Anandashram initiative

- By Apolina Das, Technical Writer, EMC-CMA.

Anandashram, an old age home located at Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore, was chosen as the place to start with primarily because of its proximity to the EMC India office. Anandashram currently houses 27 inmates, the oldest member being Mrs. Subhalakshmi at 86 years. The ashram receives donations from individuals and corporate, and is governed by a Trust.

The primary focus of Anandashram is to provide a dwelling place for the aged and homeless. A home away from home where they can spend their life in the company of fellow senior citizens. A life thrown into by circumstances and abandoned hope. Yet with a desire to live, to survive in this harsh world, and say "we can, and on our own"!

The ashram also has separate orphanages for boys and girls at Rajaji Nagar, Bangalore. It conducts free classes for girls from the underprivileged sections of the society to help empower them for the future. Sewing, knitting, and cooking classes are part of this free curricula. The ashram plans to include computer training to this list in the near future.

Volunteers2@work provides help to the ashram in the form of monetary donations, grocery items, and items of immediate need to the ashram or its residents. The group visits the ashram once a month to spend quality time with the aged, talk to them, listen to their life’s woes and joys, imbibe their pearls of wisdom, share a meal, and put a smile on their lips.

Here are some thoights that came out of our trip and meetings.

• Monthly help for the ashram
• Thought of helping the ashram with inverter
• Going to Ashram to meet the folks on every last friday of the month
• Sunil is getting the list of residents with some particulars which will help plan the above meeting