS TERMS AND CONDITIONS, INCLUDING PERMISSION TO TREAT THE AGREEMENT. I further state that I have executed this waiver and liability voluntarily and with full knowledge of its significance to be binding on my, my heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns. Signature assumed automatically if you register Participant’s Signature (Parent/Guardian if under 18)

Welcome to VT Seva Houston’s Walking With the Beat 5K Walkathon ! Every day that you are up and active is a day that you are working towards better heart health and prevention of cardiovascular disease! We are so happy to have you join us ! 7 years and below are free to attend !!! Walking with the Beat 5K Walkathon The Walking with the Beat 5K Walkathon is on Saturday, April 1 from 8 am to 10 am at Sugar Land Memorial Park . Enjoy the camaraderie of fellow community members who are committed to their health in the serene setting of nature and the outdoors. After the 5K walkathon, you will hear more about cardiovascular health and prevention from health professionals. All proceeds from the Walkathon will go to the American Heart Association, fighting heart disease and stroke and helping families and communities thrive for nearly 100 years.

VT Seva Detroit successfully celebrated the 7th Annual Cultural Event RAAS-2022 on November 19th, 2022, as a never-before event. RAAS is our Annual Celebration event, culminating a great year of various fundraising activities and volunteering service to the community. Some of the key highlights of the event: Raised funds for 257 Visually Challenged and Tribal students’ education 450+ people attended Sumptuous Dinner with Mesmerizing Entertainment Special Thanks to all the Donors, Volunteers, Participants, Sponsors, Choreographers , and everyone for bringing a big success to VTSEVA Detroit and keeping VTSEVA Detroit Top in the service. A memorable evening with marvelous Entertainment & Sumptuous Dinner. VT Seva Detroit board acknowledged the year-long hard work of our dedicated volunteers and kind donors with an evening of music, dance, skits, food, fun, and celebration. Emcee Jyotsna Kankatala raised the curtain at 5:15 p.m., and the event started on time with Jyothi Prajwalana followed by USA & India National Anthem with JET & Prajna students' Prayers. Thanks Jyotsna and Shivani, and Prajna students. An awesome Veena performance followed it. Thank you, Prashantha Veenananda team! JET Michigan Coordinator Narasaraj Kompally delivered a speech about Jeeyar Education Trust and how these Nethra Students benefit from JET & VTSEVA. Thanks Narasaraj Garu. Director of VTSEVA Detroit Srinath Karnati talked about the Donors and Volunteers. He explained how significant an impact both volunteers and Donors were creating and thanked them for keeping VT SEVA Detroit in the #1 position in doing community Service Projects and the Top#4 position in the USA in supporting the Visually challenged & Underprivileged students' education. National Secretary and past Branch Director Sudheer Koppu addressed the audience and conveyed thanks to them. National Youth Director and Detroit Volunteer Coordinator Vanitha Gopalan Talked about all the community service projects conducted in 2022 and thanked all the donors. Please review the short video below on the key accomplishments. In 2022, apart from Detroit Youthboard activities, the Detroit branch conducted 32 community services events & 8 fundraising events - Over 27,545 lbs. of food packed in Food Banks Volunteering - Over 2000 meals served at the Community Kitchen Volunteering - Raised $800 & around 6 big boxes of hygiene items for Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, a homeless shelter - Large-scale cleanup and removal of invasive plant species during Eco Restoration Projects - Over 160 Young Women and children received ~2000 hygiene supplies - ~5200 mailing supplies packed in support of fundraising activities for Visually Challenged Children Centers - Over 350 boxes of nutritious, culturally sensitive food items distributed - 833 Fleece blankets made and distributed Secretary and Youth board director of VT SEVA Detroit Priya Jaisankar presented beautiful slides for the entire event and talked about Youth board Projects (especially outreach) and also spoke about the VT SEVA High school Clubs and thanked all the Youth volunteers and both High School Club teams. In 2022, VT Seva Detroit Youth Board did an excellent job serving the community and environment by participating in many volunteering events and raising money to support 42+ students' education through various summer camps and fundraising projects. They celebrated 3rd anniversary and had a party for the senior sendoff. They established 2 High School Clubs also. A recap of their achievements in 2022 are - 35 Youth Board Initiated Events led by youths - 6 Summer Camps led by youths - 2 Fundraising projects initiated and led by youths - 2 Fun events - 2 High School Clubs - 750+ youth volunteer hours in youth-initiated projects - 100+ parent volunteer hours - Raised $3500 to support families impacted by cancer - Raised more than $15,500 to support Nethra Vidyalaya student's education through Outreach Project - Many students acquired leadership skills and felt confident Anvika Perumalla, President of Troy IAE School VTS Club, talked about two high school clubs (Troy IAE & Troy High) activities and thanked VTSeva for setting up clubs at high schools. Thanks, Anvika and Troy VTSeva Club teams. Youth Volunteer Anurag shared his India Internship experience with the audience. Thanks Anurag. Core Volunteers thanked all the donors for their generous donations to VTSEVA for visually challenged and Under Privileged students’ education. Rocking Dance performances: We had a gala of professional teams and local talent that rocked the stage from classical to Bollywood. Thanks for the Goose Bump performances by Smrithi Dance Team Tripura Dance Team Vandana Krishna swami Dance Team Usha Dance Team Veena Madhukar Dance Team Arpita Dance Team Swati Dance Team Avantika Dance Team Bighearted local restaurants sponsored delicious food. Our dedicated volunteers served hot food for the RAAS attendees. Branch Director Srinath Karnati announced the PVSA winners of 2021 and awarded Medals and trophies from the hands of Sudheer Koppu, Vanitha Gopalan, Suresh Rajan, Priya Jaisankar, JaiSankar Kannan, Srinath Karnati, Jyothi Karnati, Nandini Cheemalamarri, and Sreenivas Cheemalamarri. Congratulations to all PVSA winners. Gold: Oviya Jai Sankar, Saisha Srivatsan, Hiba Zyna Bronze: Harish Jaisankar, Abhinav Suresh, Nikhil Aerabati, Siddharth Tirumala Kanduri, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Shreya Srivatsan, Rashmitha Raghunathan Thanks for the Melodious Singing Performances by Kalyani Ji Team and local talents. Madhavan ji handover the Plaques to Hrudwani Team. Latha ji handed over the plaques to the Sponsors. On this Wonderful day, Shreya Srivatsan did a fantastic artwork. She sold her artwork to Kind art lovers and donated the amount to VTSEVA for the great cause of Visually Challenged and Under Privileged students’ education. Thank you, Shreya. Last but not least, a huge shout and Thanks to Hrudwani Team for the Live Band Performance on RAAS Stage. Live started at 10:00 and continued up to 11:45 p.m. Melodious voice and an excellent keyboard, Flute, and other Instrument players. VTSeva Detroit Thanks all the Sponsors and Volunteers for their services. Delicious Food by local Restaurants. Thanks to Zaharaji for coordinating the food from various restaurants. It would not have been possible to conduct such a successful event without such a large group of our AMAZING, DEDICATED, and ENTHUSIASTIC volunteers: All these volunteers (adult and youth) did a terrific job in all these areas: AREAS ADULT YOUTH Program Coordination Swapna Kalva Sreenika Perumalla Emcee Jyothsna Kankatala ​ Registration Desk Latha Nimmagadda, Anand Renganathan, Jaishankar Kannan Veeksha Somula, Shivani, Siva Suravarpu Event Fundraising & Marketing Srinath Karnati, Sudheer Koppu, Anand Renganathan ​ Volunteering & Food Coordination Vanitha Gopalan ​ Sound System Srinivas Raju and Lucky ​ Presentation Tech Priya Jaishankar, Srikanth Ramanadham Harish Jaishankar Donations Forms Jaisankar Kannan Anvika Perumalla Arsheya Bhattad Photography Anoop Macharla ​ Set up Vanitha Gopalan, Durga Sangita, Veena Hebbar, Ramya Srikanth, Suresh Rajan, Raghunath Namuduri, Akshay Pedamallu, Prathyusha Vurum Alex Kola, Abhinav Pagidi, Sakib Hussain, Aakash Singh, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Sai Chakrika Yadali, Ashish Rajam, Saanvi Mandapati, Akshay Kumar, Haji Muhinthan, Varshan Muhinthan, Yug Patel, Rishi Adduri, Nikhil Aerabati, Sriraam Hebbar, Supraja Pattangi Food Department ​Aravind Narayanan, Architha Kramadati, Asha Puranam, Chandra Sekhar Annavarapu, Durga Sangita, Jyothi Karnati, Keerthi Dingari, Komathy Muhinthan, Nandini Cheemalamarri, Pavani Namuduri, Priya Jaisankar, Raghunath Namuduri, Sreenivas Cheemalamarri, Srikanth Ramanadham, Srinath Karnati, Srivardhan Dingari, Sudhakar Kolluri, Sudhakar Raghunathan, Suresh Rajan, Vanitha Gopalan, Venkat Pisipati, Vidhya Anand, Vijay Perumalla ​Aditi Jethri, Haji Muhinthan, Ishaan Sid, Kalki Reghunathan, Kavya Karnati, Lalitaditya Akkaraju, Nikhil Aerabati, Purani Murukathas, Rishi Adduri, Rishi Chowdhury, Saanvi Mandapati, Sai Karnati, Sai Chakrika Yadali, Siva Suravarapu, Supraja Pattangi, Varshan Muhintan, Veena Karthik, Veeksha Somula, Veena Karthik, Social Media Updates Nandini Cheemalamarri ​ This was one of the best events we ever had. Thanks to all Event Sponsors, Donors, Supporters, and Volunteers who helped to make this event a big success. Thanks to all the unsung supporters for this great cause. It would not have been possible to pull off such a HUGE event without your constant support and help. For more pictures, please visit our Facebook Album https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.547106200786222&type=3 To watch the complete RAAS event, Please click here https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?extid=NS-UNK-UNK-UNK-AN_GK0T-GK1C&ref=watch_permalink&v=471252998220701 To Like, Share and Comment, Please visit our Facebook Post https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0oZrap5fDDYNyJhJbusY8ToDPLMmWAG21ErYN9qAQug28YnP17BH4yk3sYLxsFT86l For other events and activities from Detroit, Please visit http://vtsworld.org/detroit RAAS 2022 Flier Blog created and published by Nandini Cheemalamarri (Detroit Communications) THANK YOU SO MUCH, ALL! YOUR SUPPORT IS OUR STRENGTH TO SERVE

"Communication is the human connection, which is the key to personal and career success.” – Paul J Meyer Public speaking has taken a center stage in today’s education and career. All of us know the importance that communication plays in our daily lives. VT Seva has been providing an opportunity to our youth get introduced to public speaking and advance their skills since last 5 years. VT Seva is bringing another great opportunity this year as well! VT Seva is proud to announce 6th Public Speaking Workshop . One day virtual work workshop will be organized on Feb 26th and in person public speaking presentation ( not a competition ) will be held on March 5th in Novi Public Library . During the online workshop on Feb 26th , the youth will be exposed to different aspects of public speaking like tone, vocal variety, how to avoid fillers and many more by none other than one of the experts in public speaking, Mr. Raju Brahmandhabheri. This is a great opportunity for the youth to learn and refresh the nitty gritty of public speaking. The youth will also be provided an opportunity to practice what they learnt on March 5th during the public speaking in person presentation ( not a competition ). Raju Brahmandhabheri is passionate about public speaking and communication skills and has been part of Toastmasters International (the platform to improve Public speaking and leadership skills) since last 9 plus years and achieved the DTM(Distinguished Toastmasters) award- the highest educational award in the Toastmasters program. To pursue his passion of teaching public speaking and communication skills to the kids, he founded Speaking Masters LLC, a public speaking and communication skills coaching institute and has been teaching these skills for the kids in the grades: 3-12 from the past four years. He has been receiving 5-star ratings from both students and parents for his public speaking classes. He is a mentor for the high school students to coach/advise/prepare them for the annual Leadership Speech Contest hosted by National Management Association (NMA). He has also served as a judge on various speech contests at Toastmasters and community organization’s educational competitions (public speaking, spelling bee etc.). By profession, he is an Electrical Engineer currently working as a Senior Regional Engineering Manager at ITC Holdings Corp., Novi, Michigan. Please prepare your speech to fit between 120 - 150 seconds in one of the below topics to present on March 5th in Novi Library . Who is your favorite super hero character and why? What makes you happy and why? What does volunteering mean to you? All the proceeds from this event goes to support Visually Challenged & Tribal Students education in India. What a great way to support others while become competent in the essential life skill Public Speaking! Don't miss the opportunity to learn from the best by registering ASAP!

