Welcome to Ramana's Garden Gallery Cafe - enjoy the cafe and support a home and school for orphaned and disadvantaged children at the same time.
Yogi Yum Yums. This whimsically named program has a very serious goal – to send at least four talented young students from disadvantaged backgrounds to university in 2014. Started by Yogi Uday, it is the source of great hope for a few special students at Ramana's Garden in Rishikesh India.
Just a short walk from where I was staying at Anand Prakash Yoga Ashram, through a construction site and down a narrow, winding footpath, is Ramana's Garden, a home for about 60 orphaned and destitute children and a school for double that number.
Ramana's Garden takes students to grade ten, giving children of the “untouchable” caste a future other than heavy labor for a few rupees a day. However, as in the west, some students are definitely made for higher education.
Yogi Uday has been supporting Ramana's Garden for many years and recently started a fundraising program to help the students with the greatest prospects get a university education. Here's how he describes his project.
$20 from about 100 readers of Solo Traveler will get one student a university education, room, board and books for one year.
Can You Spare $20?
The Yogi Yum Yum fundraiser is as close to the ground as you can get.
As you can see from the video, it's simple. Yogi Uday makes sweets and sells them with all profits going to the student fund. He sits patiently in the office of the Ashram five days a week waiting for people to buy the sweets. No website. No foundation. No overhead. Oh, and no tax receipt for you should you want to help.
I'm hoping that you will help. I will deliver 100% of the donations received to Yogi Uday's account for the students and he will use 100% of the funds for student university expenses.
I know. You have to trust me that I'll deliver 100% and you have to trust that I have judged the Yogi Yum Yums program well and that all the money will make it to the students. It's a lot to ask in a world where misrepresentations are common but I hope that you have a sense of who I am from this blog and that you will contribute. Thank you for your consideration. I respect whatever decision you make.
I have made the first donation at $100 – my money is where my words are.
DONATION BUTTON HAS BEEN REMOVED
And here's more about Ramana's Garden…
If you prefer, you can donate directly to Ramana's Garden here.
