Search specific Blog

On July 6th VTSeva youth had an opportunity to meet and greet the police officers with an appreciation lunch to the entire team of 50 RRPD from VTSeva. Thanks to Officer Earin Jackson for the great welcoming smile and her passion demonstrated during the department tour. Youth volunteers have submitted a Thank you poster to Chief of police Allan Banks. His shared his inspirational stories with the kids. The department tour we had was an eye opener and realized how blessed and privileged our families are and how comfortable life we are leading. Tears rolled looking at the juvenile section and hearing their stories. A person is not born bad, it's the decisions that make us bad. And every officer there believed in a second chance. As a parent and a police officer looking at the bad side of society all the time, not lose temper towards the kids is a very tough job. Their willingness to uplift the youth and create relationships with communities to help youth to lead a right path was amazing. A compassionate heart and at the same time staying hard to do the right thing is definitely not a cup of tea. It was a great experience to see the daily life of police and understand the emotions and the stress 911 call takers go through. There is so much to learn from these heroes who put their life on the line. They demonstrated their passion for community service grit and the rigorous and continuous training regime they go through. They taught kids that you can make a difference in society at their level with a service mindset and overcome anxiety and fear with preparedness. No need to be gender biased or feel stereotypical. It was indeed an amazing experience to tour the different departments within the RRPD. Really value and appreciate how they adhere to the core values and how inclusive RRPD is, especially their community outreach and things they do to make community members comfortable. Volunteers words My experience at RRPD - Appreciation lunch. I would say that this is my first time entering a police station; I was hesitant at first but then was excited after seeing how welcoming the police were. First we met the community officer Erin Jackson, she was so sweet and I loved the way she welcomed us and told us that without the help of the community we as police officers can’t serve the city right. Walking down the hallways of the police station it felt like I was a mouse running through a maze. The building was massive. And every police officer we met along the way had great experiences to share, but the most memorable one is the Chief officer’s journey. His journey started when he was 8 years old and decided to be a police officer and serve his community. When I was 8, I had no clue what I was going to be and had no dream to follow but, I always thought that one day I would find it. A Lot of the people I know have bad impressions on what a police officer is and their duty, but after spending time with them I understood that police officers are no superheroes. They are normal humans that have lives, when they take their uniforms off. If we are afraid to tell them our problems or even go up to them to share, we can never see the difference we want to see in the community – Ravi Varma Vathsavai This is my first time entering the police station; I was pretty excited because I remember as a child I always wanted to go into a police station. As an individual I have heard bad things about and know people who had bad experiences. But today this experience was way more different than everything I heard of, the police officers were very welcoming to us and really wanted us to be there and learn more about what happens behind the scenes. It was really fun when we met all the officers around the building, everyone was willing to tell their stories. It was nice to hear how all of them had to work so hard to get to the position they are at right now. Everyone has a different back story and different types of lifestyles they grew up in but, all the police officers have the same dream to protect the community and people. I know that they are not superheroes or out of the ordinary but, I know that they will be the first to put their chest out to protect us. Officer Erin Jackson, who is the community officer, was very sweet and welcomed us and said that “ being a police officer is to serve the community and know what the community wants in return from the police.” she added that without the community's support and feedback they cannot do the best job they can. - Pranavi Vathsavai

“The reason we race isn’t so much to beat each other, but to be with each other and for each other.” VTSeva Austin Youth Board organized their first-ever 5K Run/Walk on Jul 23 2022 . Austin youth board well planning, and execution has brought together families to run for the single cause- Saksham trust which VTSeva partnered with. VTSeva is focused on providing value-based quality education, technology assisted learning, self-reliant lifestyle to Visually challenged. To expand its reach and serve more Visually challenged, VTSeva has partnered with Saksham trust to create digital library of books and to provide subsidizes laptops and other devices that would help Visually challenged to lead self-sustainable life. All proceedings for event go to Saksham trust and Austin Parks foundation. Our Young volunteers were pro in introducing VTSeva to the participants, Planning and directing the race course. Followed was the pre-stretches lead by Austin local Orange theory fitness team . Special thanks to Orange theory fitness for the tips and pre-stretches in making the 5K safe and enjoyable to our participants . Our Senior citizens and little kiddos participation have added inspiration to the 5K run. VTSeva Austin would like to congratulate youth board members and adult mentors for all their efforts and contributions in making this event a great success.