VT Seva Detroit 2022: Oct to Dec Volunteering Activities The VT Seva Detroit Youth Board successfully finished the 2022 volunteering season with the end of the 4th quarter! The projects stated below took place during our 4th quarter. ● Adopt A Road ● Outreach ● Manoogian Manor Senior Center Visit ● Fleece and Thank You ● Halloween Candy Drive ● Olga's Kitchen Fundraiser ● Raas Caller List Project ● Operation Gratitude ● Salvation Army Bell Ringing Adopt A Road: 10 bags of trash was collected on Oct 2, 2022 on the stretch of 8 mile road from Haggerty to Meadowbrook that VT Seva Detroit Adopted.As it is a busy road, we've collected lots of broken parts from the cars. By removing this trash, we not only helped the environment, but also helped the drivers. We've collected trash from cigar butts to plastic bottles, from broken garden tools to construction gears, golf balls to rubber ducks, headphones to broken cell phones and much more. All this trash would've been blocking the sewage, impeding the water flow, polluting the water and ending up harming human and animal health.Every piece of trash removed from this road helps protect the environment, lives and much more. Youth Volunteers: Hajanthan, Varshan, Nithin, Nikita, Aaradhya, Shraya, Ashish, Leo & Pelon Adult Volunteers: Neha, Jaisankar & Priya Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid022cWUSKubo3LXWNWYfUhC7eWaNwBQUk3YFQThZ5DXffwtz3gEi2GZhxW5HNPWR2aWl Outreach: VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Members continued their Outreach program 3rd year in a row. As the saying third time's charm, our team leaders made this year’s student -4-student outreach program a bigger success than the last 2 years. 30 team members raised more than $14,000 to support 38+ students' education with the help of 239 donors. Youth Volunteers: Saisha Srivatsan, Oviya Jaisankar, Sai Sriram Karnati, Rishi Adduri, Sathvik Tirumalakanduri, Anvika Perumalla, Pranav Tammineedi, Sneha Chandrasekar, Anuraag Balaji, Harsh Ahire, Vishnu Athreya, Akshay Kumar, Srihari Hebbar, Kalki Renga Anand, Adhip Pisipati, Shraya Ved, Shrikha Atchutuni, Sriraam Hebbar, Srihari Anathalwan, Ishani Patil, Varshan Muhinthan, Rishi Chowdhury, Chakrika Kaur, Hajanthan Muhinthan, Ashvik Kattamanchi, Abhinav Pagidi, Ashish Rajam, Nithin Kumar, Poorani Saravanan and Siva Suravarapu Co-Ordinator: Priya Jaisankar Youtube Link: https://youtu.be/b5hL-RR5AOE Blog Link: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-youth-board-3rd-outreach-2022 Manoogian Manor Senior Center Visit: It was really a great indoor experience today with seniors. We brought them cookies and they enjoyed the hot chocolate. The combination turned out very well with the cold weather. Hajanthan entertained the seniors by playing piano for 5 min. Siriram, Hajanthan and Sanjith shared riddles. Stephen sang a song. Overall both the youths and seniors enjoyed the time. Youth Volunteers: Siriram Hebbar, Sanjith Vijayakumar, Hajanthan Muhinthan Adult Volunteers: Komathy Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid023GdaJXTrkHcqsxTW83mMvxyt41KCNWwr6NbaMLHCb8A4h2fQafQNMecEiKgo6hKrl Fleece and Thank You: Fleece & Thank You, a Michigan-based non-profit organization, is dedicated to providing connection, comfort, and hope through its programs, services and materials to children facing illness and their families supporting them. It was a great experience for more than 17 VT Seva Detroit volunteers who volunteered at the UWM Sports center helping Fleece and Thank you organization "Make a Blanket Day " a massive effort to make more than 833 blankets for Children in hospitals. Youth Volunteers: Akshay K,Lin P,Saisha S,Kushal D, Amogh M,Akshith A Haji M, Varshan M, Rishi C, Zephyr F, Advik K, Ashish R Adult Volunteers: Nirmala S, Niveditha M, Vandana D, Mandira C, Vanitha G Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02mhgC24NyKYaHoAgWkWZDnYTBjoExQqmvtCxTtPAPCsh8ua433xk8hBU8iJojLoDBl Halloween Candy Drive: In Detroit, we collected 31 pounds of candies and donated to Operation Gratitude, a non-profit organization that sends care packages filled with snacks, entertainment, hygiene and handmade items to New Recruits, Veterans, First Responders, Wounded Warriors, Care Givers, and U.S. Service Members deployed overseas through participating Dental Offices. Raised money was used to support Nethra Vidyalaya students' education. Project Lead: Harish Jaisankar Youth Volunteers: Kushal, Adhip, Rishma, Anishma, Rishi, Shruthi, Veena, Vanitha ji, Sathvik, Rishika, Srinidhi and Anvika Adult Volunteers: Priya, Nalini, Vijay, Kanchana Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02iGAeURhrcZXRFXgS7DCEB3R4c1YL6yyx6Tk7j5RAJrE7UdMbPKG5HLrbp5J2jr2ol Olga's Kitchen Fundraiser: Project Lead: Oviya Jaisankar Olga’s kitchen hosted a fundraiser at their restaurant on Nov 7, when people showed a flier when ordering food, some of the earnings would go directly to Nethravidhyala. Facebook Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02LWiAidu5wpsoWtNpfbZbbaQmmA3RiNcnjQMH2gDWiYAByBSeUuUdoYr84pLaDLrgl&id=100064605402887&eav=AfaZDV-Rm-qQxvZsSf9jzw3kQUeVh6rld1czyIEhaY5ILH7rsNJqIKP9SjaRxx_ZlO8&m_entstream_source=permalink&paipv=0 Raas Caller List Project: Many Youth Board members worked hard to invite and have supporters attend our annual Raas event. They advocated for our great cause, and made sure many people were aware about what we were supporting and how they could help. Volunteers: Nalini, Priya, Akshay, Oviya, Advik,Ashish, Kalki, Kaustubh, Jethri, LalitAditya, Phani, Sai, and Supraja Operation Gratitude: VT Seva Detroit Youth Board members, Troy IAE School Club members, and Troy High School Club members wrote thank you letters to express their gratitude and appreciation to the soldiers who are deployed overseas. Project Lead: Harish Jaisankar Project Coordinators: Priya , Nalini, Komathy, Chandrasekhar, Giri and Srinath Youth Volunteers: Sai Sahasra, Hajanthan, Varshan, Sai Sriram, Sriram H, Nikhil A, Jishnu, Saisha, Supraja, Sathvik, Sneha, Ankita, Harish, Oviya, Amogh, Rishabh, Kausthubh, Srivibha, Udhayaa, Rachana, Rashmitha, Dhanya, Veena, Aakash, Abhinav P, Alex K, Anvika, Arsheya, Saanvi, Sai Chakrika, Sakib, Siva, Sreenika, Srihari A, Ajitesh, Leo, Ashvik and Jeffrey Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02sQD8H2B3cBc6uJ8z5WA5Kh7PFJPqMCtDQw76Y9UsAKdT5ZCVihvJqcP4SVXAGdal Salvation Army Bell Ringing: Some of our VT Seva Detroit Youth Board members participated in the Salvation Army Bell Ringing Event at Laurel Park Place. They rang bells next to the Salvation Army stand to raise money to support the families in need during holiday period in the local community. Youth Volunteers: Vishnu, Sneha, Aahana, Pelon, Anuraag, Tarun, Ishan, Nishant and Ishani Adult Volunteers: Chandrasekar, Komathy, Priya Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0v3xQcVBVk5PPVkGzGXAvLvwTKQkKYp7LZMBe1G4Ea4S4xJgjXUG33aXvT416cfh3l Blog Consolidated By: Eesha C Video Compiled By: Rishi C Blog Published By: Nandini C

“No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it.” – Brooker T. Washington VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Members continued their Outreach program 3rd year in a row. As the saying third time is charm, our team leaders made this year’s student -4-student outreach program a huge success than the last 2 years. 30 team members raised more than $14,000 to support 38+ students education with the help of 239 donors. Each team lead who participated in understood the challenges that Nethra Vidyala Students and Tribal Students face, they took their perseverance as inspiration and committed to support as much as student possible. This year in this student-4-student outreach program, team leaders met their minimum goal, however they went above and beyond to help the students education. Team Leaders had a great opportunity to enhance their communication skills. They were able to convey their intention of helping others and raised money. Big thanks to all the parents who were helping their children be a voice for underprivileged students . Wonderful team leads who participated in this outreach project are Saisha Srivatsan, Oviya Jaisankar, Sai Sriram Karnati, Rishi Adduri, Sathvik Tirumalakanduri, Anvika Perumalla, Pranav Tammineedi, Sneha Chandrasekar, Anuraag Balaji, Harsh Ahire, Vishnu Athreya, Akshay Kumar, Srihari Hebbar, Kalki Renga Anand, Adhip Pisipati, Shraya Ved, Shrikha Atchutuni, Sriraam Hebbar, Srihari Anathalwan, Ishani Patil, Varshan Muhinthan, Rishi Chowdhury, Chakrika Kaur, Hajanthan Muhinthan, Ashvik Kattamanchi, Abhinav Pagidi, Ashish Rajam, Nithin Kumar, Poorani Saravanan and Siva Suravarapu These are the reflection messages from our team leads: Through this experience I’ve been very thankful to reach new donors and it feels amazing to know that I was able to sponsor a year’s worth of education for more than 5 kids this year. I feel very happy to be a part of this project where we help the students of Nethra Vidyalaya and see the money raised get put to use through the students’ accomplishments. – Saisha Srivatsan This was an amazing opportunity to help develop my skills of public speaking and convincing. It was eye opening to go to different people and organizations to help spread the word of VT Seva causes and try to bring in donations. I'm so glad that I was able to better educate myself about VT Seva while also educating others. – Oviya Jaisankar This project was a great way for me to make a large impact in someone else's life and I definitely gained social skills as I had to convince others to support this cause. I think this was a wonderful way to help another person in the simplest of ways. – Anvika Perumalla The outreach project was definitely something new, and this was my first year doing it. I found it extremely interesting that we were given a chance to use our marketing skills to gain people to support us and our fundraising. I truly enjoyed trying to come up with different ways to persuade people to help our case while also being able to do something good and help children that really need it. – Sneha Chandrasekar The outreach project supported the nethra vidyalaya students. I’m glad to have been part of this amazing event to help give education to those students – Anuraag Balaji This project was a great way for me to make a large impact in someone else's life and I definitely gained social skills as I had to convince others to support this cause. I think this was a wonderful way to help another person in the simplest of ways. – Harsh Ahire Outreach. This word really resonated with me during this project. Something about helping kids who aren’t as fortunate as me really stuck with me. I really took this project seriously. – Vishnu Athreya I learnt How to talk passionately and confidently. Another thing I learnt was being bold and speaking in front of friends of my dad's or mom's and/or chatting with them to donate even if I didn't know them as much as my parents – Kalki Renga The outreach program was a very fun experience to go out and talk to people about a very important cause, and it was very fun to participate in. – Shraya Ved This Outreach event has been a great learning experience and an awesome way to help the underprivileged students of Nethra Vidyalaya school. I am so proud of the VT Seva community for raising more than $13,000, funding many student's educations! – Sriram Hebbar I am very glad that we were able to raise all this money. Hope we can increase that number next year! – Srihari Anathalwan It was my pleasure to advocate for the tribal children's school in the Outreach project. I learned critical communication skills convincing my friends and teachers to join our cause. – Rishi Chowdhry Blog Written By: Priya Jaisankar Blog Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri

