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From December 15th to February 1st, VT Seva Houston’s youth board participated in the Essential Worker’s Appreciation Project, where youth volunteers created handmade gifts and gave them to workers within their community to express their gratitude and appreciation for their service. Many of our volunteers shared how touching it was to see the workers' joy when handing their tokens of gratitude to them. They also enjoyed the opportunity to express their creativity when making them. We hope to continue bringing this spirit of gratitude and appreciation throughout the year ahead!

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VTSeva Austin volunteers at the RRASC Garden setup for feeding the homeless . Our volunteers have helped in digging and ploughing the land preparing for the irrigation setup .

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Troy High VTS Club youths efficiently assembled and packaged ziplock bundles for 400 buckets for the disaster victims. In addition to that, our youth volunteers focused on preparing materials for the crochet bag, carefully cutting grocery bags into strips and forming loops to make mats.

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VT Seva Atlanta Celebrates Global Recycling Day 🎉 𝐀 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐙𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐖𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐅𝐞𝐛 𝟏𝐬𝐭, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒, 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝, 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝, 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬. It’s an initiative by Neel Irkal, Innovation Academy youth to bring awareness about the harmful effects of plastic and eliminate / reduce its consumption in day to day life. More than 25 youths attended this session and found it very informative and pragmatic. In this session, Neel gave a presentation on ‘Plastic Pollution’ and later an expert from ‘Green Cell’ also presented his views and insights on plastic reduction strategies and solutions. Thereafter, all youths created their own cloth bags from the used old t-shirts. It’s a no-sew bag activity in which all youths participated and created their own personalized bags. 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬-𝐨𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐛𝐚𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐛𝐚𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐰𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞. It’s our 1st workshop on the ‘Sustainable Living’ practices in 2025 and we will conducting more workshops like this one to bring awareness and find optimal solutions to reduce / eliminate plastic consumption in our daily lives and recycle plastic items in a proper way to reduce its impact on Mother Earth!

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On Saturday, February 1, VTSeva Chicago volunteers packed food for those in need at a volunteering session with Feed My Starving Children! Together, with many other volunteers, we packed a total of 141 boxes! Thank you to Mohisha, Lakshmi, Kiva, Ishani, Ashita, Sahithi, Anika, Avani and other adult volunteers for volunteering with us!

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𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱: Shravya Dumbala This event let volunteers participate in every step to make blankets for children in various Michigan hospitals. Fleece and Thank you works with various companies and hospitals to provide colorful blankets to children in hospitals to bring color into their rooms. Impact :With our help, Fleece & Thank you could code check, sterilize, quality check, 623 Blankets!

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🎉🎉 To celebrate the 15 plus years of VT Seva Anniversary, a new VT Seva Youth Club was established on Feb 1st, 2025 in the North Forsyth Highschool in Atlanta. With this youth club, we have 15 VT Seva youth clubs in Atlanta 🎉🎉 It wasn’t easy for our youths to start a VT Seva youth club in their school but with their persistent efforts, passion for service, and never giving up attitude made it happen ✌️✌️ This club is a unique collaboration between VT Seva and FBLA teams in which youths will participate in community service projects and make FBLA pragmatic models. To kick off their partnership, the two organizations came together for a meaningful activity - creating Valentine’s Day cards for the senior citizens of Phoenix Assisted Living. The event has not only strengthened the collaboration between VT Seva and FBLA teams but also highlighted the importance of giving back to the community through small yet impactful gestures!

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On January 26, 2025, the VT Seva Maryland Youth Leaders conducted a free educational presentation on heart health, targeting middle and elementary school students. The engaging event aimed to educate youngsters about the heart's functionality and promote healthy habits. Event Report by Sana Shenoy, Youth Leader (Who lead this event) I am thrilled to share the success of our recent event, where we presented an informative slideshow on the heart, covering its structure, purpose, diseases, surgeries, and preventive measures. To make learning fun and interactive, we conducted a hands-on science experiment, simulating the heart's pumping action using a balloon, jar, and straw. Following the experiment, participants completed worksheets to reinforce their understanding of the presented material. To further engage the students, we organized a heart-themed bingo game, offering prizes for correct answers. The event concluded with a creative activity, where students decorated paper hearts and pledged to adopt at least one healthy habit to prevent heart disease. Event Highlights and Acknowledgments The event was a resounding success, with over 16 students attending and demonstrating a keen interest in learning about heart health. I extend my sincere gratitude to the following volunteers who helped make this event possible: Divya Putthana Akanksha Subramaniam Laasya Keesara Yashmita Dillibabu Mridula Vasudevan Akul Pallerla Inika Keranahalli Their dedication and support were instrumental in making this event an enjoyable and educational experience for all participants.