VT SEVA DETROIT VOLLEYBALL/THROWBALL TOURNAMENT Date and Time: AUGUST 20TH, 2022, from 9:00 AM Location: Sand Volley Ball Courts – 26000 Evergreen Road, Southfield, MI 48706 One of the most awaited Sports events of VT Seva is back in action. With the amazing turnout back in 2021, we are excited to host the VT Seva Volleyball & Throwball Tournament, benefiting the visually challenged children yet again in 2022. Please mark your calendar for Aug 20th, 2022, from 9:00 AM onwards at the Sand Volley Ball Courts – 26000 Evergreen Road, Southfield, MI 48706. All proceeds from the event will go towards the education, food, and clothing for visually challenged children of Nethra Vidyalaya & Tribal School children. Join us in making this event a successful one either as a Player or as an audience. Lunch & beverages will be provided at a nominal price. Register as a Team at: https://www.vtsworld.org/detroit Link for registration: Rules & Regulations: All Teams/Individual Players must go through the rules & regulations and sign the Waiver Form.

VT Seva (Volunteering Together for Service) is conducting our Walk-A-Thon to raise awareness towards Mental Health in our students during these challenging times as we continue to work with our Bay Area school districts. All registration fees and proceeds are tax-deductible Date: August 27, 2022 Timings: 10 am - 11:30 am PT Venue : Almaden Lake Park Cinnabar II Picnic Area, 6099 Winfield Blvd, San Jose, CA 95120 If you would like to just donate for the event, please click below: VT Seva is a non-profit organization with primary focus to teach self-reliance to underprivileged and visually impaired students from low socio-economic backgrounds by providing them with boarding, education and empowerment. Our organization is active in promoting cancer awareness and immediate responders for any natural disaster that occurs around the world. Apart from our national activities, our Bay Area Chapter conducts local activities to promote the spirit of volunteerism in our youth for their participation and leadership skills. For any questions, please contact: adnallap@gmail.com