“Persistence guarantees that results are inevitable” – Paramahamsa Yogananda Being part of a group with a primary goal of expressing gratitude to the community through service inspired us to consider ways in which we could leave our mark on society. VTSeva’s core beliefs lead us to seek for methods that could be implemented in our own community. We started to ask certain questions: How could we spread awareness about this organization’s goals? How could we implement our ideas? What can we do to build on this organization’s strengths and leave our own mark? This notion gave rise to our plan to establish an exclusive club at Troy High School to represent VTSeva and its core ideals. Hearing about other high schools that started their own clubs inspired us to get things started. We initially began by gathering information about how school clubs worked. Through alumni within VTSeva, we asked questions and noted down all the important factors that went into successfully starting and running a club. We started communicating with our school’s directors to understand the process and requirements to start a club. Just as we started gaining momentum, we encountered our first problem. While VTSeva is unique in the opportunities that it provides and the diverse people that it attracts, it was already a known fact that there are existing clubs with similar roles at our school. Our first task was to explain why this club would be different from others. With some help from others within the school and the youth board director Priya Jaisankar , we were able to successfully convince the school that we are a beneficial group to the school and it’s values. Second was to find a teacher sponsor. However, finding a teacher is not easy, especially at Troy High. With the number of clubs available and running at Troy, the majority of teachers are too busy sponsoring other clubs to add another onto their list. But, after looking for some time, we were able to find a teacher interested in helping us with our cause. With these requirements fulfilled, we were able to be a part of the club fair which scouts students to joining different clubs and activities. And we are proud to say that we were able to add 50+ new students to the cause. All this leads us to present day. We have finished our elections for the student board for the club and have added some amazing , hard-working students to the organization. Anuraag Balaji- President Srihari Ananthalwan- Vice President Leo Schmidt- Secretary Vishnu Athreya- Event Coordinator Haresh Anand & Komal Yedla- Comm. Leads Ajitesh Venkatesh- Tech Lead We have had several events sent out to people within the club and have had a number of people participate in them. And we had our first VTSeva Club event exclusively for the Troy High VTS Club, Salvation Army Bell Ringing event successfully. Once again, congratulations to our board, and we’re looking to create a great school year full of volunteering opportunities! Article Written By: Srihari Ananthalwan Article posted by Nandini (VTSeva Detroit Communications)

Video Presentation of the Volunteering Activities 1) Gleaners Mercado Food hub: May 7th, 2022 Mercado Food Hub is an organization that distributes packaged foods to underprivileged people in the metro Detroit area. The volunteers packed the produce in the boxes, packed the cold food items in boxes, arranged and assorted all boxes on carts as per request of the supervisor, Rearranged shelves items, stacked items, loaded the clients’ cards, restocked cold food items and finally cleaned the whole area. Youth Volunteers : Sanjeev Nethaji, Harini Senthil Kumar, Saisha Srivatsan, Nikhil Srinivasan, Sanjith Sambath Adult Volunteers : Nethaji Anamuthu, Sharmiladevi Balendran, Meera Srinivasan. Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0bPHWe5T9F5rLg7uqSu2kduLTrT6dRh2FFqPo4T1niygWbci2hFc9UphYJcC35kuLl 2) Novi Police Appreciation lunch & Police Tour: May 8th, 2022 As National Police Week falls in the month of May, VT Seva Detroit hosted an Appreciation lunch for Novi Police Dept and got an opportunity to tour the Novi Police Station and extend our sincere gratitude to all police officers. 𝗪𝗲 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗶 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. Youth Volunteers : Varsha Karthik, Veena Karthik, Haji Muhinthan, Varshan Muhinthan, Aditya Prayagi, Adhip Pisipati, Ved Patel, Saanvi Moorthy, Kalki R Adult Volunteers: Sudhakar Kolluri, Sudheer Koppu, Srinathbabu Karnati, Anand Reghunathan, Jai Shankar, Priya Jaishankar, Architha Kramadhati, Bhavna Patel, Aarthi Karthik, Priya Prayagai, Komathy Muhinthan, Vidya Rajendran Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02bkFcfmTi4USNn6jdBhpHZuUJVkzQMfTzNaKupANdxhL1Ew8q9NSghysj9ZftDHvgl 3) The Clean Love Project Hygiene Kits Assembling: May 21st, 2022 11 VT Seva Detroit volunteers got this wonderful opportunity to help them assemble and pack around 2000 Hygiene kits for Detroit Women and young girls in need. Clean Love Hygiene kits to women and young girls who are homeless, live in poverty, or are survivors of domestic violence or human trafficking. The Clean Love project is a women's welfare organization with a mission to make the much-needed women and young girls to feel clean, loved, and empowered. The VT Seva team helped the organization to assemble and pack a feminine hygiene product kit that were to be distributed to women and young girls suffering in poverty or survivors of domestic violence or homeless. The hygiene kits included purse, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorants, sanitizers, moisturizers, tissues and sanitary napkins. In the end the team also joined a Raffle and won some goodies. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Hajanathan Muhunthan, Sanjeev Nethaji, Nikhil Srinivasan, Tanvi Rajesh, Shreya Srinivasan, Hrudya Kishore Adult Volunteers : Komathy Muhinthan, Meera Srinivasan, Muhinthan Murugesu, Nethaji Anamuthu, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0T6vCRCsbaZML3tebFBjrjTF4Pz8FE362Psk1UC2ZE8DLfKEp2QX2SDoVyR7AW1CSl 4) Crossroads Community Garden volunteering: June 1, 2022 Crossroads community grows vegetables and donates them to Hospitality House food bank in Walled Lake. The VTSeva team today helped to clean the plantation area by removing all the weeds and leveling the surface for planting. The team used a RotoTiller, which they had never used before and enjoyed the experience. This was also fun as it was outdoor hard labor work to do on a perfect summer day. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵: Sai Sri Ram Karnati, Eashan Daram, Nirvan Daram, Nikhil Aerabati, Inbaan Arul, Iniyaan Arul, Pravin Manoj Kumar 𝗔𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀: Srinath Karnati, Arul , Sona Arul, Athilakshmi, Vaishnavi Aerabati, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02qW9BSTZ8j5vHWoedTqerFqXpfMK8n81xAWtT2qoBJ83jnEkcsfy35Q8izeZzZcTbl 5) Gleaners Mercado hub volunteering: June 4, 2022 Mercado Food Hub is an organization that distributes packaged foods to underprivileged people in the metro Detroit area. Together our volunteers packed more than 13,845 pounds of food serving more than 94 Detroit families in need. Gleaners Mercado Community Food Hub is a client choice pantry where children and families thrive and have access to healthy food and an array of services that improve their overall quality of life. The volunteers packed the produce in the boxes, packed the cold food items in boxes, arranged and assorted all boxes on carts as per request of the supervisor, Rearranged shelves items, stacked items, and loaded the clients’ cards, restocked cold food items and finally cleaned the whole area. Youth Volunteers: Anvika Perumalla, Nikhil Aerabati, Sairaaga Perala, Oviya Jaishankar, Saanvi Duruvasan, Christeena Boddakayala Adult Volunteers : Raghunath Aerabati, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02Hf7qNAaoc5kWoHipdyF3Y7FBgNNNYQmSEaBMaamZYD8BzTcFSLmekKRLaHoi9YDdl 6) Destined for Greatness Ford Wellness Center: June 5, 2022 Destined for Greatness is an organization provide support to young girls who are helpless and comes from underprivileged families in metro Detroit. VT Seva Team joined with Destined for Greatness in Ford Wellness center to Volunteer. The team helped in organizing the scattered clothes, toys etc. and separated them based on gender, age, size etc. and packed them in big bags. The Team received Detroit makeover community certificates and were very happy for the opportunity to help the community. Youth Volunteers: Varun Brijesh, Anand Brijesh, Hrudya Kishore, Fares Elmahrouky, Salma Bassel, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Ishan Iyer, Dheemanth Akshay, Tej Penugonda Adult Volunteers : Kishore, Ragunath Namuduri, Srinivas Kumar, Gopal Brijesh, Jayshree Brijesh, Suresh Rajan, Vanitha Gopalan. Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02JAELi5snveYKcCLdKpf4uwiosUkThEk3nJggdZpnwkoM89hY1Uz7AnUfqG7d6Mhtl 7) Matthaei Botanical Gardens Volunteering in the University of Michigan: June 18, 2022 This was one-of-a-kind volunteering where the kids learnt a lot about Ecology. They had a 3mile walk in the botanical gardens as part of a tour with two UofM students who were very knowledgeable on the flora and fauna of the garden. The team were given tasks along the way. It was very different and informative unlike the other services the VT seva team had done. They had to pull out invasive species, especially the one identified as Dame’s Rocket. On the way the team also saw rare species of plants, trees and birds. They were able to see Gray Crested Flycatcher Bird, Blue Bird, Butterflies, Damsel Files and flowers like Tulip Tree, wild mushrooms, poison Ivys, American Bladder Nuts etc. Overall, it was a very informative and interesting adventure rather than volunteering for the team. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Nikhil Aerabati, Hrudya Kishore, Sathvik Kanduri, Akshith Ashwanth, Aditi Kompally, Lalitaditya Akkaraju, Eesha Chigullapally, Yana Panchal, Niharika Prabhu, Anish Nallani, 𝗔𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Vaishnavi Aerabati, Srinivas Kanduri, Mahesh Hebbar, Suresh Rajan, Rajesh Durga, Ravinder Akkaraju, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid064tFomsJNMLpV3MXAoc1gReK2uzG4SVmbaRFJaDfhHuRu4xvS6o75wLLUjD3u4RTl 8) VT Seva Detroit Soccer Fundraising Tournament 2022: June 25, 2022 VT Seva Detroit organized a boarded indoor fundraising soccer tournament yet again this year to benefit the blind and visually challenged children in India. This year’s turnout was unprecedented with 33 games in the 3 age Groups with a total of 93 players. Please find more details about this event in this blog https://www.vtsworld.org/post/2022-vt-seva-detroit-soccer-for-a-cause Youth Volunteers: Yug, Abhinav, Akshay, Sai, Oviya, Supraja, Aditi, Nikita, Aahana, Varshini. Adult Volunteers : Suresh ji, Darshan ji, Vanitha ji, Srinath ji, Priya ji, Jaishankar ji, Anitha ji, Alvin Ji, Archita ji, Nandhini ji & Srinivas ji Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02H1h68CTznDc5WXvKzGF7ySgiAhQ7kMsUNxj3kQk1bX4cuQNAm1pY3jxx2URVwQpRl 9) Crossroads Community Garden Outdoor Volunteering: July 6th, 2022 Crossroads community is a community garden, produce from which goes to local food banks bridging the gap to provide fresh produce to those in need. VT seva team cleaned the planting areas and removed all weeds using the rototiller. It was a great outdoor event on a summer day and was well spent by the volunteers giving back to the community. Youth Volunteers: Sai SriRam Karnati, Kavya Karnati, Avantika Putta, Aahana Jain Adult Volunteers : Srinath Karnati, Suresh Rajan, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02FUc8DHNwzz8SBUACcuL2KAdG4Qtg667mCgnbC5F6Sda8nSjczNB1XrGE5D6ep5jYl 10) Earthworks Urban Farm Volunteering: July 9th, 2022 The Capuchin Soup Kitchen’s Earthworks Urban Farm is a large certified organic farm where the majority of their produce goes into meals at the soup kitchen who serve food to many homeless people in the Detroit community. VT Seva team helped there by removing the weeds, cleaning the landscapes, removing scapes, Sifting the compost pile and turning it into dirt. To sift the compost means to dig up solid and pass it thru metal weave to separate the wanted and unwanted materials. The Compost was further used in gardens, nurseries etc. It was a great outdoor event and a learning experience for the team to understand how farmers keep the land fertile and manage the compost for natural fertilizers. Youth Volunteers: Hajanthan Muhinthan, Varshan Muhinthan, Shritha Thirunagari, Srivatsa Thirunagari, Yana Panchal, Eesha Chigullapally, Nikhil Srinivasan, Tanvi Rajesh, Shreya Srinivasan Adult Volunteers : Meera Srinivasan, Komathy Muhinthan, Muhinthan Murugesu, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02EhW5gM2vk8uQA8dKBUaB7uE3xj5rmWHfRQSnMng1K1Mc8QNFvoku8w9TfGmo9HFgl 11) Arts and Scraps Remote Volunteering Projects: May-July, 2022 a) Cutting Foam Project b) Cutting Fabrics Project 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀 & 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘆𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁. To do that they rely heavily on volunteers like ourselves. Stickies, sock loops, ticket stubs, fabric, buttons, you name it they use many different materials and textures to inspire our students during their STEM Programming. 𝗔𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝟯𝟰 𝗮𝘄𝗲𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 & 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 two 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Nikhil Aerabati, Varun Aerabati, Sai Sri Ram Karnati, Hajanthan Muhinthan, Varshan Muhinthan, Sathvik Kanduri, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Sanjay Sundar Pandiyan Saisha Srivatsan, Shreya Srivatsan, Rohan Patil, Hrudya Kishore, Eashan Daram, Nirvan Daram, Iniyann Arul, Inbann Arul, Aarush Kollu, Medhas Kollu, Varshini, Barla. Pravin Manoj Kumar Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0Vsr1wGrMmE9onKR7ZekrdhD21FVdioGLz56KH2B9AX1shdxAgXRoGt8Tj7XyWPhhl 12) Crossroads Community Garden Outdoor Volunteering. July 27th, 2022 Crossroads community is a community garden, produce from which goes to local food banks bridging the gap to provide fresh produce to those in need. VT seva team cleaned the planting areas and removed all weeds using the rototiller. It was a great outdoor event on a summer day and was well spent by the volunteers giving back to the community. The youth volunteers also put up the reflectors to ward off the critters, birds & deer. Youth Volunteers: Diva, Aahana, Akshay, Iniyaan, Inbaan, Udhaaya, Veeksha Adult Volunteers : Arul Jaiprakash, Ramya Battu, Sona Vivekananda, Suresh Rajan, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0DBNUfFW4pWe1TSiP6zYu1SMCViKQ4WVBq9ibV2DYXoVkcU5eez3YyZWKTuYeXWaCl 13) World Medical Relief, Inc Volunteering. July 30, 2022 World Medical Relief collects and distributes recycled medical and dental supplies and medicines to help thousands of sick and poor people around the world. These goods are distributed in a non-discriminatory manner without regard to race, color, gender, and religion, nationality, or political beliefs. It was an amazing experience to be able to sort and repackage supplies that will be shipped to Ukraine during their terrible times and meeting their medical needs. Youth Volunteers: Eesha chigullapally; Aditi Jethri Kompally; Aahana Jain; Pravin Manoj Kumar; Veeksha Somula, Kushal Durga; Anurag Balaji; Sanjeev Nethaji, Shreya Srivatsan Adult Volunteers : Venkat Chigullapally; Nirmala Srivatsan; Bhavana Patel; Manoj Kumar; Vandana Durga; Vanitha Gopalan Facebook post : https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0Jp1QkYvTaxiuvMzvfNEDYmyjyreh1hWFnjj5SRrhrzUm5hPDCM6TVt6Fsfg12qYal 14) 9th Annual Volleyball & Throwball Fundraising Tournament. August 20, 2022 All the funds raised will go towards the education of the visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya and Tribal School students. Please find details about this tournament in this blog link below. Blog about VB tournament: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-9th-annual-volleyball-throwball-tournament-august-20th-2022 Youth Volunteers : Kavya, Sneha, Jayanth, Niharika, Ahana, Veena, Hrudya, Supraja, Leo, Sail, Nikhil, Shreya, Alok, Ishan, Teja, and Arya Adult Volunteers: Suresh, Ram, Venkat, Vanitha, Sudheer, Jyothi, Jaishankar, Swaroop, Srikanth, Meera, Ramya, Sreenivas, Nandhini, Sireesha ji, and Srinath ji Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02mgn4HZbqMmBXQrm5K8q75TxEAbN3q41VEoBQTaoEkfPsyFMiHC9yDvXnJ2NXtnjbl 15) Mailing Supplies Project to help Penrickton Center for Blind Children (Remote) Aug 1st to Aug 22nd, 2022 Penrickton Center for Blind Children is a non-profit that provides care to support blind, multi-disabled children and their families. The service they provide to families is for no charge so they fully rely on donations from the community. Throughout the year Penrickton Center sends out requests for donations and invitations to raise funds. VT Seva Volunteers got this opportunity again this year to help them assemble their mailing supplies items in envelopes as per their directions for their fundraising purposes. We received the mailing supplies items were picked up from the center in August 1st week & all the items were sorted with the help of few of our adult volunteers, well made into 26 kits for 26 youth volunteers to do this project. The mailing supplies were picked up from the Penrickton Center, sorted and organized as 26 kits with the help of few of our adult volunteers. Youth Volunteers: Ajitesh V, Rishi A, Kushal D, Rishi C, Shruthi A, Rishi A, Kaustubh D, Vibha D, Saathvik K, Kavya K, Sai K, Saisha S, Shreya S, Akshith A, Srihari H, Sanjaya T, Rishabh M, Amogh M, Pravin M, Varun B, Anand B, Haji M, Varshan M, Sriram H, Anirudh C, and Pranavi C. Adult Volunteers: Suresh Rajan, Sudheer Koppu, Asha Puranam, Jyothi Srinath and Vanitha Gopalan Ji. YouTube link: https://youtube.com/watch?v=LrTan9SFpHs&feature=share Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0G2iaqpsDcUDSZAN5g32n112pZxfaVqr6tLH64ESS3qchSw4PDhaoypALHA7JX9Tel 16) World Medical Relief Volunteering: Aug 27th, 2022 Another great volunteering opportunity & a wonderful learning experience for all our 15 Detroit volunteers on Aug 27th at World Medical Relief. World Medical Relief began collecting and distributing recycled medical and dental equipment, medical supplies, and medicines to aid thousands of sick and poor people around the globe. Their mission is to facilitate the distribution of surplus medical resources where they are needed. Goods are distributed in a non-discriminatory manner without regard to race, color, gender, religion, nationality or political beliefs. For many years, World Medical Relief continued its international goal of helping people with medical and pharmaceutical needs in developing countries. Youth Volunteers: Eesha chigullapally; Aditi Jethri Kompally; Aahana Jain; Pravin Manojkumar; Nishant Sharma, Kushal Durga; Mithun Nandakumar; Shreya Srivatsan; Sai Sahasra Adult Volunteers: Venkat Chigullapally;Nirmala Srivatsan; Athi Lakshmi;Rajesh Durga; Raghunath Namudiri, Vanitha Gopalan Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid036wEYSNpFSSiyzod7LxmPGXxAtTassgZxnivGcgHpqQmGDX4ERJ4GYsMo8cMvQShjl 17) Hanuman Temple Sewa Volunteering – Sep 7th & 14th, 2022 It was indeed a great fulfilling experience to help our local Sri Bhaktha Hanuman Temple MI USA with whatever help was requested by the temple priest. 1. All the puja items were emptied from the cabinets shelves, sorted, grouped, and organized into various boxes & placed them in an orderly fashion. 2. All the cable wires and electric gadgets were organized and kept in shelves 3. The Decor items were segregated, grouped, and organized into different boxes. 4. Temple office room was cleaned, cupboards outside the office area were also neatly organized. 5. Sorted out new clothes like Perumal dhoti, sarees and other accessories. 6. Kitchen pantry shelves were neatly cleaned, sorted, and organized as per the temple chef's instructions. 7. Then all the Vastrams (Deities cloths) were segregated, neatly folded, and placed in separate cabinets for Abhishekam purposes. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵: Sai Karnati, Nishanth Sharma, Rachana, Rohan Patil, Sriraam Hebbar, Kirupali Sathyanathan, Abisrishti Ram, Aadhya Ram, Hajanthan Muhinthan and Varshan Muhinthan 𝗔𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁: Srinath Karnati, Sailatha Thukkaram, Ranjani Raghu, Jyothi Karnati, Ajay Sharma, Suresh Rajan, Vanitha Gopalan, Savita Pail, Raj Patil, Subha Ram, Ram Ramanathan, Veena Hebbar, Komathy Selvarajan and Muhinthan Murugesu Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0Jq865bsQQkgtJqrxPvkHyn1qbGUGwCWjGsZLUbgsMwzV5fiVTfPbmN2GxbDu2Xzwl https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid065mqyRRz4Yf2kpe7g3pcqNb68FnZnb8jf93ZXBwnNMQe9khDfQEC95XuF5wkU4CYl 18) Cottage Painting at MCHS Family Services – Sep 24th, 2022 MCHS Family of Services provides individualized treatment, care, advocacy, and permanency to children and families impacted by childhood trauma. MCHS Family of Services is a child welfare agency located in Redford and Detroit providing foster care and adoption, transitional living, child abuse prevention and community wellness programs. VT Seva Detroit Volunteers got a great oppourtunity to help them paint their cottages for these children living there. A group of 20 volunteers painted couple of cottages with the guidance of the coordinator Blai, he explained in details how to apply masking tape around all the wood frames, edges and electrical outlets. We were supplied with all the tools such as paint rollers with extenders, brushes, paint trays, paint, step ladders, towels, tarp, gloves and masks. Blain explained the right way of applying the paint onto the walls around the corridors and bedrooms. There were 10 rooms and corridor walls that had to be painted Youths : Kushal, Rohan, Amogh, Rishabh, Nishant, Saanvi M, Saanvi D, Ashish R, Leo S, Harsh, Bhuvan A, Nikhil R 𝐀𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬: Vandana D, Vaishnavi R, Ramachandra V, Savita P, Raj P, Nivedhitha M, Suresh R & Vanitha G Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/455621053268071 Blog Consolidation: VTSeva Detroit YB Volunteer, Supraja Video Created: VTSeva Detroit YB Volunteer, Aahana Blog Published: VTSeva Detroit Communications, Nandini

