Deepalayans stand united – Completing 35 years
On 16th July 2014, Deepalaya’s story, which began in 1979, reached a new milestone of 35 years.
Over the years, we’ve grown from a small organisation with 5 beneficiaries and a capital of Rs. 17,500 to become Delhi’s largest operational NGO, and NGO that has assets worth more than Rs. 15 crore and has provided education to more than 2,70,000 children.
Like any story worth telling, our journey too has been full of twists and turns. While we started out as an education based NGO, we quickly realised the plight of the underprivileged and set up programme in healthcare, women empowerment, institutional care and vocational training. Through a process of expansion, experimentation and thoughtful implementation, these projects have today benefited lakhs of underprivileged women, youth and children across India.
On 19th July, all of our project heads, board of directors, beneficiaries and sponsors gathered at Deepalaya School Kalkaji Extension to celebrate the 35th Foundation Day of the organisation. The day began with Mr. P.T. Varghese, the Director of Administration, welcoming the dignitaries, the delegation of seniors then proceeded to light the lamp and inaugurate the day’s event.
Mr. T.K. Mathew and Mr. A.J. Philip, the Chief Executive and President of Deepalaya, took a few moments to share their experiences and vision for future. The speech was followed by a short film on the 35 year journey of the organisation. With the introductions out of the way, it was time for the real heroes – The programme heads – to have their moment in the limelight.
Each programme head had prepared a beautiful collage, which was displayed on the day for all to see. The heads took the stage and talked about their project, right from its conception to recent achievements. Next up was the cultural event. Each programme and its members had prepared a short performance (song, dance or skit) with Deepalaya as the main focus. While some programmes focused on girl child education, others chose to depict ‘women empowerment’ through a hilarious dance performance. None were spared from the magic of the day as even the board of directors took to the stage to shake a leg with the teachers and staff members.
Truly, although we’ve turned 35 years this year, the spirit and enthusiasm showed by the teachers and staff members was akin to something you’d see from a group of teenagers. Here’s to hoping that we can continue to serve the community for another 35 years to come.