VTseva Detroit Youth board successfully wrapped up the 2nd quarter of 2022! We implemented 13 projects that were all initiated by the youth board members. ● Mother’s Day Greeting Card Project ● Rouge Park Cleanup ● Father’s Day Greeting Card Project ● Adopt A Road ● Volunteer Spirit Messages ● Stage Nature Center Cleanup Project ● Manoogian Manor Senior Center May Visit ● Youth Board 3rd Anniversary celebration ● Youth Board Members high school student graduation ● Walkathon Kickoff Celebrations ● Manoogian Manor Senior Center June Visit ● Sri Balaji Temple Volunteering ● Chess Camp Video Created By: Alok Tonapi Mother’s Day Greeting Card Project: Mathru Devo Bhava! Revere your Mother as God! 𝐕𝐓 𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐚 𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐢𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 celebrated Mother's Day with the mothers in 3 senior centers in Livonia, MI. 45 volunteers came together and created 𝟏𝟕𝟎 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 to wish them a happy Mother's Day. Cards have been distributed to 3 senior centers 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐫, 𝐎𝐚𝐤𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 and they were so happy to receive the cards! This project was initiated by the Youth Board Member 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉. 45 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒔 who participated in this project are Abisrishti, Abhinav S, Ajitesh, Ananya V, Ananya S, Anvika, Arya, Gayathiri, Harish, Hrudya, Jisha, Kushal, Medhas, Mohammad Hassan, Mohammad Hussain, Nikhil, Oviya, Phani Sai Akhil, Pranav T, Pranav K, Rachana, Rishi, Sai Sahasra, Sai Sri Ram, Sairaaga, Saisha, Samhith, Sanjay, Sathvik, Shivani, Shruthi, Siddharth, Sravya, Sreenika, Srihari H, Sriraam, Sritha, Srivasta, Supraja, Tamil Iniyann, Teja, Udhayaa, Vaibhav, Varsha, Varshini and Veena Thank you all so much for bringing in smiles to 170 wonderful moms from these 3 senior centers and made Mother's day special for them. Special shout out to adult volunteers 𝑽𝒊𝒋𝒂𝒚 𝒋𝒊, 𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒊 𝒋𝒊, 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒂 𝒋𝒊, 𝑵𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒊 𝒋𝒊, 𝑽𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒂 𝒋𝒊, 𝑺𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒋𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒚𝒂 𝒋𝒊 for collecting the greeting cards from various cities and dropping them off on time. FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5807181702642144&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Rouge Park Cleanup: 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 (𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵) The Detroit River Coalition is a binational environmental resource hub leveraging collective partnerships to reduce litter pollution in the Detroit River through education, coordination, and clean-up services, as well as celebrate its natural and cultural significance for communities throughout the Great Lakes Region. 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝘆 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 had a great opportunity to clean the Rouge park. This is their second volunteering event. The park was heavily polluted and with lot more volunteers from public and VT Seva also it was not possible to clean up the full park. They picked up a variety of item from bottles to clothes. They all worked hard to clean up the park to make it a pleasant place to visit and for the animals. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. 𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 Special thanks to adult coordinators 𝗦𝘂𝗱𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗶 and 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗷𝗮𝗻 𝗷𝗶. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Anuraag, Vishnu, Haresh and Jayanth FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5767711246589190&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Father’s Day Greeting Card Project : Pithru Devo Bhava! Revere your Father as God! 𝐕𝐓 𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐚 𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐢𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 celebrated Father's Day with the fathers in 3 senior centers in Livonia, MI. 45 volunteers came together and created 75 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 to wish them a happy Father's Day. Cards have been distributed to 3 senior centers 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐫, 𝐎𝐚𝐤𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 and they were so happy to receive the cards! This project was initiated by the Youth Board Member 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉. 45 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒔 who participated in this project are Abisrishti, Abhinav S , Ajitesh, Ananya V, Ananya S, Anvika, Arya, Gayathiri, Harish, Hrudya, Jisha, Kushal, Medhas, Mohammad Hassan, Mohammad Hussain, Nikhil, Oviya, Phani Sai Akhil, Pranav T, Pranav K, Rachana, Rishi, Sai Sahasra, Sai Sri Ram, Sairaaga, Saisha, Samhith, Sanjay, Sathvik, Shivani, Shruthi, Siddharth, Sravya, Sreenika, Srihari H, Sriraam, Sritha, Srivasta, Supraja, Tamil Iniyann, Teja, Udhayaa, Vaibhav, Varsha, Varshini and Veena Thank you all so much for bringing insmile to 75 wonderful dads from these 3 senior centers and made Father's day special for them. Special shout out to adult volunteers 𝑽𝒊𝒋𝒂𝒚 , 𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒊 , 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒂 , 𝑵𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒊 , 𝑽𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒂 , 𝑺𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒚𝒂 for collecting the greeting cards from various cities and dropping them off. FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5935121433181503&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Adopt A Road: 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 (𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵). 𝗕𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕-𝑨-𝑹𝒐𝒂𝒅 is a Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) program designed to help keep the roadsides clean and attractive. VT Seva Detroit adopted a stretch of 8 mile road from Haggerty to MeadowBrook. After COVID pandemic VT Seva Detroit Youth Board resumed their clean up activity on May 1, 2022. 16 bags of trash was collected today , lots of plastic bottles, plastic bags, golf balls, coffee cups, car tire scraps, metal from cars, gloves, cigar butts and much more.... Discarded plastic bags from our throw-away society end up blocking storm drains and culverts, impeding the flow of water and worsening bank erosion. Plastics also leech into the water, degrading the water quality with toxic compounds and end up harming human and animal health. Every piece of trash collected protect the environment, helps the animals, helps the human... VT Seva Detroit Youth Board did their part to be 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏. Thanks to all the volunteers who helped cleaning up the road today. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐇𝐚𝐣𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧, 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢, 𝐍𝐢𝐡𝐚𝐥, 𝐕𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐚 & 𝐕𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐲𝐚, 𝐀𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐢, 𝐉𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐚𝐫, 𝐒𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐃𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐚 & 𝐒𝐮𝐝𝐡𝐚𝐤𝐚𝐫 FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5788488704511444&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Volunteer Spirit Messages: 𝐕𝐓 𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐚 𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐢𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 were celebrating 3𝒓𝒅 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝒃𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 3 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒌𝒔.They all explained it very nicely from the bottom of their heart. Volunteering provides them the 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒖𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌, 𝒃𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑, 𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒇𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆, 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒚, 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 in this young age. Thanks to VT Seva for providing a platform to these young minds to serve others and grow as responsible citizens of this world. Thanks to 𝑺𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒔𝒂, 𝑨𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒌𝒂, 𝑶𝒗𝒊𝒚𝒂, 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉, 𝑲𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍, 𝑺𝒂𝒏𝒋𝒆𝒆𝒗, 𝑨𝒌𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒚, 𝑯𝒂𝒋𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏, 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒏, 𝑺𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂, 𝑺𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒂𝒈𝒂, 𝑹𝒐𝒉𝒂𝒏, 𝑻𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏, 𝑼𝒅𝒉𝒂𝒚𝒂𝒂, 𝑲𝒂𝒂𝒗𝒚𝒂, 𝑺𝒂𝒊𝑺𝒓𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒎, 𝑬𝒆𝒔𝒉𝒂, 𝑨𝒏𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒂𝒈, 𝑨𝒎𝒐𝒈𝒉, 𝑨𝒃𝒊𝒔𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒕𝒊, 𝑨𝒍𝒐𝒌 & 𝑨𝒌𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒉 for sharing their messages to the world. Thanks to every youth board member and their parents for spending their time in service to others and make a positive impact. Listen to their video messages at https://www.youtube.com/playlist... FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5909235629103417&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Stage Nature Center Cleanup Project: 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 : 𝗬𝗕 𝗠𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗮 𝗦𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮𝗻 Troy Stage Nature Center for learning contains classrooms, a public research library, an observation beehive, a wildlife viewing area and a nature exhibition lobby. The headwaters of the Rouge River flow through the 100-acre preserve. More than 145 plant and animal species can be viewed throughout the grounds. An outdoor natural play area features climbing boulders, and a paved path that provides wheelchair access to the stream side forest. Within the nature center boundaries are over 1.5 miles of trails, which pass through upland forest, meadows, stream side wetlands, and a cattail marsh. 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝘆 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 & 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗜𝗔 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 had a great opportunity to clean the Stage Park. This is their third volunteering event. They help remove destructive invasive plants by using hand tools such as lopper sand shovels to remove invasive species such as Garlic Mustard, Dame’s Rocket, Buckthorn, Autumn Olive, Oriental Bittersweet, and many more. They did the wood chipping also. It was a very rewarding experience that was interrupted by the unusually heavy downpour. Yet 3 volunteers stayed back for weather to clear and finished the work. Special shout out to adult coordinators 𝗡𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗮 𝗷𝗶, 𝗩𝗶𝗷𝗮𝘆 𝗷𝗶, 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗷𝗶 & 𝗦𝗵𝗿𝗲𝘆𝗮 to guide the students. Without their help this event would not be possible. Thanks to all the 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗔𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗸𝗮, 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗮, 𝗔𝗻𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗴, 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗻𝘂, 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝘂𝗻, 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗝𝗮𝘆𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗵. FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5848658311827816&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Manoogian Manor Senior Center May & June Visit: 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱: 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗝𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗮𝗿 Our Youth Board members and parents visited the Manoogian Manor Seniors after a winter break. The seniors were so happy to see our group again! Hajanthan, Varshan and Komathy Ji brought cookies for the seniors. Our volunteers served these cookies and juice to the seniors. Pravin also entertained everyone with his magic tricks. Srivasta also entertained everyone by playing music in his guitar .All the seniors and volunteers loved his magic show. It was a great evening spent with the seniors over Memorial Day. A huge thank you to all the youth and adult volunteers for spending time with the seniors. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Harish, Hajanthan, Varshan, Hrudya, Pravin, SaiSriram and Kaavya 𝗔𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Komathy, Manojkumar, Srinath and Priya FB Link1: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5878494362177544&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo FB Link2: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5943239565703023&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Youth Board 3rd Anniversary celebration, High School Senior Graduation & Walkathon Kickoff: 𝗩𝗧 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗶𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 What a wonderful evening on 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟭𝟭, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮 to celebrate multiple occasions today . 𝟭. 𝗬𝗕 𝟯𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮. 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 3. 𝗪𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗻 𝗞𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗼𝗳𝗳 It was so great to see all. Great celebration with our high school seniors, 4 of our senior students ( 𝗔𝗯𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘃, 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵, 𝗞𝗮𝗮𝘃𝘆𝗮 & 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 ) cut the cake. 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿𝘀!!! With all our wonderful volunteers together we celebrated our youth board's 3rd anniversary today. All of our youth volunteers celebrated it by cutting the cake. Thanks to Vandana and Asha for bringing us snacks. Thanks to all who helped us serving the food and cleanup. Yes it was day for Cake But we got it covered for all the people who are health conscious by kicking off our walkathon . We all had 𝗮 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸 in the park today.. With this Youth Board-initiated Walkathon, we support 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗲 to support families affected by cancer. Please join us @ detroit.vtwalk.org to support our Walkathon. FB Link: https://fb.watch/eiQn9vXsdp/ Sri Balaji Temple Volunteering: VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Members had a blessed opportunity to clean the Balaji Temple Garden. Our youth volunteers cleaned the garden by raking and removing the dry leaves, trimmed the bushes, power washed the windows, cleaned the landscape, removed the wood debris, pulled the weeds and dead annual, removed dead growth from perennials, cleaned the plants and much more to make the garden looks better. It was a gratifying experience to see the clean garden. While most of our volunteers were cleaning the garden, two of our adult volunteers helped inside the temple by sorting and ironing the god's wardrobe. Overall it was really a fulfilling experience for all of our volunteers. Thanks to Balaji temple for the opportunity. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Aahana, Aditi, Alok, Anvika, Christeena, Sneha, Sreenika and Supraja 𝗔𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀: Giri, Srinath, Anitha, Deeptha and Priya. FB Link: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=5956501007710212&id=804058126287885&sfnsn=mo Chess Camp: YB Member Tarun conducted VT Seva Detroit’s 2nd Annual Chess Camp. Blog Consolidated By: Harish Jaisankar Blog Published by Nandini Cheemalamarri.