SUBHA 2022 "You have right to action, but never to the fruits of action, so do not do action for the sake of fruit, nor be attached to work." - Bhagavad Gita (Chapter II, Verse 47). Atlanta VT team embodies action-oriented approach with service mindset and humble attitude to inspire and empower our youths to be the servant leaders of tomorrow through our Subha Annual event! The word 'Subha' represents the first ray of light in the horizon, the light that slowly transforms even the darkest of nights into a bright, beautiful sunrise. It symbolizes hope, light, and happiness even in the most obscure and difficult times. The VT Seva Atlanta team aimed to spread this light into the lives of 125 visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya in India, with our Subha program. With Swamiji blessings, SUBHA 2nd annual event was a success in terms of maximum youth participation, richness in the cultural program, funds raised for the Nethra Jewels, and promoting diversity and inclusion. We are able to accomplish our goal of raising funds for approximately 125 Nethra kids with your immense Grace and generous support of our donors. In this Subha event, we had support from many new Atlanta volunteers both youths and adults and at present we have more than 500 plus volunteers in Atlanta VT and Jet family. Unique to Atlanta is the establishment of 5 VT Seva Youth Clubs in 5 High schools : Lambert, Denmark, Northview, Alliance Academy, and Alpharetta Highschool which are promoting diversity and inclusion and inspiring young hearts for the selfless service to all beings. The SUBHA annual event was organized on Dec 3rd, 2022, in which Atlanta youths presented a cultural program comprising of melodious songs, magnificent dances, and meaningful messages. Our Chief Guests were Sargent Seamore from Johns Creek Police Department, Dana Reynolds and Donaldson from Laurel Heights Hospital Business Development Team, and Dr. Praveen Gudipati from Cumming Dental. The program commenced by lighting an auspicious lamp and prayer recitation. Next, were the American and Indian National Anthems by our youths. Subsequently, was a welcome speech by Madhu Nemani, VT Seva Director expressing her sincere gratitude to Swamiji for bestowing us with this opportunity to organize Subha and carryout HIS VISION and MISSION in Atlanta. She also welcomed all the Chief guests, Jet and Prajna coordinators, sponsors, and all the children, youths, and adults of VT Seva and Jet Atlanta teams. She shared her first-hand experience of visiting Varija Ashram in Visakhapatanam in July 2022 and how the funds raised has positively impacted the lives of the visually challenged and assisted them in becoming self reliant.   Thereafter, was a stellar presentation  ‘Alone we can’t Together we CAN’  by Hithesh Gazzalaji and Anuradha Gazzalaji in which they presented the highlights of Atlanta’s year-round volunteer works in the field of educational, environmental, disaster relief, healthcare and its impact on the Atlanta community. This presentation touched the hearts of all and motivated all to do more and do better in 2023 and thereafter. Hitheshji also shared his reason for joining VT Seva as he was challenged himself in childhood and how he has overcome his challenges with good education and now is self-reliant and independent.     Next, was an Indian Kucchipudi dance by Prajna children which was followed by  ‘Unity in Diversity’  our star performance in which 5 VT Seva Youth Club members participated - Lambert high school, Denmark high school, Northview high school, Alliance academy, and Alpharetta high school. They exhibited the real unity in diversity by portraying a beautiful action song on ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ . This song presented the rich Indian heritage, its culture, all-embracing confluence of religions, traditions, and customs. Our 5 club youth club members beautifully exhibited the Indian patriotic spirit and its treasure - the rich soil, the art, the dance, the music, the culture, the flora and fauna, the value-based education, and the Indian legacy. In brief, it’s a look and taste of India in every aspect. Thereafter Atlanta youths presented Bollywood dances, Indian classical songs, and Instrumental music performances which created an aura of celebration and commemoration for all.   Afterwards, our Chief guests rendered their inspirational speeches in which they highly praised the exemplary volunteer works that our VT Seva youths have done this year, their selfless service, its positive impact on the Atlanta community, donations raised, and stellar cultural program. We’ll work hand-in-hand with the John’s Creek police officers to make this place safe for all and Serve All Beings As Service To God. Later, momentous were given to the Chief guests, sponsors, VT Seva children, and volunteers. In the end, VT Seva Director appreciated the hard work, dedication, and selfless service of the entire Atlanta team. She also sincerely thanked all the donors for their generous contributions for the noble cause. Overall, Subha 2022 was very rewarding and gratifying experience for us. The delightful dances, the meaningful messages, and the soulful songs together created a memorable and treasured afternoon for all.     Dr. Madhu Nemani On behalf of VT Seva & Jet Atlanta Team VT Seva Atlanta's goal for this year is to support the education of 125 Visually Challenged / Blind students. The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart - Helen Keller The Atlanta VT Seva team wishes to see the unseen, touch the untouched, and feel inexpressible joy and happiness by organizing our SUBHA annual event. What is SUBHA? The word ' SUBHA ' represents the first ray of light in the horizon, the light that slowly transforms even the darkest of nights into a bright, beautiful sunrise. It symbolizes hope, light, and happiness even in the most obscure and difficult times. The Atlanta team has been spearheading this light into the lives of the special-needs children of Laurel Heights Hospital in Atlanta and the visually challenged / blind children of Nethra Vidyalaya in India with our Subha program. Atlanta VT Seva youth believes that one can go as far as he wants with education. She has donated her tutoring allowance to go to the right cause - Education For All You can also be part of this Giving gesture. Your act of giving will illuminate the lives of visually challenged - bringing ‘SUBHA’ (Light, Hope & Happiness) in their lives. We can all be SUBHA for someone else today! Optionally you can also donate through Zelle. Mark your Zelle payments to treasurer@vtsworld.org Please add a note stating the cause, "VT Seva Atlanta Subha 2022". Thanks! Because of your generous support in 2021, we could make a positive impact on 100 blind / visually challenged kids of Nethra Vidyalaya. Supriya, a 7th grade student of the Nethra Vidyalaya appreciates your generous donation. Her ambition is to become IAS officer. She cannot see but has a Vision. Let’s help her & other Nethra kids to realize their Dreams! Nimisha, an English Teacher of the Nethra Vidyalaya is blessed to be part of this institution. She is giving her Best for the education of blind / visually challenged. Let’s open our hearts & wallets and give our best also to make these kids self reliant & independent! Today’s Students, Tomorrow’s Leaders https://www.vtsworld.org/post/pg-top-ranks-in-top-universities-from-netra-vidyalaya Message from the CEO of Laurel Heights Hospital - Corey Jackson SUBHA 2021 Celebrations & Reminiscence Join Atlanta VT Seva Volunteers Group!

