STONEHAM, MA– Over 500 business, non-profit, government and philanthropic leaders are expected to attend Akshaya Patra Foundation’s 11th Annual Boston Gala on April 28 at the Boston Marriott Cambridge in Cambridge, MA.
Akshaya Patra officials said that for the second year, the Foundation has sold out all table sponsorships. A few individual tickets, however, are still available.
Padma Shri Award-winning Master Chef Sanjeev Kapoor will be the event’s keynote speaker. HGTV and Food Network interior designer Taniya Nayak will serve as the Master of Ceremonies. This year’s event will feature an evening of networking, entertainment, and dinner.
“Greater Boston has generously supported Akshaya Patra’s mission to improve the lives of children of India with nutrition and education for the past several years,” said Akshaya Patra USA CEO Emily Rosenbaum . “Today, our program supports over 1.6 million children DAILY with hot, nutritious food at school.”
Established in 2000, Akshaya Patra began by serving 1,500 in 5 schools in Bangalore. Today, Akshaya Patra is the largest NGO-run school meal programs in the world and serves over 1.6 million children daily in over 11,501 schools through 27 kitchens in eleven states in India. Akshaya Patra USA is the US branch of Akshaya Patra and raises funds and awareness for the school meal program in India.
“What if, in our lifetime—because funding is no longer an obstacle to achieve even greater scale—this approach spread around the world and we could see a day when hunger was no longer a barrier to school attendance and achievement,” Rosenbaum said. “With your help, we believe this day will come about. The Gala is a time to celebrate our successes, thank our benefactors and reach to even greater heights. We hope to see all of friends (from all of the years and new friends) to celebrate the children at the Gala on April 28th.”
Akshaya Patra has received international recognition for its life-changing mission. In 2016, Akshaya Patra’s Founder Madhu Pandit Dasa received the Padma Shri Award, India’s fourth highest civilian award, for his work with Akshaya Patra.
Shridhar Venkat, CEO of Akshaya Patra India, was recognized as being among the 50 Most Impactful Social Innovators in the world. Akshaya Patra was recently awarded the Nikkei Asia Prize, an award established to recognize an organization’s outstanding achievements that contribute to the region’s sustainable development. Akshaya Patra is the subject of best-selling authoress Rashmi Bansal’s recently published book God’s Own Kitchen. For more information about Akshaya Patra, visit www.foodforeducation.org. For more information about Boston Gala, call 781-462-8454. To register or purchase tickets: www.foodforeducation.org/2017-boston-gala .