Hola, Bonjour everyone, VT Seva Detroit Youth Board members and Bright Mind Tutors are teaming up to conduct our first-ever Foreign Language Camp. It's a 3 day online camp designed for kindergarten to elementary school students to get introduced to foreign languages French and Spanish. It's a great opportunity to get exposed to other languages and help underprivileged students' education. All money collected will be donated to Nethra Vidyalaya and Tribal School students' education. Come join us, have fun, learn a new language and help others. Gracias, Merci 🙏🙂

"All the flowers of tomorrow are in the seeds of today" VTSeva Austin youth comes together to support the visually challenged and protect the environment by growing plants and fundraising. As part of the seeds for tomorrow, the youth board has taken up the challenge of not just growing plants themselves but encouraging the young kids to grow their own vegetable garden using the garden kits. Seeds for Tomorrow team have been growing plants since April and have been fundraising at multiple neighborhoods through Arp, May, and June. Youth volunteers are enabled with re-potting skills, naturing the plants while spending their weekends with nature. Utilizing their energy for the purpose to bring smiles to the visually challenged and protecting the Austin Parks

"It takes a big heart to help shape little minds" VTSeva Austin partnered with Austin ISD to help students achieve success in school by providing a homework center staffed by community volunteers. Austin ISD VICTORY program is designed for tutoring students in need of individual attention with their homework.VTSeva Austin volunteers have been tutoring kids 1:1 for the last 6 months with a minimum of 1 hr every week commitment from each volunteer. The program will resume again in August and continue for the whole academic year 2022-2023. Registering to this program each volunteer will be trained and matched on a 1:1 basis. The student/tutor pairs meet at regularly scheduled sessions online for a minimum of an hour each week to work on homework assignments and skills for which the student needs extra reinforcement and practice. Tutoring sessions are held in the late afternoon or early evening Monday through Thursday. All ages are welcome to participate, If teaching is your passion register below.

Prajna Austin and VTSeva Austin are serving lunches every month at the Ronald McDonald House to families of patients undergoing treatment at Dell Children’s and other hospitals in the Austin area. This is a monthly event that has been taking place since November 2021. While Prajna Children (ages 5-11) donate the materials, the VTSeva youth (ages 12+) make PB&J sandwiches and pack them into bags along with fruits, chips, granola bars, desserts, and water bottles. 50 Lunches are provided every month with this initiative. All this is done with gratitude, love, and care for the community.

