Friday 18th October 2013, one woman had an idea, she told her friend and they told others and the result was the Women Empowered charity lunch to raise funds for Sewa Day. 70 women attended and enabled a cheque for £1111 to be presented to Deputy Chair Lopa Patel MBE and Vikas Pota for Sewa Day. The lunch held in Indigo Restaurant in Gerrards Cross was a vibrant afternoon. Between sumptuous courses of food, women browsed through the exhibitions, clothes by Jyoti Chandok Ltd and Miss Fashionista by Payal Malhotra; jewellery from Tanaya by Taruna Ananad and Candles from Spry Candles by Ravleen Sharma. Lopa Patel MBE and Vikas Pota, representatives from Sewa Day, addressed the guests and explained how the initiative started and how people could get involved and organise activities.
“Four years ago one individual had an idea, told some friends, who told some others and those others got some others involved and thus it began. The idea was born from a need to teach young children that charitable giving is not always about donating money, it was, many a times about donating time – the concept of selfless service that generations of Indians (and many others under a variety of names) have known as ‘sewa'”, explained Vikas Pota.
From this the concept of having one day in the year when people come together to “do sewa” for others was born and named “Sewa Day”. Four years on Sewa Day projects are being held in 25 countries with over 250 projects and a staggering 75000 people taking part. Projects can range from tidying up a communal garden, reading to someone who may welcome the company or taking an elderly neighbour for their weekly grocery shop to large scale clean ups and collections. Reena Ranger and Mona Remtulla of Women Empowered thanked the guests for both their time and money that afternoon and encouraged everyone present to exercise their “power of one” as great things can be achieved and cited the lunch as an example.
About Sewa Day
The aim of Sewa Day is to provide people with a chance to give back to the community through volunteering on a single day to make a difference. As such each event organised must be based on at least one of the guiding principles: to relieve hardship and poverty, help the environment and to bring a little joy.
All the events take place on the same day or for schools during the week and do not include any fund-raising activities. Community groups, local councils, schools, temples, mosques and businesses have enlisted their support for this initiative. Next year, Sewa Day takes place on Sunday 5th October 2014 and individuals can volunteer for local projects through local partner organisations. Sewa Day is a registered charity (no: 1146848).
For further information visit www.sewaday.org
About Women Empowered
Women Empowered is a social initiative bringing inspirational speakers to anyone who wishes to hear them. There is no joining fee or membership requirement and the events are open to all including men.
More information can be found at www.womenempowered.co.uk.