Shelby's Social Diary
Deepak Chopra inspires at the Galleria and more than $600,000 pours in to helpstarving kids
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
Photo by Kim Coffman
With the words of physician and author Deepak Chopra filling the Westin Galleria Hotel ballroom with inspiration, the Akshaya Patra Foundation's second major fundraising push in Houston resulted in more than $600,000 for the starving children of India. Chopra is a member of the foundation's advisory board.
The foundation provides midday meals for 1.4 million children in more than 9,000 schools. The meals not only serve to nourish youngsters but also to encourage them to attend school, resulting in increased enrollment throughout participating schools. The hope is to replicate the program globally.
Applause, applause for chairs Philamena and Arthur Baird, Anuradha and Mani Subramanian, Nidhika and Pershant Mehta and Leena and Ash Shah and honorary chair Harris County Judge Ed Emmett. Their fundraising efforts were multiplied when at the end of the evening, it was announced that Leena and Ash Shah were making a legacy endowment of $1 million for the foundation.
Among those casting their vote in favor of this educational effort that fights hunger were Amit and Arpita Bhandari, Nidhi and Mukesh Turakhia, Nita and Neil Jolly, Jaleh and Bruce Sallee, Yasmine Haddad, Gabriela Dror, Mehrnaz Gill, Sudha and Ravi Mani, Dr. Vis and Priya Balakrishnan, Peggy and Avinash Ahuja and Divya and Chris Brown.