Please note: 1. This class is for complete beginners and we will be teaching the basics of each craft! 2. Knitting and Crocheting classes will begin from July 4th and ends on July 22nd. 3. There will be total 12 classes for both crafts. Separately each will be 6 classes. 4. Registration fees is $60 for both classes. Seperately knitting class fee is $40 and Crocheting class is $40. You can select any or all classes. Details for each class are given separately in this form. 5. All proceeds raised will go for food to visually challenged / blind kids of India. 6. We will create a WhatsApp group with the participants for easy communication and group will be deleted after the summer camp. 7. Each session will be 45 mins and participants will join the class through Zoom link. 8. Training is provided by well trained VT Youth. 9. For any further questions / concerns, please contact Malathi @678-772-7464/Dr. Madhu Nemani@404-819-8623. More details about each class are below: 1. Knitting Class Classes will be 2 times a week from July 4-22 (Tuesdays & Thursdays) from11 AM - 12 PM EST. Students will learn the basic knit & purl stitch, how to read patterns, and basic construction. We will finish by knitting a simple purse. Materials Needed: Yarn (worsted weight) 2 COLORS Knitting Needles (US 8) Tapestry Needle 2.Crocheting Class: Classes will be 2 times a week on zoom video call from July 4-22 with crocheting (Mondays & Wednesdays) from 11 AM - 12 PM EST. Students will learn single/double crochet stitches, how to read patterns, basic construction, and the basics of making stuffed toys. Our goal is a hat or stuffed toy. Materials Needed: Yarn (worsted weight) 2 COLORS Crochet hooks (5mm, 3.75mm, 2.25 mm) Polyfill Polymer fill Tapestry Needle

As Bob Ross once said, “All you need to paint is a few tools, a little instruction, and a vision in your mind.” I am Sumati Gurram, a student of 8TH grade. During the Covid Pandemic the world was going through a challenging time. We were all by ourselves at home as we were social distancing. I wanted to use the time I had just by myself at home as an opportunity to do creative work and thus I made paintings with a vision of making a positive impact towards a cause benefiting the society. The paintings made depicted many aspects of life. VT seva gave me an opportunity by allowing me to sell these paintings during the Dosa Fun Feast at Jeeyar Ashram on 06/05 and raise funds that will go towards the visually challenged students at Netra Vidyalaya, India (https://www.vtsworld.org/school-for-blind ). I was able to sell all my paintings and was able to raise $305 from generous people. I was excited by the support received from all the coordinators at VT seva and buyers. This support has encouraged me to continue this effort for a good cause in the future as well.

VT Seva Detroit Youth Board Members were celebrating their 3rd year anniversary by sharing what volunteering means to them for the last 3 weeks. Today is the last day They all explained it very nicely from the bottom of their heart. I appreciate everyone who shared these invaluable messages not only to "celebrate the 3rd anniversary of Youth Board but to inspire many to volunteer. Please accept my thanks from the bottom of my heart. Volunteering provides them the understanding of the value of giving back, building trust and relationships, diversifying service, growing empathy, and caring for others at this young age. Thanks to VT Seva for providing a platform for these young minds to serve others and grow as responsible citizens of this world. Highlights of All of YB member's speech Service - Srivatsa Enlighten - Anvika Empathy - Oviya Diversification in service - Harish Changing lives - Kushal Learn from peers - Sanjeev Compassion - Akshay No Limit to service - Hajanthan Joy to others - Varshan True value of working together - Saisha Helping community -Sairaaga Growing network - Rohan Relationship - Tarun Contribution towards society - Udhayaa Establishing trust - Kaavya Seeing Smile - Sai Sriram Giving back - Eesha Every action matters - Anuraag Selfless Service - Amogh Kindness is Lifestyle - Abisrishti Make new friends - Alok Gratitude - Akshith Blog written by: Priya Jaisankar Blog published by: Nandini Cheemalamari

Education for the blind and underprivileged is one of the major service pillars of VT Seva. Through the Hikes for a Cause fundraiser, we are fundraising for the Nethra Vidyalaya and are improving our own health at the same time. These hikes are every Sunday, every week of the summer and are on different trails each week and are for only one dollar. Our first hike was held on June 5th 2022, where we explored the Great hills park trail and saw many sights, and got back to nature during our Sunday morning.

VT SEVA Dallas is excited to once again bring back a decade of Youth volunteering engagement at North Texas Food Bank in order to promote a hunger-free community. The Pack and Box Service Event will be held on June 11th at 3677 Mapleshade Lane from 1-3:30 pm. This event is only open to those who are 12 and above, and there are limited spots available, so make sure to sign up as soon as possible. The link to sign up for the event is https://secure.everyaction.com/9W6mvvdJ7EGIJMTBDoVaBw2 and if anyone has any questions or concerns, please reach out by emailing dallas.youth@vtsworld.org.