VT Seva Detroit Youth board sucessfully wrapped up 3rd quarter (July – September) 2022 ! We implemented the below projects. Many projects were led and initiated by Youth Board Members · Balaji Temple Volunteering · Foreign Language Camp · Brilliant Detroit · Debate Camp · Manoogian Manor July Visit · Walkathon · Macrame Keychain Workshop · Tribute To Bharath · India Day Promotions · Manoogian Manor August Visit · Essential Worker Appreciation Project · Manoogian Manor September Visit Balaji Temple Volunteering : The volunteers helped clean out and make the garden look fresh as ever. Everybody enjoyed a bit of hard work! Because the weeds removed and leaves raked, the temple felt brand new! On our second visit, we helped the temple priests maintain the bricks by cleaning them and even replacing some of the old bricks. They were heavy but we all managed and were still able to help maintain the temple. Youth Volunteers : Aahana, Alok, Supraja, Srivasta, and Kushal Adult Volunteers : Vageshwar, Giri, Pranitha, and Deepthi FB Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0J5Em2mh8dMBNHmuCDFVk9ZF7ii4SeyQppF5jAaygwQwAaXQsYUHVhLv48ufoDKxPl VT Seva Detroit Youth Board 1st Foreign Language Camp The Foreign Language Camp was a partnership with the VT Seva Detroit Board and Bright Minds Tutoring & VT Seva Detroit Youth Board members. This camp was a three day camp from July 11 to July 13 to teach young students some basic Spanish and French. Since kids were exposed to the two most commonly spoken languages in the world, they also helped in VT Seva’s contribution to the unprivileged students at Nethra Vidyala. Camp Conducted by: Shrika, Rashmitha, Harish, Oviya & Soofia Blog: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-youth-board-1st-foreign-language-camp VTS Detroit Youth Board Brilliant Detroit: In the month of July, Brilliant Detroit took part in a reading project. There were 59 videos submitted and were used to help underprivileged children improve their reading skills over the summer. During the pandemic, many kids’ reading skills slightly reduced due to online learning. To help them catch up, Brilliant Detroit was able to pull younger kids’ reading skills up to speed. Youth Volunteers: Srihari, Sriram, Sathvik, Supraja, Sanjith, Tarun, Sravya, Varshan, Harish, Oviya, Udhayaa, Aarush, Veena, Rishi, Akshay, Abhinav, Sai Project Lead: Abhinav Suresh FB Link: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02D8WmGb2qWYQ5yxoCj5hFXC4M4wK3dVMjXL3GCv1wK32HwsuyYXzGCkpqBsLkmRh5l VT Seva Detroit Youth Board 1st Debate Camp The Debate Camp was conducted by VT Seva Detroit Youth Board member Sanjity. This camp was a three day camp from July 18 to July 20 to teach young students the essential skill of Debate, he also helped in VT Seva’s contribution to the unprivileged students at Nethra Vidyala with the money raised through this camp. Blog: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/f5c70d63 VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Manoogian Manor Senior Visit We visited the Mannogian Manor for their monthly bonfire night. Volunteers helped serve tea, drinks and lemonade to the seniors and had talks with them. They had so many experiences to share and it was really fascinating to hear how life was like during the old days from people who lived through those days. Our youth volunteers entertained the seniors with their singing, dance, playing instruments. They brought them snacks and drinks also to the seniors. Project Lead : Harish Jaisankar Youth Volunteers: Shivani, Hajanthan, Varshan, Alok, Medhas, Kaavya, Harish, Harsh, Supraja, Udhayaa, Sriram, Siddharth, Nikita, Shraya, Zephyr, Hiba, Mohammad Hassan, Mohammad Hussain, Noorjahan Adult Volunteers : Komathy, Vanitha, Latha, Asha, Salma, Mohamad Ali Khan, Zahara , Vanitha and Priya FB Links: July - https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02mqy3YHfdQbXF4LzDm1VGLwvoFcuS8ZP8t3XBCBgP8oT21nGweiP2A2zJjvk9nVEEl&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=scwspmo August - https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid09W6yVpRiNngfr91Arr1kHv79htqGANZgrCgx9tPZzgAjYnobpZfnr915C1GSku59l&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=scwspmo September - https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02UVbWzhnSUqf9dyc4Kaz9HdVhV6XMzNHRZmiCRoMfaYEKoRSAAes29BELC6uom4FPl&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=scwspmo VT Seva Second Annual Walkathon : The Walkathon was created to donate money to an organization which helps the financial needs of cancer patients. Even if it rained, it was important that we found a way around the problem and raised enough money to help people in need. This has shown us that there are always ways to do good things even if there are obstacles no matter the size. 𝟒𝟑 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟏𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐 𝐭𝐨 𝐉𝐮𝐥 𝟐𝟒, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐. 𝟏𝟓1 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬, Total raised $3500, and 𝟑𝟏 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝟖𝟐𝟎𝟎 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬. Donated to Angels of Hope. Youth Team Leaders: Aahana Jain, Adhip Pisipati, Akshay Kumar, Akshith Ashwanth, Alok Tonapi, Amogh Pisipati, Anuraag Balaji, Anvika Perumalla, Arya Cheemalamarri, Eesha Chigullapally, Hajanthan Muhinthan, Harish Jaisankar, Kaavya Naga Sri Karnati, Kushal Durga, Mohammad Hassan Mohamed Ali khan, Mohammad Hussain Mohamed Ali khan, Nikita Talwar, Oviya Jaisankar, Rishi Chowdhury, Saisha Srivatsan, Shivani Nimmagadda, Shruthika Anandakumar, Srihari Ananthalwan, Srihari Hebbar, Srivatsa Thirunagari, Supraja V Pattangi, Teja Cheemalamarri, Udhayaa Arul, Varshan Muhinthan, Veena Karthik & Yana Pancal Donors: Sudhhakar Ji, Chandresekar Ji, Latha ji, Vandana ji, Vani ji Blog Link: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/afc1077b VTS Detroit Youth Board Macrame Keychain Workshop In this beginner’s workshop taught by Veena ji, volunteers learned how to make Macrame which is a type of textile produced by knitting. We learned quickly and we were able to make 42 keychains with 3 types of patterns for India Day. This has shown us that there are always opportunities to learn a new skill and that skills of any sort can bring us a long way. Project Lead : Veena Youth Volunteers: Oviya, Aaradhya, Danjeev, Taniksha, Sai Sriram, Adhip, Harish Adult Volunteers: Veena, Mandira, Jyothi, Venkat, Anuradha, Jaisankar, Priya FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=6075271469166498&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Tribute to Bharath In this project, board members helped create posters for many influential figures who contributed to India’s independence. Project Lead: Oviya Jaisankar Youth Volunteers: Oviya, Harish, Kushal, Sriraam, Srihari H, Abhinav S, Sravya, Akshay, Shruthi K, Kalki, Rachana, Supraja & Aditi FB Link: https://fb.watch/fJZIkEd7vz/ VT Seva Detroit India Day Celebration VT Seva came together to this event to celebrate India Day which marked 75 years of Indian Independence. We did a parade where everyone chanted “Vande Matharam” and “Jai Hind.” Volunteers also created posters of leaders who played a major role during the Independence Movement such as Mahatma Gandhi or Subhas Chandra Bose. Oviya , a youth board member raised money by painting the Indian flag and it was enough to fund one student’s education. We sold the keychains which we made through workshop Youth Volunteers: Harish, Oviya, Anvika, Sreenika, Sriram, Harsh, Aaradhya, Eesha, Adhip, Rishi C, Pranav T Adult Volunteers: Veena, Mandira, Venkat C, Jaisankar, Priya FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=6153247831368861&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Blog : https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-76th-independence-day-celebration VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Essential Workers Appreciation Project: VT Seva Detroit Youth Board members, showed their gratitude towards the essential workers contribution in the honor of labor day. 36 youths appreciated Trash Pick-up crew, mailmen, UPS crew, construction workers, grocery store workers, pharmacists, house maids, restaurant workers and many more. With no doubt they all made someone's day memorable for sure. Kudos to everyone of them who spread kindness. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Harish, Oviya, Siddharth, Sathvik, Shruthi K, Rashmitha, Sai Sahasra, Harsh, Sriram H, Srihari H, Veena, Rohit, Sadhana, Rishi A, Shruthi A, Abhisrishti, Rishi C, Vaibhav, Eesha, Anvika, Sreenika, Kaavya, Sai Sriram, Akshay, Srihari A, Kim Derrick, Hiba, Pranav M, Rachana, Hassan, Hussain, Leo, Vishnu, Neha, Saleen, Teja, Arya & Anuraag FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=6165635136796797&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Blog Consolidated By: Alok Tonapi Video Created by: Tarun Rajesh Blog Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri

“ Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” ― Winston S. Churchill This would be the perfect quote to describe the entire process of getting the VTS IAE club approved. As many may assume from the idea of just starting a club to the part where you actually put effort into making it happen, it wasn’t very straightforward. At first, when we went to present our club idea to the Vice Principal, who controls all clubs and approvals, he was very skeptical of the concept and asked a lot more questions. I found it hard to answer some of these questions so instead, I gave responses such as, “We are in the process of figuring that out,” or, “That’s a great question I haven't thought about that, maybe I can get back to you,” this allowed the other person to feel like you were open to their criticism and questions as well. Later in June of 2022, we finally received an email from the Vice Principal saying that our club was approved but we could only start as an official club from the next school year. The relief at that moment was indescribable. We immediately started to work on finding places we can volunteer as a group and recruit members who are interested in the club. Our first official event was at the Open Door Outreach Center. We sorted and folded clothing donations that the center received to go onto the shelves of their thrift store. This was a fun event where we bonded with each other and learned how future events that we would have to host may run. By the time the new school year started, we had already accomplished several events such as Troy Nature Center Cleanup, Rouge Park Cleanup, and Gardening help at the Balaji Temple. We also had some remote events that some people participated in such as the Annual Walkathon and the Greeting Cards Project. With so much already done, we had a good idea of how this club may run and the responsibilities that came with setting up events. As soon as the school year started, however, we again faced some struggles as the Vice Principal began to have second thoughts about the club. It took us a lot of convincing once again and persistence in order for our club to be where it is today. Our stall at the club fair was a huge hit. We got 60 more students to join during our club fair and many kids were very enthusiastic about participating in possible activities that we had planned for the new school year. With the first official club meeting on September 8th, for VTS IAE, we started out with around 75 total members. All of this wouldn’t have been possible without a lot of people who stood by my side and helped me through the process. I would like to thank the Detroit Youth Board Director, Priya Jaisankar for guiding me through the entire process, my parents for keep encouraging me to try and accomplish my goals, my friends who were always supportive, and of course the school administration which approved of this club but also made me think about all the different ways I can improve my club and make sure it's successful. We have had various volunteer events that IAE volunteers have attended during the school year such as Rochester Community Schools 5K Run, Cottage Painting Child Welfare Agency Volunteering, Essential Workers Project, and the Balabharathi Soup Kitchen. After each event volunteers got an opportunity to reflect upon their experiences and post them on Facebook and Instagram. Volunteers seemed to enjoy the Balbharati Soup Kitchen the most as we all worked together to feed 120 kids peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Not only did we do various events in this short period of time but we were also able to establish a 2022-2023 board for our club. The club elections ran from September 13th- 21st and we were successfully able to make a strong board. Thank you so much to everyone who ran for the board and showed their interest in taking a leadership role for this club. Here is our 2022-2023 board! ● President- Anvika Perumalla ● Vice President- Tarun Rajesh ● Secretary- Rahul Perala ● Activity Director- Christeena Boddakayala ● Communication Lead- Sairaaga Perala ● Google Classroom Manager- Venkata Nemani Once again, congratulations to our board, and we’re looking to create a great school year full of volunteering opportunities! As a board and club some things that we want to accomplish include establishing a connection with various organizations so we can go back and volunteer with them periodically. We also hope to create as many opportunities as possible so that each club member can actively participate in the club, whether through in-person events or remote events we conduct at school. We have a lot planned and are excited to see what we can accomplish this school year! This is just the beginning, and it's only going to get better from here. Article Written By: Anvika Perumalla Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri

VT Seva Detroit is very excited to share with you all 🙂 SWARAOKE a Singing Event for VT SEVA CAUSES organized by Swaravedika on November 13th at 12.30 pm It's a great opportunity for all singers (Youth and Adults) to showcase their awesome singing talent🎤🎤. Please do signup asap!! For more details on this event, please contact Kalyani ji @Kalyani Mantripragada. As always, we are eagerly looking forward to this wonderful event and truly appreciate Kalyani ji and her Swaravedika team's efforts and dedication shown every year to support Nethra Vidyalaya students' education. Please Register at: Swaravedika.org/detroit

VT Seva Detroit completed a total of 12 individual service activities from Jan to April 2022 that included Community services, Environmental services, Appreciation to the Police department, Police tours & Drive for Detroit Homeless Shelter. Oakland Food Pantry: January 29th Capuchin Soup Kitchen: February 26th Destined for Greatness: February 5, February 13 Arts & Scraps: January 3 - February 25 Mercado Food Bank: March 6 Zaman International: March 26 Drive for Detroit Rescue Mission Food Gatherers: April 9 Novi Police Appreciation Lunch & Station Tour: April 10 Earth Day Project: April 23 Oakland Food Pantry Volunteering Every year, more than 50 thousand people are fed 750 thousand pounds of food each year by the Oakland HOPE Food Pantry. They work daily to help package and distribute food for families in need. They help veterans, disaster survivors, hungry children, and seniors get the food they deserve. As a volunteer-run organization, they require help to package the food each week and our VT Seva Detroit’s volunteers stepped up to undertake this responsibility. Together, we helped package enough food to feed 60 families and children. The volunteers completed many tasks to help so that they could help more people in need: These are our wonderful volunteers who participated: Youth: Nikhil Aerabati, Rishi Adduri, Hiba Zyna, Kushal Durga, Hrudya Kishore, Yug Patel, Supraja Pattangi, Surya Takawale, Lalitaditya Akkaraju Adult: Zahara Begum, Giri Varadhan, Raghunath Aerabati, Anand Ranganathan, Vandana Durga, Ravinder Akkaraju, Vanitha Gopalan Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/5525078580852459 YouTube video : https://youtu.be/eBe5cPnkUhQ Capuchin Soup Kitchen Volunteering The Capuchin Soup Kitchen is a kitchen in Detroit that feeds people and families that are going through a hardship. They have served millions of meals since they started. They do multiple things to end poverty, hunger, and homelessness. Our volunteers stepped up to help them in this fight against hunger and helped set up, cook, serve, and clean up the kitchens in their kitchen . Under the guidance of permanent volunteers at the kitchens, they helped feed multiple families and children: These are our wonderful volunteers who participated: Youth: Kushal Durga, Rishi Adduri, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Veeksha Somula, Akshith Ashwanth Adult: Vandana Durga, Durga Sangita, Raghunathan Namuduri, Vanitha Gopalan Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/5616618845031765 YouTube video: https://youtu.be/M4zZfdYfCRw Destined for Greatness Volunteering The Ford Wellness Center hosts the Destined for Greatness program for young women and girls through mentorship and help in bad situations. They have successfully helped over 5000 people. When we volunteered, we split up into 3 groups. 17 volunteers participated volunteering in each area where they needed help in sorting, assembling, cleaning. Shadora Ford who is the founder of Destined for Greatness was in awe seeing our great help and greatly appreciated all our volunteers’ efforts. We went there twice in February back-to-back and helped them. Each group took up one part of the gym area clean-up. One sorted toys and clothes, one cleaned up items from the storage room, and one set up the clothing areas. February 5th Youth that participated : Nikhil Aerabati; Varun Aerabati; Abhinav Suresh; Hiba Zyna; Sathvik Tirumala Kanduri; Hrudya Kishore; Veeksha Somula; Anvika Perumalla; Sravya Saranu; Jaden Laba; Anikait Pundhir; Akshith Ashwanth. Adults that participated: Zahara Begum; Srikanth Ramanathan; Suresh Rajan; Vandana Durga; Raghunath Aerabati; Asha Puranam; Vanitha Gopalan. February 13th Youth volunteers who participated : Hrudya Kishore; Surya Subramanian; Kushal Durga; Akshay Kumar; Sanjay Sundarapandiyan Srivatsa Thirunagari; Eesha chigullapally Govind Beemisetty; Sri Medha Beemisetty. Adult volunteers who participated : Parvathee Subramaniam; Sailatha Thukkaram; Anand Renganathan; Srinathbabu Karnati; Venkat chigullapally; Kiran Beemisetty; Suresh Rajan & Vanitha Gopalan. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/page/804058126287885/search/?q=destined%20for%20greatness Arts & Scraps Volunteering The Arts and Scraps Detroit organization is a non-profit that provides STEM related kits to children throughout Detroit. However, to assemble each kit, they need volunteers such as ourselves. Through multiple tasks such as defuzzing sock loops and cutting foam. Through our help, they were able to provide free STEM kits to children. 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗽𝘀, 𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗯𝘀, 𝗳𝗮𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗰, 𝗯𝘂𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴. January 3 – January 16 Youth volunteers who participated : 𝗢𝘃𝗶𝘆𝗮 𝗝; 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗿𝗮; 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗝; 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗮 𝗭; 𝗦𝗿𝗮𝘃𝘆𝗮 𝗦; 𝗬𝘂𝗴 𝗣; 𝗞𝗮𝗮𝘃𝘆𝗮 𝗞; 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗞; 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗷𝗮𝘆 𝗦; 𝗔𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗮𝘆 𝗞; 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗠; 𝗔𝗯𝗶 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵𝘁𝗶 𝗥; 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗶 𝗕; 𝗜𝘀𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹; 𝗔𝗱𝗶 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹; 𝗥𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗹; 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘃𝗶𝗸; 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵; 𝗔𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗦; 𝗔𝗱𝗵𝘃𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦 February 1 – February 25 Youth volunteers who participated : 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗦𝗵𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗵𝗶𝗹 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗟𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆𝗮 𝗮𝗸𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷𝘂, 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝗸𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷𝘂, 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗔𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗹𝗮, 𝗞𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗸𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗠𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗗𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗮 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗷𝗮𝗺, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶 Group 2 Cutting foam project Youth who participated: 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗷𝗮𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘆𝗮𝗻, 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗮 𝗭𝘆𝗻𝗮, 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗻, 𝗔𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵, 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗸𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗔𝗯𝗶𝘀𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵𝘁𝗶 𝗥𝗮𝗺, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/page/804058126287885/search/?q=Arts%20%26%20Scraps YouTube Video of Arts & Scraps - Group1 and Group2 https://youtu.be/eaCfqaa934k Mercado Food Bank Gleaners Mercado Food Bank is a drive-through food store in Detroit where people can safely get access to healthy food. They have recently adapted their policy to drive-through instead of as a store, and needed volunteers to put the food into people’s cars. Our volunteers helped pack food, arrange items onto storage carts, re-arranged shelved items for easier access, loaded customers’ cars, cleaned the area, and helped restock the building for the next day. 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝟭𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗽𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝟴𝟴 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 Youth who participated : Hrudya Kishore, Nikhil Aerabati, Vandana Durga, Kushal Durga, Eesha Chigullapally, Akshith Ashwanth. Anikait Pundhir, Rohan Patil, Soham Bhatta Adults who participated : Raghunath Aerabati, Vandana Durga, Venkat Chigullapally, Jisha Padmanabhan, Savitri Raman, Vanitha Gopalan Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0DtSzq1XcUUXkyRcFbBFxpgEaEvfB1hqSBoS4r1HtE7rhV3fFvCG31CGL17h3pEugl YouTube video: https://youtu.be/3zHpmzSAMXA Zaman International Zaman International is dedicated to ending poverty and unhealthy conditions. They provide basic supplies, both medical and edible. They also help the families through tutoring and support during hardships . When VT Seva volunteered there, we helped pack and store various medical necessities such as masks, gloves, wipes, hand sanitizers, first aid kits, etc. We also assembled boxes full of the necessities and arranged them for delivery . Overall, we were able to pack over 350 boxes for Zaman International, which could support numerous families. Youth who participated : Medhas Kollu, Eesha chigullapally, Pavan Nagaraj, Nikhil Aerabati, Abisrishti Ram, Srivatsa Thirunagari, Akshay Kumar, Sravya saranu, Anand Brijesh, Yana Panchal. Adults who participated : Vanitha Gopalan, Parvathee Subramaniam, Vani Chigullapally, Ram Ramanathan, Brijesh Gopal, Pavan Nagaraj, Radhika . Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0KzaqKbP7VJWQxQmtuuvzBawSCwfyYNedV7VhNJPAJKM88hpQNiCAbaiuv8S5WdFQl YouTube video: https://youtu.be/JKp5fBEKfSM Drive for Detroit Rescue Homeless Shelter with the help of Kroger Stores Solicitation. On March 20th, 2022, VT Seva Detroit completed a drive for Detroit Rescue Homeless Shelter with the help of Kroger Stores Solicitation. VT Seva Detroit team raised a total of $800 and collected around six big boxes of Baby care products and personal care & hygiene products for Men and Women with the help of generous customers who shopped at Kroger Canton Stores from 10 am to 4:30 pm. YouTube video: https://youtu.be/ZwN1yp_jq_U Checkout blog link at: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-drive-for-detroit-rescue-homeless-shelter Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid036mbmpHMnN8AQCnhQiMDGqzAPUtNmDCLY2cYqMBusHj2pkGZY5NgVA14LVYHsqnhQl Food Gatherers Food Gatherers are a food bank in Washtenaw County providing food for the impoverished. They are the leading group in hunger management in this county . They not only provide support for individual families, but for schools and local universities too. They distributed 9 million pounds of food last year through the help of volunteers. VT Seva volunteered there and helped to sort food, arrange boxes, and pack more than 1700 pounds of food. Youth who participated: Kirupali Sathyanathan; Veena Karthik; Hrudya Kishore; Abisrishti Ram; Adhvaith Suresh ; Srivatsa Thirunagari, Nitya Sankar, Kushal Durga . Adults who participated: Aarthi Karthik; Vanitha Gopalan . Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0aBhbX6pUcKCF5xCyjVANhiNMT9PxLEW2xs9mNiLHyDMuBymrDkXSeZ99UN7M1Aiwl YouTube video: https://youtu.be/nyBxXT530nA Novi Police Department Tour & Appreciation Lunch Our volunteers had a great learning experience on April 10th attending the Novi Police Station tour. Novi Police Department Tour and Novi Police Appreciation Lunch VT Seva Detroit had a tour of the Novi Police Department, Novi, Michigan, for youth volunteers on April 10th, 2022, and also had the pleasure of hosting an Appreciation lunch for the Novi Police Department on May 8th, 2022 Checkout blog link at: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-novi-police-department-tour-and-novi-police-appreciation-lunch YouTube video: https://youtu.be/nHI3v_-AxSc Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0n9jQ7XSS5Xe2hFoPZjUrx1p1VfJUpaAucP7dEdkWjXXvmKuLTU9EpQzh5RnVgjnjl h ttps://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0gSVp4qKzLNWaZ4peiHMWB1kptiST3q7GGEALcjEa5WxzTD4avZGYoHShYibcdyQUl Earth Day Project Farmington Hills, Michigan has a yearly “litter walk” where volunteers walk for 2-3 miles and clean up all roadside trash on the way. This year, the 9th year of the litter walk, VT Seva helped. We collected trash from the roads, ditches, fields, and nearby lawns. We split up into 2 groups so that we could maintain both sides of the road, and we learned a lot about the ecosystem and the importance of taking care of it. At the end, we had a total of 6 bags collected over 2 miles. Youth that participated: 𝗞𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗷𝗸𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗛𝗮𝗷𝗶 𝗠𝘂𝗵𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻, 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗻, 𝗔𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶. Adults that participated: 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘂 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗷 𝗸𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘆𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗮 𝗚𝗼𝗽𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02wq52pnEkdJTG3twAWYcBkviqdeQqgXdfvFNT8gTVwpocWvUi665BopmButhhMedTl YouTube video: https://youtu.be/abrKnB_P8w0 Blog and the Video Created By: Akshay Kumar (Youth Board member) Blog Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri (VTS Detroit Communications)

