Breakfast Seva
Feeding 1,500+ school going children from 9 Schools, a sumptuous morning breakfast came out of a beautiful experience. One afternoon as a few of our volunteers were going by a poor slum in Bangalore, the appalling living conditions they saw shocked them. They got down and interacted with the people dwelling there and found that their children were very unwell most times and went hungry to school. A little child was fast asleep hungry on the floor of her home made of a tarpaulin sheet in the hot sun. Children were going to school on empty stomachs and were falling sick. On interacting more with these children, the volunteers found that they were unable to bear the pangs of hunger during the day. The children wanted to be Doctors, Engineers, Pilots, Join the armed forces but how could they study on empty stomachs. We feel hungry and our stomachs growl in the day time they said. When Sai Aashraya was formed, the motivation to serve breakfast every day to these children came out of these little children’s words. Serving breakfast to school going children who didn’t have what it took to get one square meal a day is a cause all of us can relate to.
Why we do
Fresh and Healthy food cooked with Love every morning from Sai Aashraya's central kitchen is brought in Sai Aashraya's Food Truck to all the schools where dedicated volunteers serve the children. Over time the students have begun setting up all the serving counters and the senior students serve all their schoolmates and only when the last child is served.
The End of Education is Character and our dedicated volunteers mentor these children every single day with one aim of building character. Consistent tutoring and counselling both for the students and the parents has enabled a holistic transformation.
Sai Aashraya also looks after the health of the children and the parents through the Super Speciality Medicare Camps. Screening for congenital heart disease in children is always on across our schools and outside as well.
Sai Aashraya has also ensured that the students continue to pursue their higher education and college education by taking up the requisite fees and all support that is needed. Not just in our schools, but also children from the other Seva venues are today pursuing their education with renewed energy. Students who were about to Dropout from Engineering, Nursing Programmes etc. are now back in their colleges and feel that the purpose of their life is to serve as many people as they can even as they pursue with great determination true education.
To sum it up, we strive towards supporting these children in little ways in their journey to become fine world citizens from our Motherland Bharat.
What we do
Our Menu
While serving breakfast was the primary activity the need to impart true education was always there and the method was to teach children by imparting Educare which is Education with Human Values. The change took time to come but it did and these children today are self-confident, and are taking those little strides to being role models and are eager to take care of children like them in the future. With consistent support through mentoring by our vastly experienced volunteers, these children are today getting moulded into fine all around personalities. Needless to say, there have been no dropouts in all these years in the schools where we get to serve. The students excel in every area be it academics or extra curricular activities.
Here is one powerful experience - One morning a question was asked to a little boy as to what he aspires to be in his life. With a twinkle in his eyes he said, “I want to grow up and serve food to all children who don’t have food to eat and I will do so by being a doctor”. The goal was to Serve and the means to achieve the end goal was clear in this little lad’s heart.
We have been fortunate to mould fine batches of students who are shining examples of what can be achieved through the three Ps - Purity, Patience and Perseverance and the 3 Ds Duty, Devotion and Discipline. Through their toughest times they remain strong and we feel Blessed to be a part of their journey. Our volunteers say that they feel they have not just the 2 children in their homes alone, they have 1500 little children more waiting to see them when they come in to the schools next morning; their real sunrise.
To learn more about the impact created by Sai Aashraya's Breakfast Seva please do watch this video.
Impact
