VOLUNTARY WORK & INCREASING AWARENESS

Drishti team has ongoing volunteering interactions  with the Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired, working with blind individuals and helping the association finish items to be shipped and sold. The association generates employment opportunities for the blind & visually impaired and sells items to military bases around the world. Drishti team also learned basic Braille using a slate and stylus. It has been fun so far for Aneesh Raparla, Akshara Raparla, Reyna KondaveetiI, Sid Iyer, Neil Thakkar, Anya Thakkar and Anish Pilla.

 Drishti's volunteers - Akshara, Sid P, Sid Iyer, and some parents - worked at the Overbrook School for the Blind (OSB) to help maintain the orchard on their 26-acre campus. Our volunteers enjoyed getting outdoor activity, cleaning up garden beds, and learning about the school and its students from their staff member, Rhonda Davis. OSB was founded in 1832. OSB's 181 students are blind / visually impaired or have other challenges. The campus has beautiful buildings in Philadelphia, where students study and live. 

4/29/2022 Friday - An adult Drishti team member got an opportunity to volunteer as a driver providing a ride to a visually impaired employee of Vision Corps. The employee’s objective was to meet a blind client in turn, and train her in using a walking cane outdoors. 

VisionCorps mission is to train and empower blind and visually impaired individuals to gain independence. Vision Corps also employs blind and visually impaired people.  Drishti’s adult team members have started volunteering with Vision Corps.

Drishti team joined the West Pikeland Township in planting 350 trees at Pine Creek Park. It was great fun getting muddy, handling saplings and shoveling soil. The trees will help prevent erosion and retain water in the soil.  This was a great way for our team to do something positive for the environment and the local community. Thanks to Sarah Newman, the volunteer coordinator, and Shweta Prabhudesai. 

Viraaj and Jaarun volunteering at Safe Harbor of Chester County. Safe Harbor helps feed the homeless and provides housing. Viraaj and Jarun prepared and packed meals for the homeless. Kudos to our young volunteers.

Dec 4 2021- Aneesh, Akshara, Sid P, Reyna and Rachel of Drishti volunteered at the Royer-Greaves School for Blind and set up holiday decorations. 

Royer-Greaves School for Blind serves students and adults with visual and other impairments, including intellectual disabilities.

Dec 12, 2021- Rohan, Ria, Reyna, Rachel, Arsha and Akshara finished greeting cards in Braille. These cards will be sent to blind students in India and in Pennsylvania, USA. It was a learning experience and creative work for our team. 

Drishti had run a winter clothes collection campaign which was successfully completed by dropping the donated items to ‘Cradles to Crayons’. The objective was to help underprivileged children in the local Philadelphia area.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Philadelphia has the highest poverty rate among the nation’s ten largest cities. 3 in 5 Philadelphian children live in poverty.

Cradles to Crayons is a charity organization that provides essential items to children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations. Drishti worked with Cradles to Crayons to plan and execute this campaign for winter items.

The pictures show some of the clothes and coats collected, which filled an entire bin! Thanks to all the donors for their generosity.

Thank you to the team members who drove this campaign! - Ritvik, Aneesh, Akshara, and Reyna