VT Seva Detroit 2022: Jan to April Volunteering Activities VT Seva Detroit completed a total of 12 individual service activities from Jan to April 2022 that included Community services, Environmental services, Appreciation to the Police department, Police tours & Drive for Detroit Homeless Shelter. Oakland Food Pantry: January 29th Capuchin Soup Kitchen: February 26th Destined for Greatness: February 5, February 13 Arts & Scraps: January 3 - February 25 Mercado Food Bank: March 6 Zaman International: March 26 Drive for Detroit Rescue Mission Food Gatherers: April 9 Novi Police Appreciation Lunch & Station Tour: April 10 Earth Day Project: April 23 Oakland Food Pantry Volunteering Every year, more than 50 thousand people are fed 750 thousand pounds of food each year by the Oakland HOPE Food Pantry. They work daily to help package and distribute food for families in need. They help veterans, disaster survivors, hungry children, and seniors get the food they deserve. As a volunteer-run organization, they require help to package the food each week and our VT Seva Detroit’s volunteers stepped up to undertake this responsibility. Together, we helped package enough food to feed 60 families and children. The volunteers completed many tasks to help so that they could help more people in need: These are our wonderful volunteers who participated: Youth: Nikhil Aerabati, Rishi Adduri, Hiba Zyna, Kushal Durga, Hrudya Kishore, Yug Patel, Supraja Pattangi, Surya Takawale, Lalitaditya Akkaraju Adult: Zahara Begum, Giri Varadhan, Raghunath Aerabati, Anand Ranganathan, Vandana Durga, Ravinder Akkaraju, Vanitha Gopalan Check out our Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/5525078580852459 YouTube video : https://youtu.be/eBe5cPnkUhQ Capuchin Soup Kitchen Volunteering The Capuchin Soup Kitchen is a kitchen in Detroit that feeds people and families that are going through a hardship. They have served millions of meals since they started. They do multiple things to end poverty, hunger, and homelessness. Our volunteers stepped up to help them in this fight against hunger and helped set up, cook, serve, and clean up the kitchens in their kitchen . Under the guidance of permanent volunteers at the kitchens, they helped feed multiple families and children: These are our wonderful volunteers who participated: Youth: Kushal Durga, Rishi Adduri, Sai Sahasra Namuduri, Veeksha Somula, Akshith Ashwanth Adult: Vandana Durga, Durga Sangita, Raghunathan Namuduri, Vanitha Gopalan Check out our Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/5616618845031765 YouTube link: https://youtu.be/M4zZfdYfCRw Destined for Greatness Volunteering The Ford Wellness Center hosts the Destined for Greatness program for young women and girls through mentorship and help in bad situations. They have successfully helped over 5000 people. When we volunteered, we split up into 3 groups. 17 volunteers participated volunteering in each area where they needed help in sorting, assembling, cleaning. Shadora Ford who is the founder of Destined for Greatness was in awe seeing our great help and greatly appreciated all our volunteers’ efforts. We went there twice in February back-to-back and helped them. Each group took up one part of the gym area clean-up. One sorted toys and clothes, one cleaned up items from the storage room, and one set up the clothing areas. February 5 Youth that participated : Nikhil Aerabati; Varun Aerabati; Abhinav Suresh; Hiba Zyna; Sathvik Tirumala Kanduri; Hrudya Kishore; Veeksha Somula; Anvika Perumalla; Sravya Saranu; Jaden Laba; Anikait Pundhir; Akshith Ashwanth. Adults that participated: Zahara Begum; Srikanth Ramanathan; Suresh Rajan; Vandana Durga; Raghunath Aerabati; Asha Puranam; Vanitha Gopalan. February 13 Youth volunteers who participated : Hrudya Kishore; Surya Subramanian; Kushal Durga; Akshay Kumar; Sanjay Sundarapandiyan Srivatsa Thirunagari; Eesha chigullapally Govind Beemisetty; Sri Medha Beemisetty. Adult volunteers who participated : Parvathee Subramaniam; Sailatha Thukkaram; Anand Renganathan; Srinathbabu Karnati; Venkat chigullapally; Kiran Beemisetty; Suresh Rajan & Vanitha Gopalan. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/page/804058126287885/search/?q=destined%20for%20greatness Arts & Scraps Volunteering The Arts and Scraps Detroit organization is a non-profit that provides STEM related kits to children throughout Detroit. However, to assemble each kit, they need volunteers such as ourselves. Through multiple tasks such as defuzzing sock loops and cutting foam. Through our help, they were able to provide free STEM kits to children. 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗽𝘀, 𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗯𝘀, 𝗳𝗮𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗰, 𝗯𝘂𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴. January 3 – January 16 Youth volunteers who participated : 𝗢𝘃𝗶𝘆𝗮 𝗝; 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗿𝗮; 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗝; 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗮 𝗭; 𝗦𝗿𝗮𝘃𝘆𝗮 𝗦; 𝗬𝘂𝗴 𝗣; 𝗞𝗮𝗮𝘃𝘆𝗮 𝗞; 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗞; 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗷𝗮𝘆 𝗦; 𝗔𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗮𝘆 𝗞; 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗠; 𝗔𝗯𝗶 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵𝘁𝗶 𝗥; 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗶 𝗕; 𝗜𝘀𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹; 𝗔𝗱𝗶 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹; 𝗥𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗹; 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘃𝗶𝗸; 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵; 𝗔𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗦; 𝗔𝗱𝗵𝘃𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦 February 1 – February 25 Youth volunteers who participated : 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗦𝗵𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗵𝗶𝗹 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗟𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆𝗮 𝗮𝗸𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷𝘂, 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝗸𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷𝘂, 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗔𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗹𝗮, 𝗞𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗸𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗠𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗗𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗮 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗷𝗮𝗺, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶 Group 2 Cutting foam project Youth who participated: 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶, 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗷𝗮𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘆𝗮𝗻, 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗮 𝗭𝘆𝗻𝗮, 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗻, 𝗔𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘃 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵, 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗸𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗮, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗔𝗯𝗶𝘀𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵𝘁𝗶 𝗥𝗮𝗺, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/page/804058126287885/search/?q=Arts%20%26%20Scraps YouTube link for the Video of Arts & Scraps - Group1 and Group2 https://youtu.be/eaCfqaa934k Mercado Food Bank Gleaners Mercado Food Bank is a drive-through food store in Detroit where people can safely get access to healthy food. They have recently adapted their policy to drive-through instead of as a store, and needed volunteers to put the food into people’s cars. Our volunteers helped pack food, arrange items onto storage carts, re-arranged shelved items for easier access, loaded customers’ cars, cleaned the area, and helped restock the building for the next day. 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝟭𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗽𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝟴𝟴 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 Youth who participated : Hrudya Kishore, Nikhil Aerabati, Vandana Durga, Kushal Durga, Eesha Chigullapally, Akshith Ashwanth. Anikait Pundhir, Rohan Patil, Soham Bhatta Adults who participated : Raghunath Aerabati, Vandana Durga, Venkat Chigullapally, Jisha Padmanabhan, Savitri Raman, Vanitha Gopalan Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/page/804058126287885/search?q=mercado&filters=eyJycF9jcmVhdGlvbl90aW1lOjAiOiJ7XCJuYW1lXCI6XCJjcmVhdGlvbl90aW1lXCIsXCJhcmdzXCI6XCJ7XFxcInN0YXJ0X3llYXJcXFwiOlxcXCIyMDIyXFxcIixcXFwic3RhcnRfbW9udGhcXFwiOlxcXCIyMDIyLTFcXFwiLFxcXCJlbmRfeWVhclxcXCI6XFxcIjIwMjJcXFwiLFxcXCJlbmRfbW9udGhcXFwiOlxcXCIyMDIyLTEyXFxcIixcXFwic3RhcnRfZGF5XFxcIjpcXFwiMjAyMi0xLTFcXFwiLFxcXCJlbmRfZGF5XFxcIjpcXFwiMjAyMi0xMi0zMVxcXCJ9XCJ9In0%3D YouTube link for the Video https://youtu.be/3zHpmzSAMXA Zaman International Zaman International is dedicated to ending poverty and unhealthy conditions. They provide basic supplies, both medical and edible. They also help the families through tutoring and support during hardships . When VT Seva volunteered there, we helped pack and store various medical necessities such as masks, gloves, wipes, hand sanitizers, first aid kits, etc. We also assembled boxes full of the necessities and arranged them for delivery . Overall, we were able to pack over 350 boxes for Zaman International, which could support numerous families. Youth who participated : Medhas Kollu, Eesha chigullapally, Pavan Nagaraj, Nikhil Aerabati, Abisrishti Ram, Srivatsa Thirunagari, Akshay Kumar, Sravya saranu, Anand Brijesh, Yana Panchal. Adults who participated : Vanitha Gopalan, Parvathee Subramaniam, Vani Chigullapally, Ram Ramanathan, Brijesh Gopal, Pavan Nagaraj, Radhika . Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0KzaqKbP7VJWQxQmtuuvzBawSCwfyYNedV7VhNJPAJKM88hpQNiCAbaiuv8S5WdFQl YouTube link for the Video https://youtu.be/JKp5fBEKfSM Food Gatherers Food Gatherers are a food bank in Washtenaw County providing food for the impoverished. They are the leading group in hunger management in this county . They not only provide support for individual families, but for schools and local universities too. They distributed 9 million pounds of food last year through the help of volunteers. VT Seva volunteered there and helped to sort food, arrange boxes, and pack more than 1700 pounds of food. Youth who participated: Kirupali Sathyanathan; Veena Karthik; Hrudya Kishore; Abisrishti Ram; Adhvaith Suresh ; Srivatsa Thirunagari, Nitya Sankar, Kushal Durga . Adults who participated: Aarthi Karthik; Vanitha Gopalan . Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0aBhbX6pUcKCF5xCyjVANhiNMT9PxLEW2xs9mNiLHyDMuBymrDkXSeZ99UN7M1Aiwl YouTube link for the Video https://youtu.be/nyBxXT530nA Earth Day Project Farmington Hills, Michigan has a yearly “litter walk” where volunteers walk for 2-3 miles and clean up all roadside trash on the way. This year, the 9th year of the litter walk, VT Seva helped. We collected trash from the roads, ditches, fields, and nearby lawns. We split up into 2 groups so that we could maintain both sides of the road, and we learned a lot about the ecosystem and the importance of taking care of it. At the end, we had a total of 6 bags collected over 2 miles. Youth that participated: 𝗞𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗛𝗿𝘂𝗱𝘆𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗦𝗮𝗶 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗷𝗸𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗛𝗮𝗷𝗶 𝗠𝘂𝗵𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻, 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗻, 𝗔𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶. Adults that participated: 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘂 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗮, 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗷 𝗸𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘆𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶, 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗮 𝗚𝗼𝗽𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻. Checkout our FB posts for more details about this project: https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02wq52pnEkdJTG3twAWYcBkviqdeQqgXdfvFNT8gTVwpocWvUi665BopmButhhMedTl YouTube link for the Video https://youtu.be/abrKnB_P8w0 Novi Police Department Tour & Appreciation Lunch Our volunteers had a great learning experience on April 10th attending the Novi Police Station tour. Novi Police Department Tour and Novi Police Appreciation Lunch VT Seva Detroit had a tour of the Novi Police Department, Novi, Michigan, for youth volunteers on April 10th, 2022, and also had the pleasure of hosting an Appreciation lunch for the Novi Police Department on May 8th, 2022 Checkout this blog link for more details: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-novi-police-department-tour-and-novi-police-appreciation-lunch Checkout YouTube link at: https://youtu.be/nHI3v_-AxSc Facebook Link https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0n9jQ7XSS5Xe2hFoPZjUrx1p1VfJUpaAucP7dEdkWjXXvmKuLTU9EpQzh5RnVgjnjl https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid0gSVp4qKzLNWaZ4peiHMWB1kptiST3q7GGEALcjEa5WxzTD4avZGYoHShYibcdyQUl Drive for Detroit Rescue Homeless Shelter with the help of Kroger Stores Solicitation. On March 20th, 2022, VT Seva Detroit completed a drive for Detroit Rescue Homeless Shelter with the help of Kroger Stores Solicitation. VT Seva Detroit team raised a total of $800 and collected around six big boxes of Baby care products and personal care & hygiene products for Men and Women with the help of generous customers who shopped at Kroger Canton Stores from 10 am to 4:30 pm. Checkout YouTube link at: https://youtu.be/ZwN1yp_jq_U Check out this blog link for more details: https://www.vtsworld.org/post/vt-seva-detroit-drive-for-detroit-rescue-homeless-shelter Facebook Link https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid036mbmpHMnN8AQCnhQiMDGqzAPUtNmDCLY2cYqMBusHj2pkGZY5NgVA14LVYHsqnhQl

