Author: Sehr Lakhani

2020 certainly proved to be a challenging year, but with support from KARMAKARMA, OYH was able to improve facilities, ensuring safe and dignified environments for 44 homeless shelters and supportive living centers across Minnesota. The Education Fund helped 12 charities for school and education secure supplies and winter clothing, pay for activity fees and much more so that children and youth experiencing homelessness could participate fully in school and have the same necessities as other students. The OYH Homeless Student Scholarship program provided one-year scholarships to 13 eligible students attending the Minneapolis Community and Technical College. OYH’s Summer Challenge made it possible for 171 Minnesota food shelves to restock and distribute fresh and frozen foods at a time when food shelf donations are traditionally low.

You can find even more updates by visiting https://oyh.org/grantee-mondays-highlights/

Thank you and be well.

GPS Coordinates : 21°47’22.3″N 82°21’57.7″E

Binauridih Community is located in the Bilaspur District of the Chhattisgarh state of India. Although Bilaspur city is the headquarters of the District, Binauridih lies over 30 miles from the city and is a rural community. A majority of the community members are uneducated and rely upon agriculture and day labor for income.

While implementing the bore well, a team of social workers provided awareness classes to the villagers regarding sanitation, importance of preserving water and eco-conservation. The training was specifically useful for the children. Training included specific attention to the importance of hand washing in the wake of the global pandemic.

Water, the most essential life resource, is a far cry for many. Villagers in the Chhattisgarh state travel miles on a daily basis to get water for drinking and for other needs. During summer it is too difficult to fetch water due to scorching heat.

When COVID-19 hit dozens of social services, shelters, and businesses shuttered due to stay at home ordinances leaving many of our unhoused neighbors out on the street with very little hygiene, water, food, sanitation. even worse, with everyone indoors our guests began to feel more isolated, even forgotten, during a time so unprecedented.

In response, our partner lavamae teamed up with multiple partners in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles to go directly to unhoused communities and deliver critical supplies such as facemasks, hygiene items, socks, water, food, and smiling faces.

To date, 5,341 hygiene kits have been delivered to unhoused neighbors, serving between 200-250 people per week.

For more information on lavamae, go to lavamaex.org

Children of War Foundation earmarked funds from the KARMAKARMA community specifically for humanitarian supplies purchased for a refugee camp on the Jordanian Syrian border.   Approximately 60 families benefited from a combined contribution which included, medical aid, wood to burn in heater lamps to keep children warm, warm clothes for children under 10 years old and other basic supplies to help refugee families survive the harsh winters in camps. Thanks again to our community for making a difference!

To learn more about Children of War Foundation, click here

We did it again! KARMAKARMA impact makers have built another well in partnership with Generosity.org. This time our impact reached a remote community in Punjab, India. The Aliwal Kotli is a community made up predominately by farmers, masons and small business owners. This community had no access to water and due to their low social ranking, was banned from drinking water from the existing bore wells in the area. These were reserved for those belonging to members of higher classes.

Your impact has allowed for the construction of this new borehole well specifically to benefit this underserved and marginalized community. Prior to this well, the community members would walk long distances and wait for hours to collect water, but now thanks to our impact makers, the 250 community members can prepare food, do laundry and drink clean water from their very own well!

Check out the message below from a Aliwal Kotli community member to our KARMAKARMA impact makers:
“Thank you for the well. We faced a water crisis for quite a long time since there is no constant government help. I had to carry water from a nearby village. Sometimes we waited for hours with buckets and pots for water!

Now I am very much thankful for providing pure water source near our village. Thank you for this wonderful effort.”

To learn more about Generosity.org, click here.

To make an impact today, click here.

Children of War Foundation (COWF), is a U.S. based nonprofit that works tirelessly to provide medical support and medical procedures to children affected by war and conflict. As of 2019, COWF has impacted the lives of 10,000+ children, improved clinical capabilities at several hospitals and health facilities, as well as, provided further medical education enrichment opportunities to healthcare professional in several countries.

KARMAKARMA impact makers have been supporting COWF work for several years and more recently they supported COWF’s mission to Haiti and Jordon. By providing support for the purchase of essential medial supplies including gauze, bandages, saline rinses and more KARMAKARMA impact makers have helped COWF fulfill their mission.

By choosing to make your impact with Children of War Foundation, you helped transform a child’s life.

To learn more about the Children of War Foundation, click here.

To make an impact today, click here.