We offer our deepest gratitude to
Gurumayi Chidvilasananda
for initiating the work of The PRASAD Project.

To you, our donors, trustees, staff and volunteers,
we offer our sincere appreciation.
It is because of your contributions that
The PRASAD Project has touched the lives of thousands of people!

We also give our heartfelt thanks to the SYDA Foundation
for their kind support over the years.

From January through December, we will explore PRASAD’s rich, philanthropic history to bring you the warmest stories and the most inspiring photos of the people whom we have served during the past two decades.

There are so many opportunities for you to participate in
PRASAD’s 20th Anniversary Celebration:

• Become a PRASAD Monthly Partner, or increase your monthly gift amount.
• Donate and send one of our e-Cards in honor of a loved one.
• Share PRASAD’s e-news with your friends. Just use the ‘Forward’ option from your browser’s toolbar.
• Contact us and tell us your comments about The PRASAD Project!

Philanthropic Relief Altruistic Service And Development

Now, when you make a gift to PRASAD, you can create a free, illustrated
e-Card with your own unique message, to express your warm feelings and intentions to the recipient.

PRASAD e-Cards are easy to send. After you have made your contribution through the Donation page or the Gift Catalogue, you will be directed back to a Transaction Results page, where you can click the e-Card link, and follow these four simple steps.

1) Choose an image
2) Write your message
3) Review your message
4) Send

There are so many great reasons to make a gift and send an e-Card – birthdays, holidays, marriages, anniversaries, graduation, in memory of a loved one – these are just a few of those reasons. Best of all, there is no required minimum donation – you may send an e-Card with your gift in any amount.

Now is the perfect time for you to give in honor of a loved one, and send a personalized e-Card.

Your gifts to PRASAD became seedlings, agricultural supplies, medical care, education, environmental protection, mentoring, advocacy, clean drinking water, Self-Help Groups, a children’s library, health education, and training programs, etc. that made their progress possible. On behalf of the people benefited, we offer you profound thanks.

We have two important Milestones to report for 2011:

This year marked the 20^th anniversary of one of PRASAD’s earliest initiatives in India, the Eye Program. It the ideal time to shine a fresh light on this amazing program, which has served nearly 1 million people in the Tansa Valley!

It began in 1991, as a traveling program of eye camps and community outreach to provide corrective surgery to villagers suffering from cataracts. In 2003, the program added the permanent, Gurudev Siddha Peeth Netra Chikitsa Eye Hospital, while continuing the outreach and eye camps. These expanded in 2006, to include the most remote areas of the valley.

Also enjoying its 20^th anniversary is the Education Program – from presenting school supplies to young children who have none, to providing college scholarships to promising students, the education initiative is a crucial component of PRASAD’s efforts to break the cycle of ignorance and poverty in the Tansa Valley.

The end is also the beginning!

We are also eager to welcome the New Year. This will be a very special and exciting one, filled with promise, as we will celebrate the 20th Anniversary of The PRASAD Project itself! We invite you to join our celebration by making a year-end gift.

All of us at The PRASAD Project wish you a joyful holiday and a prosperous New Year!

And what could be more joyfully rewarding than restoring one person’s sight? Try multiplying it by 23,000. That is the number of corrective operations the surgical team has performed during Carlos’ tenure!

“I feel blessed for the privilege of helping these children to start a new life, to improve their ability to study, to play with their friends and to enjoy seeing their reflection in a mirror,” said Carlos. For example, Edith, age 10, says she is eager to go to school now, because, “I have normal eyes and my classmates won’t call me cross-eyes.”

Carlos added, “It is, for me personally, an opportunity to work with my wife Angelica, who, from the first eye camp season, has been my inseparable companion in this incredible adventure.”

Editor’s note: PRASAD de Mexico’s volunteer surgical team performs free, corrective surgery among children and adults suffering from cataracts and strabismus (crossed eyes). To date, the team has performed eye surgery for more than 23,000 adults and children.

The objectives were to stimulate interest in protecting and conserving the environment in the Tansa Valley and to provide the tools to achieve that. The outcomes include a plan of action that is both practical and exciting, and a committee to carry out the plan.

In the words of one PC staff member, the villagers and PRASAD Self-Help Groups (SHG) here “…have displayed exemplary ownership in running the affairs of the village by themselves. They participate in decision making and set examples of good governance including 100 percent compliance with guidelines for personal waste disposal, water conservation and managing of household waste by composting it.”

Mr. Mehta, a well-known environmentalist, spoke about the causes and effects of pollution, and his personal experiences in combating them. As he enumerated those causes – pesticides, industrialization, ignorance of environmental laws, poor waste-management and failure to protect and manage resources – he also offered hope in form of effective, grass-roots counter-measures that our Self-Help Groups, Farmers Clubs, village leaders and even youth groups can implement easily.

Informed and inspired, the villagers immediately created a preliminary Environmental Action Plan, and a new committee to implement that plan!

The Chikitsa Action Plan

• Environment Awareness Campaigns
• Celebrate Environment Week and Earth Day,
• Plant fast-growth trees for fuel, fodder and household use

The committee’s first task is to create the Environmental Awareness Presentation and to schedule events for the campaign.

Make a donation now to support PRASAD’s work and bring opportunities for the people of Tansa Valley to contribute to environmental protection and their communities.

The women set out to get a teacher for their village school; in the process, they learned that unity of purpose is the most effective tool that one can use for community development.

