The New York chapter of Pratham USA welcomed more than 600 guests to its annual gala which witnessed “who’s who” of prominent Indian Americans, philanthropists, corporate executives and Wall Street elite who turned out for this year’s festivities.
The event held on Thursday, September 18, at The Museum of Modern Art raised over USD 2 million for Pratham’s programs to educate underprivileged children and youth in India.
Washington Post journalist, CNN host and New York Times best-selling author Fareed Zakaria delivered the night’s keynote address and spoke on India’s recent election and his hope for India’s ability to instigate a change.
“The most heartening part of this last election is that for the first time in many, many years, an election was held on issues, on substance, on policy,” said Zakaria.
“This election was about the idea of development. It provides a framework that India has not had in a generation,” he added.
“There’s never been a better opportunity for India to take advantage of current momentum. Closing out the speech with a call to support Pratham. The Ministry of Education is not going to solve India’s education problem. Pratham will,” he added.
Asia Society President and CEO Josette Sheeran also congratulated Pratham CEO and Co-Founder Dr. Madhav Chavan on his recent Asia Game Changer Award for “bringing the gift of literacy to millions of Indians.”
Gala guests, including Manish Dayal from the celebrated film “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” and Ali Velshi, host of “Real Money with Ali Velshi,” who served as the night’s emcee, enjoyed cocktails in the Sculpture Garden ,, followed by a sumptuous dinner in the main hall and dancing to Indian Bhangra music.
Attendees were also treated to private gallery tours of The Museum of Modern Art’s exquisite collection.
“This was one of my most anticipated events of the year, not only because of the beautiful venue, but more importantly, because of the good work Pratham does,” said longtime supporter Rekha Kumar.
“I’m particularly impressed by Pratham’s record of leveraging its resources in an efficient manner to provide education in the far reaches of India,” Kumar added.
To raise awareness outside the event, this year’s gala also highlighted #WHYPRATHAM, a social media campaign encouraging attendees to share messages about their personal connection to the organization.
“We are immensely grateful to our sponsors, supporters and volunteers for the tremendous success of this year’s gala,” said Deepak Raj, President of the New York Tri-State Chapter.
“The funds we raised reflect our community’s commitment to widening access to education in India and our belief in Pratham’s unique vision and ability to enact change. We hope we can raise even more next year,” he added.
Array
As the largest educational movement in India, Pratham reaches millions of children and youth annually through its operations. Over 90 percent of every dollar raised from the gala will go to support programs that include pre-school classes, remedial learning programs and vocational training.
source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> News-ANI> National / ANI / New York – September 23rd, 2014