Manipal Foundation Fundraising Gala Deemed a Success

On Sept. 13, while many high school students were probably spending the evening catching a movie with friends, getting caught up on their favorite TV shows or spending time with family, Anant Pai and his team were hosting a fundraising gala for the Manipal Foundation, a non-profit organization lead by Pai. A silent auction was held throughout the evening. Guests were given the opportunity to take home a variety of items and packages including designer sunglasses, kitchen sets, gift cards, day spa packages, and tickets on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. As guests arrived they were given the red carpet treatment, getting their photo taken by a professional photographer in front of a foundation banner, then being ushered upstairs where they were able to mingle with one another. Musical entertainment included opera singers and a belly dancer. Pai, along with the other members of the organization, spoke to attendees on the organization's origin, previous projects completed over the few years since its launch and the current projects underway that the gala will help make possible. The funds raised from the gala will go towards refurbishing an entertainment room at the Dallas Children's Hospital with the help of One Reason Recordings. Another project that the group of teens is focusing on is the establishment of a scholarship fund at the Manipal Junior College for underprivileged students. A senior and National Merit Semi-finalist from Redlands High School, Pai was inspired to relaunch the organization after his experience visiting orphans in India a few years back. The original Manipal Foundation was started by his father Dr. Pai in 1997. Pai is not the only student involved in the organization. Michelle Xu, Devanshi Mathur, Nicole Kim, Heidi Lai, and Summer Zofrea along with a few other students make up the foundation's Board. Together some of the projects they have accomplished include: - Paying for the high school education of an orphan in Mangalore, India; without their help, the orphan would have had to be married off at the age of 14 - Raising $14,000 for the Educate A Child Inc. to travel to Zimbabwe with books for underprivileged children - Making a donation to the Rotary International Club for their End Polio Project where their donation helped vaccinate 7,500 young children - Providing donations and volunteers at the San Bernardino Helping Hands Pantry Dr. Donna St. George, teacher of A.P. European History, A.P. Art History and the coach of mock-trials and decathlon at Redlands High School was all smiles as she spoke of Pai and the organization, "The ability to think of others that are less fortunate than oneself and to put others well being over your own is a great trait." Both Nicole Kim (Manager of Media Outreach for the Foundation) and Heidi Lai (Manager of Marketing) are excited about the music project. They raised $4,000 in ticket sales alone, which will go towards the $10,000 music refurbishing project. With almost 100 guests in attendance, plus the addition of the silent auction sales and private monetary donations from patrons, Pai and his members are well on the way to accomplishing another successful project for the Manipal Foundation. Readers interested in learning more about the Foundation and its projects or who would like to donate or volunteer can visit www.manipalfoundation.org.