On 10 April 2013, over 150 Friends of Seva Mandir joined together in the Great Hall of King’s College London to honour Priyanka Singh on her visit to London.
It was a very special evening, and all the nicer to have along Patrons Praveen Moman, Giulia Marsan, and Baroness Williams who found the time to slip out of Parliament following her speech to commemorate Margaret Thatcher’s passing.
One of our Trustees, Araddhya Mehta, danced spectacularly to Madhuvanti Tillana composed by the great violinist Lalgudi G Jayaraman. It was a profoundly moving close to a profoundly moving evening best captured by the words of the speakers.
“In the last two decades or so, Seva Mandir has provided to the poorest of poor families access to good quality early childhood care, primary schooling, maternal and child health care.”
“The patient realism of Seva Mandir has created opportunities for ordinary villages to perform their duties and become creative agents for making society more humane and better self governed.
Priyanka Singh Chief Executive, Seva Mandir
“In a world of falling giving, competition for aid is growing. Too often, the voices that shout the loudest win. Or aid is professionalised into large international organisations who funnel donations to smaller organisations, taking cuts along the way. With Seva Mandir, we have a unique opportunity to give directly to a sensational organisation that is right at the frontline.”
Ian MacAuslan Seva Mandir volunteer 2004/5
“If you take the poorest person in Britain, there are 500 million poorer in India. It is impossible to imagine 500 million of anything. So where do you start! In its own unique way, Seva Mandir embraces over 350,000 people in Southern Rajasthan transforming their lives, fostering lasting change and community self determination. That is a start.”
Chris Wiscarson Chairman UK Friends of Seva Mandir