Isha Jagadish
The first time I attended Sevathon, I was around 7 years old. I was woken up by my parents at 6:00 in the morning. and trust me when I say this, I did not want to go at all.
Like every little seven-year-old, I wanted to sleep in, and I definitely did not want to walk a 5K out in the blazing sun.
But little did I know that a few years later, I would look forward to Sevathon every year.
The fun henna booths, face painting stalls, and delicious food are just a little part of what makes Sevathon so fun. Now, Sevathon is the place where I go back to be inspired about learning to making the world a better place.
As many of you may know, Sevathon provides a platform that helps bring together 100 non-profits and thousands of people each year, all towards helping various social causes including treatment of disease and children with no education.
Sevathon has created a community of walkers, runners, and yogis, and in doing so, an impact has been made on many people’s lives.
This year, I am walking to raise money towards disadvantaged children, just like how I did 6 years ago. Knowing some of the volunteers and organizers of Sevathon, I know all the hard work that it takes to organize such a huge event like this. And in the end, it really pays.
Sevathon gave me an experience I would never forget. Surrounded by thousands of other people, all who were walking for dierent causes, really made me feel good inside. Knowing that in the near future a child might finally get to go to school, or that somebody might finally be able to receive proper treatment for a disease that they have, gave me the inspiration to walk even further.
Plus, Sevathon gives you a great reason to exercise! One thing that I really like about Sevathon are all of the volunteers.
In fact, last year, I even had the privilege of being a volunteer at Sevathon. I helped check participants in and I distributed water to runners who had completed their race. Seeing all the volunteers there helped me realize that volunteers were a big part of the success of Sevathon, and without them, this event would never be possible.
As I was checking registrants in, I got a chance to see all of the dierent non-profits participating in this event. But an organization called Isha Vidhya really caught my eye.
Isha Vidhya is a non-profit that aims towards raising the level of education and literacy of tribal children in India. Isha Vidhya has been an active supporter of promoting education among female children in the villages and all their schools have seen an increased enrollment of girl children. This is very important and touched me because this enables kids in rural India to have a chance to earn an education.
Overall, Sevathon has provided a great environment for the whole of the San Francisco Bay Area, and with the help of their generous sponsors, kids’ lives all over America and India.
I hope to keep volunteering in all of the Sevathon events coming up in the future and that I have found a way to share this one-of-a-kind experience with all of you!
[ Isha Jagadish, is a student at Redwood Middle School, Saratoga, Calif. The views expressed in this column are her own].