Celebrating Volunteerism 2021 #Limitless is all about celebrating how we as volunteers and as an organization have broken boundaries and made 2021 our biggest year yet. Our volunteers proved that even a global pandemic couldn’t stop their fire to serve our community and make an impact. With fun trivia questions, interactive activities, and messages from benefitting organizations, it truly was a trip down memory lane. We gave all the volunteers an opportunity to reflect upon their experiences with VT SEVA in 2021, and how their volunteering made a positive impact in our communities. In the year 2021, our volunteers have put in 35,000 hours hosting 217 events despite the fact that the pandemic was playing havoc, and most of the world was in the virtual realm. Guest speakers at LIMITLESS Corey Jackson the CEO of Laurel Heights Hospital in Atlanta, is one of our beneficiaries. Laurel Heights Hospital is a pediatric behavioral health facility in Atlanta, Georgia, that serves children and adolescents who face complex psychiatric, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders. Check out our Atlanta Team's support to Laurel Heights Hospital here . Dawn Dixon, FS Series North Carolina Volunteer Coordinator Dawn is a volunteer coordinator for FS Series which is an event production and electronic chip timing company based in North Carolina. They organize events for many charity organizations and since 2019, Dawn has supported our VT Seva Cary volunteers and also encouraged our youth volunteers to continue their efforts after each visit. She is also a consistent donor to our Nethra Vidyalaya students. Check out Cary Team's collaboration with FS Series here Steven Dillon, Volunteer Program Director at DESC (Downtown Emergency Service Center, Seattle The DESC is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1979 and provides integrated services including housing, emergency shelter, crisis intervention, and healthcare to thousands of homeless and formerly homeless people every day. Steven is the Volunteer Program Assistant and works with other local organizations to build and maintain housing for the homeless in Seattle downtown. VT Seva Seattle hosted the 5th Annual walkathon on Aug 14th, 2021 at Ron Regis Park, Renton. This year, the team has adopted the cause of homelessness and started their walkathon a month before virtually and completed it with an in-person finale. The goal is to walk to end homelessness and raise funds to support the needs of homeless people. We have successfully raised a total of 5K and donated the sum to DESC. Check out our Seattle Team's contributions to DESC here Missed the event? Find the complete video here: We congratulate the team, Ms Pranuti Kalidindi, VT Seva National Volunteer Coordinator, from Seattle, Ms. Anushka Sharma, Seattle, Mr. Harish Jaisankar, Detroit, Mr. Shreyas Viswanathan, Dallas, Ms. Naimisha Kodali, Atlanta, Ms. Vaishnavi Mareddy, Austin, Ms. Sanjana Vellanki, New Jersey and Ms. Rohitha Sanka, Cary

