By KALYANI VASAN
BEVERLY HILLS, CA-The Lotus Petal Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on children’s education raised $70,000 at a Gala held at the Spice Affair Restaurant here on Dec 8. The star of the evening was Kushal Raj, the founder of Lotus Petal who traveled from India to attend the Gala along with Lotus Petal COO Saloni Bhardwaj.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA-The Lotus Petal Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on children’s education raised $70,000 at a Gala held at the Spice Affair Restaurant here on Dec 8. The star of the evening was Kushal Raj, the founder of Lotus Petal who traveled from India to attend the Gala along with Lotus Petal COO Saloni Bhardwaj.
On a cold wintery New Delhi morning in 2011, while waiting for the school bus, Raj was pleased that his daughter was all bundled up to attend school; but, just a few feet away three young children heading into a yard across the street were bare footed and had no woolens on them. This bothered Raj and a few days later he and his two daughters went to the yard in search of the students to gift them some warm woolen wear to brave the cold. What they encountered were nearly 200 children out in the yard with no shoes and no warm winter wear. Raj’s life took a sudden and unexpected turn: He decided to change the world one child at a time. A firm believer in the economic power that education gives, he took a personal loan of $60K and rented a room to begin a new school. Raj, had all the trappings of a successful Indian executive-he graduated from IIM Lucknow and held an executive position in Ikea, a multi-national company-only to walk away to start the Vidyananda School, an English medium school from nursery to grade 10+2, Pratisthan Learning Centre, a fast track re-entry to school program and Aaryogya Wellness to ensure good nutrition took flight.
These beginnings grew rapidly thanks to the support of people like Sandeep Walia, CEO and Pankaj Kumar, CTO of UNIFY a software company in SoCal. 500 individual donors and technology companies like Fidelity, Cargill, Apple and AMEX to name a few began supporting Lotus Petal via payroll giving programs. The Lotus Petal mission is simple - to provide quality, skill-driven, free education, healthcare and nutritious meals to children. Today, the school has 425 students and the goal is to increase the numbers. However, this can only happen with more funding and hence the first ever Gala was held in Los Angeles to introduce the organization and invite contributions. A silent auction of paintings and ceramics created by Lotus Petal students was the highlight of the evening.
The entertainment segment featured singer Roopali Mahendale, a Kathak and Bollywood dance presentation by a group of girls and 10 year old Vyom Mathrani did an individual act/dance feature.
Walia has committed to match every dollar contributed to Lotus Petal from July-December 31, 2018 up to $50K and he also announced that Pankaj Kumar will provide a dollar match to every one dollar contributed at the Gala. Another IIM alumnus has contributed land to expand the school’s capacity to 2,000 students. Lotus Petal is verified by CAF America. Saloni Bhardwaj presented an audio-visual thought journey of Lotus Petal.
Mike Gillis of DXC Technology was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his skills of always putting people ahead of profit in the corporate environment. His achievement of building a 2,000 strong team at Hitachi Solutions proved that he is the ultimate corporate diplomat who is also a great thought leader.
Kushal Raj spoke to India Journal:
IJ: What takeaways are you expecting from this evening?
Raj: Inspire people to give so that more children can go to school in India. Especially those born to parents who can’t afford to send them to school. We hope to hold a gala every year.
IJ: Have any Lotus Petal students graduated and what has been the outcome?
Raj: Five students from the first batch have graduated, 4 of them have secured jobs. The 5th graduate-a very bright girl is getting ready to take the medical school entrance exams.
IJ: How many students do you admit each year?
Raj: This year we received a whopping 1,000 applications and we could only accept 100.Our reputation has reached many. Parents who never considered educating their children are now lining up. Our education is not restricted to children; we are also educating parents on how to enable their children to succeed. We have parent-education sessions where we ask them to follow strict guidelines. Without their co-operation Lotus Petal would not be where it is.
IJ: From 2016 you have dedicated 100% of your time to the Foundation. How do you support yourself and your family?
Raj: I have been a sharp stock trader and that is enough to keep my home fires burning. When you are fulfilling the purpose of your life, there are many ways the universe takes care of you. You need to have that faith when you take this path.
The entertainment segment featured singer Roopali Mahendale, a Kathak and Bollywood dance presentation by a group of girls and 10 year old Vyom Mathrani did an individual act/dance feature.
Walia has committed to match every dollar contributed to Lotus Petal from July-December 31, 2018 up to $50K and he also announced that Pankaj Kumar will provide a dollar match to every one dollar contributed at the Gala. Another IIM alumnus has contributed land to expand the school’s capacity to 2,000 students. Lotus Petal is verified by CAF America. Saloni Bhardwaj presented an audio-visual thought journey of Lotus Petal.
Mike Gillis of DXC Technology was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his skills of always putting people ahead of profit in the corporate environment. His achievement of building a 2,000 strong team at Hitachi Solutions proved that he is the ultimate corporate diplomat who is also a great thought leader.
Kushal Raj spoke to India Journal:
IJ: What takeaways are you expecting from this evening?
Raj: Inspire people to give so that more children can go to school in India. Especially those born to parents who can’t afford to send them to school. We hope to hold a gala every year.
IJ: Have any Lotus Petal students graduated and what has been the outcome?
Raj: Five students from the first batch have graduated, 4 of them have secured jobs. The 5th graduate-a very bright girl is getting ready to take the medical school entrance exams.
IJ: How many students do you admit each year?
Raj: This year we received a whopping 1,000 applications and we could only accept 100.Our reputation has reached many. Parents who never considered educating their children are now lining up. Our education is not restricted to children; we are also educating parents on how to enable their children to succeed. We have parent-education sessions where we ask them to follow strict guidelines. Without their co-operation Lotus Petal would not be where it is.
IJ: From 2016 you have dedicated 100% of your time to the Foundation. How do you support yourself and your family?
Raj: I have been a sharp stock trader and that is enough to keep my home fires burning. When you are fulfilling the purpose of your life, there are many ways the universe takes care of you. You need to have that faith when you take this path.