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On January 26th, VT Seva Atlanta launched Phase 1 of the RRR (Reduce, Recycle, Reuse) project. This initiative focused on repurposing old, used books by transforming leftover pages into new ones. The event received an overwhelming response from Atlanta’s youth, with around 50 students participating and collecting 325 books. The kids enthusiastically engaged in every step, from ripping out usable pages to cutting and binding them into fresh new books. It was a highly successful and productive activity, showcasing the energy and commitment of our VT Seva Atlanta team. We’re proud of their enthusiasm and dedication to this meaningful cause and look forward to Phase 2 coming soon!

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VTSEVA Bay Area volunteers packed brown bag lunches with Bean Burrittos, snacks, juices, and fruits for 50 under-privileged families in San Jose CA

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VTSeva MN kicked off the year with vibrant Art, Music and Dance competitions, showcasing incredible talent and creativity! Nearly 30 participants joined in for the Rangoli and Art categories, making the event a colorful and inspiring start to the year.

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VT Seva Maryland team supports Maryland Feeding Hope Program A small write up below from the lead Mridula Vasudevan. ‐--‐---------------------‐--------------------‐------------------- On January 25th, 2025, from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM, the VT SEVA Maryland team actively supported the Feeding Hope program through a creative and engaging fundraising effort. This initiative took place during the Frederick Tamil Sdgchool Pongal Festival, which celebrated the rich cultural heritage of the Tamil holiday. As part of our efforts, we set up a Henna Stand, offering beautiful henna designs to attendees while spreading awareness about the cause. Thanks to the generosity of our community, we successfully raised over $20 in donations. Additionally, we campaigned regarding the Feeding Hope Program during the Heart Presentation Event on January 26th, 2025. These contributions will help provide meals to those in need, reinforcing our commitment to serving and uplifting others. We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to: - **Akanksha Subramaniam** - **Sana Shenoy** For enabling us to present our organization in an organized and professional manner. We would also like to thank the VT SEVA MD Volunteers and representatives of the Feeding Hope program for their amazing support during our fundraising efforts at the Frederick Tamil School Pongal Festival: - *Mahati Konduri* - *Sandhya Ji (Feeding Hope Rep)* - *Lasya* - *Chetan* - *Vivek Konduri* - *Mahesh Chandra Gandam* - *Bhavya Yarlagadda* Your dedication and support have made a tremendous impact, and we look forward to continuing our commitment to the Feeding Hope program through future initiatives! Thank you once again, Mridula Vasudevan

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The VT Seva Maryland Youth Team successfully organized a henna event, raising funds for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). Below is a report from Akanksha Subramaniam, the youth leader who led the initiative: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A Successful Henna Event for a Noble Cause On January 25, 2025, I had the opportunity to organize a henna event at Urbana Middle School. This experience allowed me to develop my time management skills and work effectively under pressure. I am thrilled to report that the event was a resounding success. With the help of my team, we provided henna services to numerous children and raised $86 for LLS. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Fredrick Tamil School for providing us with the opportunity to host this event. I would also like to thank the following individuals for their invaluable support and assistance: Mahati Konduri Mridula Vasudevan Mahesh Chandra Gandam Sana Shenoy Divya Putthana Vivek Konduri Bhavya Yarlagadda Laasya Keesara Their contributions were instrumental in making this event a success, and I truly appreciate their time and effort. Sincerely, Akanksha Subramaniam

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Camping services

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This event offered a fun and fulfilling experience to our volunteers and worked to help those in California who were affected by the fires. Disaster Relief at Work (DRAW) is dedicated to providing relief services to communities across the United States affected by natural disasters. During the event, our VT Seva Detroit volunteers engaged in various tasks, including: 1. Examining used tarps to determine if they would be used to cover floors or roofs. 2. Cutting tarps into 4ths and folding them into the specified dimensions: 18x24in 3. Taping labels onto the folded tarps 4. Wrapping the tarps with cling wrap 5. Separating and stacking the roof and ground tarps before storing them. Our volunteers were able to impact and benefit DRAW so they can continue to aid communities in need.