Events & Personalities
Humanitarian help
"True charity is the desire to be useful to others, without any thought of recompensation” was the motto of the late Ardeshir Homavazir who founded Young Rathestars in 1942. His vision has been kept alive for the past 70 years by members of the institution he founded. Since 1992 the Young Rathestars have taken up The Gujarat Poverty Relief Project which has benefited poor families in the interior villages of Navsari, Nargol, Udvada, Sanjan and others, mentions a write-up received by Parsiana. The Bombay based organization is said to have adopted 80 rural families around Bharuch and Ankleshwar, neighboring Borbhatha village and small towns in the Mandvi and Mangrol talukas.
The committee members visited interior villages near Ankleshwar, Bharuch and Surat as well as the needy in Poona, Nargol and Saronda for four days between February 8 and 11, 2012, covering a distance of nearly 600 km, to distribute household necessities like dal, rice, sugar, oil, wheat, food grains, etc along with utility items like sudrehs, kustis, pyjamas, towels, napkins, soap, crockery and slippers. Having tracked down families with special needs, the Rathestars have dug wells, constructed toilets and bathrooms, repaired buffalo sheds and leaking roofs, lists the write-up.
The committee members visited interior villages near Ankleshwar, Bharuch and Surat as well as the needy in Poona, Nargol and Saronda for four days between February 8 and 11, 2012, covering a distance of nearly 600 km, to distribute household necessities like dal, rice, sugar, oil, wheat, food grains, etc along with utility items like sudrehs, kustis, pyjamas, towels, napkins, soap, crockery and slippers. Having tracked down families with special needs, the Rathestars have dug wells, constructed toilets and bathrooms, repaired buffalo sheds and leaking roofs, lists the write-up.
Young Rathestars distributing household necessities to underprivileged. (from r to l): Kersi Guard, Arnavaz Mistry, Homyar Doctor (partly hidden) and Shiraz Guard (seated)
Additional activities of the Young Rathestars include an annual gahanbar where lunch is served to about 600 community members; distribution of food grains and utility items to 750 deserving families in Bombay in the month of August, just before the New Year; jashans and entertainment programs throughout the year; bonny baby contest and a Christmas party in December; felicitating meritorious Parsi/Irani Zoroastrian students who have excelled in the school leaving examinations; providing educational scholarships, medical aid and helping with navjotes and marriages. A popular exhibition-cum-sale is organized every March to coincide with the festival of spring, the write-up notes.
None of these activities would have been possible without generous donations and assistance from patrons and well-wishers. Donors may contact Khushru Crawford (9321021981), Arnavaz Mistry (9821009289) or Sharukh Dhalla (9820148164). The committee comprises Homyar Doctor, president, Dhalla, vice president, Mistry and Shiraz Guard, joint secretaries, Crawford, treasurer, Kersi Guard, Pervin Pastakia, Tanaz Guzder, Vistasp Mehta, and Cyrus Guzder.
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From the archive