Running for a cause

Worldwide runners participating in marathons and other such races use the event to raise funds for a charity in support of a cause close to their heart. According to the race organisers, The Flora London marathon is now the largest annual fund raising event in the world with participants raising over £41.5 million for charity in 2006. In 2007, 78% of all runners raised money. I too have been raising money for Dream A Dream for the last couple of years.

Dream A Dream was started in November 1999 by a group of 11 young people. Dream A Dream today is a professionally run, registered not-for-profit trust working with over 500 children coming from vulnerable backgrounds such as children from the streets / slum communities, runaway children, orphans, and HIV+ children among others.

“Empowering children from vulnerable backgrounds by developing life skills and at the same time sensitizing the community through active volunteering, leading to a non-discriminatory society where unique differences are appreciated”, is the vision of Dream A Dream.

Dream A Dream hopes to achieve this by providing sustained life skill development programmes to children through exposure to sports, outdoor camps, creative arts, reading-based programmes, computer training programmes, cinema and theatre among others. Secondly, creating a strong community participation model through volunteer-based programmes leading to empowerment and sensitization about children’s issues among the community. Today, this has developed into a full-fledged programme including over 500 volunteers.

As a volunteer in the computer program and as a mentor for a young adult, I have interacted with a number of passionate employees and volunteers of Dream A Dream and experienced first hand the joy and satisfaction of making a difference. This year my goal is to raise as much as I can during the course of the 12 marathons. Of course I can do with any help I can get towards this.

Any one who would like to contribute to Dream A Dream can do so by either going to my pledge page in Give India or sending a check in favour of Dream A Dream to 47, Bhuvaneswari Nagar, CV Raman Nagar PO, Bangalore 560093.