VT Seva Dallas celebrates its 15th Annual Earth Day !! Earth day is a day where everyone comes together to help our Mother Earth. It is a day to remind everyone to protect our world and to live a more sustainable, eco-friendly life. And that's exactly what we did this year. Every year VT Seva Dallas has been teaming up with the City of Frisco's "Clean it Green it' environmental program to celebrate Earth day. VT Seva Dallas came together as a community and helped clean up litter at the adopted street in Frisco. Approximately 70 volunteers participated in this initiative, about 45 of them being youth volunteers. It was a great chance for everyone to see the effects of littering and what damages it can bring to our very own planet. Participating in this initiative helped create awareness in our society about littering and how to help our world become a better place. Like every year, the event started off with a sloka(poem)on Mother Earth that we all recited together: namasthe: priyadaththa:yai thubhyam de:vi ! vasundhare: ! | tvam ma:tha: sarva bhu:tha:na:m pa:da sparsam kshamasva me: || The sloka emphasized the value of our Mother Earth and how we should always protect it. Following the sloka recital, we set to work. We were all given trash pickers and we separated into different groups to pick up the litter. And surprisingly, we all found that there was actually quite a lot of trash- plastic, car tires, paper, bottles, etc. It was in so many unexpected places, but we all did the best we could to pick up the most trash. And it brought a smile to my face seeing everyone help clean our environment and it seemed like they were enjoying it too. This year some of the youth members also had an opportunity to make plant seed bombs to distribute to volunteers on the day of the earth day. Seed balls are small clusters packed with wildflower seeds that are designed to bring greenery and colorful pollinator habitats to urban landscapes or neglected areas. Overall, this initiative has taught me a lot and I’m sure it has taught everyone else a lot too. Helping our environment made me feel so happy; to know I was helping my own planet for the future made me even happier. By working together as a community, we helped our Mother Earth sustain even longer. So, it can all start with a small change. Help our world by Reducing, Reusing and Recycling. And always remember, one small change can lead to making our world a better place. Individually we are one drop, together we are an ocean. - Shriya Aviur For more pictures related to the Earth Day event, please visit this link: https://www.facebook.com/VTSevaDallas/posts/1057155651536824 In the words of the youth volunteers who participated in the Earth Day cleanup - "My name is Arnav Senapathi and I had a great time participating in VT Seva Dallas’ 15th annual Earth Day. I am glad to have the opportunity to serve and help out mother nature in any way that I can. Me and my friends as well as many fellow volunteers picked up a lot of litter and filled up many bags of trash, contributing and fulfilling a portion of our part in making our world a cleaner place. Overall, the experience was phenomenal, and I will definitely participate in next year's Earth Day activity." - Arnav Senapathi "It was a nice experience, and quite frankly, a change from the fact that we haven't had any in-person volunteering events for quite a bit. It was nice getting to see everyone in-person, interacting with them, as well as helping clean the streets." - Shreyas Viswanathan "It was such a different experience, I had never done anything like it before. VTSeva Dallas’s street cleaning project for Earth day made me get a chance to help our environment and it really brought me back to reality. I got to see how much litter there was, affecting our own world. Overall, it made me so happy to be able to help clean our streets, city- contributing to make our world a better, cleaner place." - Shriya Aviur "The VT Seva Dallas 15th annual earth day was a very fulfilling experience for me. Getting to work together with all the youth group members to clean up the environment was not only very beneficial for the environment, but also a great opportunity for me to give back to the environment, and meet new people! The seed bombs were also a super fun end to the volunteering, and a great way for me to tell others about my experience!" - Vidya Sampath Kumar "Yesterday we picked up a lot of trash from the street that we adopted. The collection went pretty successfully because the street itself was full of litter. I think that we picked up a lot within two hours, and it’s definitely a step towards making Frisco cleaner. I thoroughly enjoyed getting my hands dirty and picking up things with my friends. It was a great experience working with others, and I strongly think that I will be participating again next year." - Teja Papaiahgari "Hi! My name is Sriram and I have been a VTSeva volunteer for almost 10 years. I found yesterday's Earth Day experience extremely satisfying and relaxing. I had a lot of fun spending time with my friends and I thoroughly enjoyed cleaning up Frisco as it gave me a sense of accomplishment. Overall I had a great time and I would love to be part of the next Earth Day. Remember, it doesn't matter how much of a difference you made, it's still a difference for a great cause." - Sriram Vennamaneni "Hi my name is Lakshman Vennamaneni and yesterday I participated in an earth day street cleanup by VtSeva. It was a very fun and relaxing experience as I got to help the planet, meet my friends and relax at the same time. My friends and I picked up enough trash to fill up 5-6 bags and we felt very accomplished. On the whole I really enjoyed the earth day cleanup." - Lakshman Vennamaneni "We really liked cleaning the earth and were surprised to see so much plastic. Would love to help clean the earth more often." - Siddarth Dwaram and Veda Dwaram "For the Earth Day activity, I participated in a volunteering activity called Adopt a Street to help clean a street. First we were given gloves, bags, and grabbers. When we saw the street there was so much trash. I saw plastic bags, cups, and cans. I loved the activity because it felt good when all the trash was going in the bags and the area was getting cleaned. Together we picked up at least 10 bags full of trash. I would love to do activities like this again because it makes Earth a better place." - Sahana K

“To forget to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves.” -Mahatma Gandhi. Spring is the time of hope and bloom. Join us in VTSeva Boston teams efforts to grow organic Indian vegetables to support education for Visually challenged. Nethravidyalaya provides holistic education for the students and the results in sports, cultural and educational has been Awe-inspiring . $1 per day supports the education and Volunteer suggested donation per plant $5