One of the most awaited Annual RAAS event of VT Seva is around the corner. With the amazing turnout back in 2021, we are excited to host our 7th Annual VT Seva RAAS Event, benefiting the visually challenged and tribal school children in 2022. RAAS is not just a Fund raising event but it is also our Annual Celebration event, culminating a great year of various fundraising activities and volunteering service to the community. VT Seva Detroit board acknowledges the year-long hard work of all our dedicated volunteers and kind donors with an evening of music, dance, skits, food, fun, and celebration. Please mark your calendar for Saturday November 19th, 2022 at 25335 W Nine Mile Road, Southfield, MI from 5:00 PM onwards. All proceeds from the event will go towards the education, food, and clothing for visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya & Tribal School children. please Join us in making this event a successful one “Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” – Nelson Mandela As the quote from Nelson Mandela describes, it is human nature to be resilient in tough times. The epitome of resilience is demonstrated by the visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya & the underprivileged Tribal area school children every day by their persistence, perseverance & patience. They go through unimaginable situations in their lives, yet these gifted & talented kids come out of it with great success. We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give. - Winston Churchill As this wonderful quote says, we could make a life by giving a helping hand to these children with our generous donations. Last year, in 2021 , with generous donations from everyone, we not only met our target but we surpassed it. We are committed to raising the appropriate funds for the 250 children by our Annual Fund Raiser program of RAAS 2022 Be a part of this noble cause to bring smiles to the faces of over 1500 school children. You can make a big difference in their lives. Give the gift of education by sponsoring a child for just a $1.00 a day!! Guests gracing the event : Will be updated once we get the commitment. All are welcome, please join us to celebrate and support for this noble cause!! Mark your calendars for Saturday November 19th, 2022 at 25335 W Nine Mile Road, Southfield, MI from 5:00 PM onwards.

Wow!! What an event it was this year on June 25th 2022 at Total Sports Novi (East), MI. VT Seva Detroit organized a boarded indoor fundraising soccer tournament yet again this year to benefit the blind and visually challenged children in India. Like past years we had 3 different groups: - Group 1: 6 to 9 years’ old - Group 2: 10 to 13 years’ old - Group 3: 14 and above This year’s turnout was unprecedented with 33 games in the 3 age Groups with a total of 93 players. During the run-up to the event, VT Seva Detroit Team members were ‘all guns blazing’ in all departments as usual. To list a few: · Promotions – Our Youth & Adult Volunteers did an amazing job in promoting the event. Apart from reaching out to the past participants via email, phone and voicemails and new participants via distribution list and MIindia, we had several outreach sessions at Total Sports Novi/Wixom, India Grocers and also pasted Flyers at different important locations throughout. Vijitha ji of Vani Foods came forward to Sponsor after listening to the great cause this event was being conducted for. She also graciously offered us her Storefront Parking Lot for any future VT Seva Events. Thank you so much Vidhya ji! · Venue - Total Sports – It would be injustice if we don’t mention Michelle Reitz, Total Sports Facilities Manager and her associate Jimmy. They were simply amazing and without their help and support, it would not have been possible. Right from when we decided to go for Soccer Tournament yet again this year, Michelle and her team were so appreciative of the cause and promised to go all the way to help us organize this. They not only subsidized the Venue fees for us but went above & beyond to help us so easily organize the logistics. It would not have been possible to conduct such a successful event without our AMAZING and ENTHUSIASTIC volunteers: All these youth volunteers did a terrific job in all these areas: The event would not have been a successful one without the tireless help and support in the following areas: This year we were bolstered by the one and only Alvin (of the OHWTF Soccer Club) . He was so gracious to help us out with refereeing the Group 3 games right from the beginning to the end. Special thanks to all the three amazing Referees who ensured the games were played fairly! · Teams & Winners – We had an amazing Game Roster and Schedule this year with several first-time youth players, 2 High School Teams, and 4 Adult League Teams from Saginaw, Utica/Rochester areas and 2 more teams from Hella. Group 1 (6 to 9 years’ old): Had 10 players that were placed in 2 different teams Yellow & Blue to verse against each other in Three 10 min. games. The kids had super fun time playing and scoring against each other in a friendly competitive kids Soccer game. The final standings say it all as to how competitive both teams were. Both the teams received the winning Trophies!! Group 2 (10 to 13 years’ old): Fourteen players were matched up against each other depending on their different skill levels in Orange vs Green teams. Superb demonstration of soccer skills amongst the players made up for an interesting three 15 min. sections of the game. Here’s the final standing after the games: The winning players of Group 2 received Trophies and the runner up received Medals for their fantastic performance on the field. Group 3 (14 and above): While the Group 1 & Group 2 games were going on, parallelly the Group 3 games also began simultaneously in the other Field. 8 teams were put in 2 different groups. We had 12 league round-robin games . Every game was high energy and highly competitive with a friendly tussle between the teams as expected. Here’s the league standing: The Semis were Super-charged with Seed 1 playing Seed 4 and Seed 2 playing Seed 3. The final standings were: THE GRAND FINALE: The final was between Saginaw FC and Dark Falcon Utd. It was an electrifying Final game with both teams equally challenging each other with their dribbling, passing and team coordination. In the end, Saginaw FC who were participating in this tournament for the first time came out clear winners beating the Dark Falcons Utd - 3:1. Here’s the final score: All in all, 97 players playing in 3 different age group with some exhilarating and captivating games in the Tournament was a treat to the viewers who thoroughly enjoyed it and stayed till the end. Every pass, every nutmeg and every goal scored was for the noble cause of providing support to the visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya and Tribal School children. We were able to raise a total of $2,113.00 Game & Volunteer Coordinators like every year, met at regular intervals during the run-up to the event, burnt the mid-night oil, extreme planning and execution till the end utilizing the Game Schedule and Scoring software for the first time in VT Seva Detroit Soccer Tournament. In the end, it turned out to be a fruitful success for the hours of preparation that was put in. CONSOLIDATED PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE EVENT ARE AVAILABLE AT: https://photos.app.goo.gl/rEPFrXcWWNBj6fkz6 Facebook Link https://www.facebook.com/vtseva.detroit/posts/pfbid02H1h68CTznDc5WXvKzGF7ySgiAhQ7kMsUNxj3kQk1bX4cuQNAm1pY3jxx2URVwQpRl Blog Written By: Suresh Rajan Blog Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri

Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav is an initiative of the Government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of independence and the glorious history of it's people, culture and achievements. VT Seva Detroit Youth Board participated in this celebration proudly by learning the history of Independence freedom fighters, participating in India Day parade, raising awareness of VTS Seva and raising money for underprivileged students’ education. Youth Board members continued their tradition of learning about selfless leaders who even sacrificed their life to get Independence. Its our duty to learn about them and share the knowledge. In Tribute to Bharath project led by youth volunteer Oviya , these youth volunteers Harish, Kushal, Sriram, Srihari H, Abhinav S, Sravya, Akshay, Shruthi K, Kalki, Rachana, Supraja & Aditi created informational posters. Macrame Key Chain Workshop: With Veena Ji's guidance following youths Oviya, Aaradhya, Sanjeev, Tanishka, Sai Sriram, Adhip and Harish and the adults Mandira, Jyothi, Venkat, Anuradha, Netaji, Jaisankar and Priya made the beautiful tri-color Macrame Keychains to sell in India Day. India Day Event: After a long break, VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Members came together to spread the word of and collect donations for our wonderful cause in India Day. The event started off with a parade, in which our members held up our banner and chanted "Vande Matharam" and "Jai Hind ." After getting inside, we spent many hours spreading the word at our stall. We sold handmade keychains In addition to this, our youth board member Oviya Jaisankar raised money by face painting India Flag. She raised money to support one student's education for a year. Overall it was really good to celebrate our 76th Independence Day with patriotism and raising money for Nethravidyala and Tribal School students’ education. Volunteers who participated in India Day Celebration are Youth Volunteers : Harish, Oviya, Anvika, Sreenika, Sriram, Harsh, Aaradhya, Eesha, Adhip , Rishi C & Pranav T Adult Volunteers: Veena, Mandira, Venkat C, Jaisankar & Priya. Blog Written By: Oviya Jaisankar (Youth Board Member) Blog Published By: Nandini Cheemalamarri (VTSeva Detroit Communications)

What an amazing day it turned out to be, perfect weather - not too sunny, not too cloudy, until the penultimate hour, when the rain God decided to be the part of the Final match as a wild card contestant 😊!! Glad that our seasoned men’s Finalists – Spikers and Sunrisers did not budge and continued their game with ease. The day began very early for some of us. A few players, core volunteers and set-up crew reached the venue before 7:45 AM EST. They were getting warmed up while we quickly put up the canopy tents, tables, check in booth, food booths, T-shirt sale booth and got ready for the team check-ins. Meanwhile, we closed out on the pre-orders of the Jimmy John’s Veggie Sub and sent the order to the store. Soon enough, the lines were drawn up and the teams got on to the courts and the most awaited Women’s Throwball games began! Just as expected, every game was high-spirited and extremely competitive. Right after the first set of Throwball games, the Men’s Volleyball games also started. The game draws were very balanced for both Women and Men’s schedules which made them even more interesting and nail-biting. For more Pics, Please visit VTSeva Detroit FB Media https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.6130448156982162&type=3 Final Game Standings: Here’s the impressive league level Standings for the Women’s Throwball Tournament . Semis & Final: Winner of the Women’s Throwball were DETROIT CHAMPS Here’s the fabulous league level Standings for the Men’s Volleyball Tournament. Semis & Final: Winner of the Men’s Volleyball were SUNRISERS Event sponsor : Ramayah Auto was kind enough to sponsor the event. Youth Volunteers: Our super energetic Youth volunteers did a FABULOUS job as scorers, line referee, game referee, food booth help, set-up and clean-up. Special thanks to Kaavya, Sneha, Jayanth, Niharika, Ahana, Veena, Hrudya, Supraja, Leo Schmidt, Sai, Nikhil, Shreya, Alok, Ishan, Teja and Arya!!! Way to go!! Adult Volunteers: The event would not have been a successful one without the tireless help and support in the following areas: - Setting up Banners, Food stall, Tent: Suresh, Venkatji, Vanitha, Jyothi ji - Treasurer help : Jyothi ji, Jaishankar ji - Lunch Subs Pickup & Dropoff: Swaroop ji - Samosas pickup: Srikanth ji - Lunch Serving Help: Meera ji, Ramya ji, Srikanth ji - Game Linesman: Sreenivas ji - Photography: Nandhini ji, Sudheer ji, Vanitha ji - Clean-up: Suresh, Ram ji, Venkat ji, Vanitha ji, Sudheer ji, Sreenivas ji, Nandhini ji - Game leads: Ram ji, Venkat ji, Sireesha ji - Volunteer & Food coordinator: Vanitha ji - Sports Coordinator & Game Scheduling and Online updates: Suresh - Sponsors reachout help: Srinath ji, Sudheer ji We are very glad to share that with the help of such wonderful volunteers, supporters, sponsors, and players who contributed to this noble cause, we were able to raise a total of $2,812.00 , all of which will go towards the education of the visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya & Tribal School students. All in all, it was an AMAZING event!!! Looking forward to making the Tournament bigger & better next year!! Blog written by Suresh Rajan Blog published by Nandini Cheemalamarri