Covid Heroes – Greenwood High International School students come forward to help the needy

Bangalore: Recognizing the indispensable need for finger-tip pulse oximeters amid the second wave of coronavirus, two grade 10 students of Greenwood High International School, Sneha Raghavan and Shloka Ashok, undertook an initiative to provide 200 oximeters to the underprivileged families and people.  In a matter of just 24hrs, these students were able to raise an amount of Rs. 2 Lakhs and are now working towards distributing the oximeters procured from the funds to an NGO Sampark, a Bengaluru-based organization, which works with some of the most vulnerable groups and will distribute these oximeters to people residing in slums in Bengaluru and among rural women in villages across Koppal, a city in North Karnataka.

With the second wave of Covid-19 threatening Indian lives and livelihoods much more than ever before, many underprivileged people are unable to get access to the life-saving drugs and essentials. Acknowledging the issue, a passionate social worker approached the students with the idea and both of them jumped at the chance to get involved in the project. The students reached out to various oximeter manufacturers to settle out the most economical deal. Later they designed posters and created a fundraiser page on the GiveIndia website that endorsed the project and helped them with the financial aspect.   

Expressing her views, Shloka Ashok, a student of Greenwood High International School, said: “Being in the midst of a global pandemic, I realized that it is extremely important to take a step and give back to society. I am extremely thankful to Ms. Anupama Parekh who gave us an opportunity to be a part of this noble project. As my exams have been postponed, I am looking forward to being a part of many more such initiatives and help those who are in dire need of help.  At Greenwood High International School, we are given such platforms where we get a greater understanding of social welfare programs and initiatives. I hope that many more students will come forward to serve the society to the best of their capacity.”

Sharing her views, Sneha Raghavan, another student of Greenwood High International School, said: “It is extremely motivating to see such an overwhelming response to our initiative. We had never thought that our initiative would get such immense support and response. We are extremely grateful to all the donors who participated and contributed to our fundraiser. This has certainly encouraged me to undertake more such social cause initiatives in the near future. This initiative has taught me how your one single act of random kindness can have a huge impact on someone’s life.”

Lauding the efforts of the students, Ms. Niru Agarwal, Trustee, Greenwood High International School, said:  “We believe that only by active collaboration between all the members of the society, we will be able to overcome the impact of this pandemic. We always encourage social pursuits at our school and we are glad that students are taking a leaf out of the school’s vision. We would like to encourage more number of students to undertake such initiatives that can benefit the society as a whole during such testing times. We strongly believe that sometimes small steps undertaken by each individual can lead to a greater good.”

Sneha and Shloka have a simple and refreshing approach to the current situation and firmly believe in the fact that “If each of us steps up to do our bit to help our fellow-Indians, we can tackle this massive crisis more effectively” and are now hoping to get involved  in more such socially beneficial projects in the future.