The primary school of Akloli Village had not had a teacher since last year, but the school ‘board’ had not moved forward to appoint a new teacher. This affected the children’s education.

With guidance from their PRASAD Motivator, the women decided to make a written petition to the school principal. They met with him several times. He gave assurances every time, but took no action. The women decided to take stronger action and this time, they invited local parents to join them.

On June 22, 2011, more than 70 parents and members of six SHGs took up their positions in front of the school. There, they made a formal demand for a new teacher, and refused to leave until they had written assurances from the authorities. The very next day, a new teacher began work at the Akloli Village School.

What a great achievement for these women! They thought about the village problem, discussed their way to the appropriate solution and took decisive action. One of the women said, “This thing would not have happened if PRASAD Chikitsa had not given us motivation and guidance. Thank you to PRASAD. Now we understand the potential and power of our unity.”

You can support the work of The PRASAD Project with a donation.

Considering the traditional stove’s long- and short-term drawbacks, PRASAD Chikitsa (PC) decided to promote a new, Smokeless Chulha. An anonymous benefactor donated funds to buy the molds to build the stoves and, on June 3, 2011 PRASAD held the first demonstrations of how to build and use the new stoves.

A Research Associate from the Appropriate Rural Technology Institute, explained the features and benefits of the stoves, and then built two. All it took to build each stove, apart from the mold, were some sand, cement, used oil, eight bricks, wire, a cast iron fire grate and a metal pot-holder.

One demo stove was installed in the home of *Ulhas Vad, a PC staff member. At first, Ulhas’ grandmother, Granny Vad, had no confidence in the new contraption that he wanted her to try. “I was quite worried about how it worked and would it really be helpful? I thought I wouldn’t be able to cook on it,” she said.

One month later, PRASAD staff made a follow up visit and found Granny Vad singing a very different tune! She excitedly took a pot and boiled water to show how little smoke the chulha produced.

“When my daughter-in-law began to use (the new stove,) I saw that there was no smoke, so I told her that this thing will take more time to cook as the flames are not enough. But, when we started to use it regularly, I saw it cooked in much less time than the old stove. This made me very happy. This chulha doesn’t need the blowpipe either. Due to less smoke, our kitchen does not become black and looks cleaner.”

The fact is, the smokeless stoves are effective in reducing indoor air pollution, reducing fuel consumption by 50 percent and cooking time by 30 percent. PRASAD’s next step will be to expand this project and make the stoves available for more families.

The PRASAD Project expresses its heartfelt gratitude to the anonymous donor who supported and inspired this initiative. You can also support it by making a donation NOW

*Editor’s note: Ulhas was a student in PRASAD’s Arts and Crafts program. He went on to volunteer for the program before becoming a full-time, PRASAD Field Worker. Read his story, ‘The Kalakendra Arts and Crafts Program – from student to teacher’  here.

Monticello, NY—On July 21, PRASAD Children’s Dental Health Program (PRASAD CDHP) inaugurated a new mobile dental clinic at the Sullivan County Government Center in Monticello, NY!

More than 75 well-wishers attended, including U.S. Congressman Maurice Hinchey’s (D-Hurley) District Representative, Chris White, NY State Senator John Bonacic (R/C/I Mt. Hope) and Sullivan County legislators.

We are most grateful to our donors, and for the grants we received through U.S. Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-Hurley) and the Dyson Foundation, a philanthropic organization. Your support made the new clinic a reality.

“PRASAD’s new mobile dental clinic is going to ensure that thousands of Sullivan County children have access to the dental health care they need and otherwise might not receive,” said Hinchey, on his website.

Since 1996, PRASAD CDHP has relied on a unique mobile dental clinic to serve more than 62,381 children, providing more than 170,674 procedures, at over 17 different community sites in rural Sullivan and Ulster counties.

“Our goal in the coming years is to expand our program by implementing the PRASAD CDHP Advancement Project. Through this project, we plan to make consistent dental care accessible to many more children.

The new mobile clinic is the most essential component of this Project; however, it does have operating expenses; we invite you to support our cause of delivering “Miles for Smiles” to children in need by making a donation today,” said Program Administrator, Dr. Cecilia Escarra.

Kelthan Village, India—At the age of 51, Parvati did not have many prospects; she was widowed, very poor and responsible for providing for herself and her two children. Her only resource, besides her strong determination, was her membership in a PRASAD Chikitsa Self Help Group (SHG). As it turned out, it was all she needed to make a courageous bid for self-empowerment and financial security.

Parvati explained, “After my husband’s death, I was very worried for my family. During that time, my SHG members gave me emotional support. Through the SHG I met the PRASAD Chikitsa staff and, with their guidance and support, I was able to take the decision to start my own business.”

With mentoring from PRASAD Chikitsa, Parvati’s Ganga Mahila Self Help Group negotiated a bank loan so the members could borrow funds to start small businesses. Parvati borrowed Rs. 25,500 (USD $560.) from the group and invested the money in 18 goats for milk and meat production.

Now, six years later, Parvati has repaid her loan in full. She is a successful goat farmer who expects her herd to number over 40 goats by the end of the summer! Parvati commented recently, “My family is now financially secure because of this business, which I started with the help of PRASAD. I really want to thank PRASAD and the members of my SHG.”

We invite you to support PRASAD’s initiatives by making a donation today.