Running Marathons to transform lives

Volunteers. The backbone of any non-profit organization. Benevolent people, looking to do their share to make life easier for another, all without any wish of monetary compensation. Contributing their resources, time and expertise selflessly to better someone else’s future.?At Lotus Petal we have been extremely fortunate vis-à-vis our volunteers. Assisting with everything from fundraising to administrative tasks to dispersing the word about the mission of the organization, our volunteers are an integral part of our operations. Each volunteer is unique and brings a different perspective, a different skill set and different life experience yet all are united in their goal to contribute towards improving lives.

Today, I share with you the unique journey of one of our most dedicated volunteers. Arun.

An engineer by qualification, Arun Sharma has held various prestigious posts with a number of eminent multinational companies. An authority in his field, Arun is presently working with Cisco as Senior Software Engineering Manager. He is based out of San Jose, California in the United States. His wife and two sons are his life and along with being a loving father and husband, he is an ardent believer of giving back to society. He is actively involved with several charities in the Bay area in California.

It was in 2016 that Arun first heard of Lotus Petal Foundation through a friend. As an organization working to uplift the lives of underprivileged children living in urban slums of Gurgaon, we had some charity bibs for the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (ADHM) 2016. Arun was travelling to India and wanted to run in the ADHM but registrations had closed. In the group of people who were participating to support our cause was a friend of Arun’s. Knowing Arun’s avid love for marathons and his expertise as a trained runner, this friend reached out to Arun if he wished to run in ADHM he could buy a charity bib from Lotus Petal. Arun called from California to secure his bib for the run and committed to visit Lotus Petal campus. Landing in Delhi on the night before the event he did a divine spellbinding run with the flag of India in one hand and the flag of Lotus Petal in the other.

Arun visited us at our Gurgaon campus to understand our work better. Instantaneously, he fell in love with the cause and the children. So moved was he by observing such grassroots interventions that he at once vowed to become involved. He headed back to the US on the Thanksgiving weekend and upon landing placed a call to us to tell us that he would be running the San Francisco marathon on the 2nd of December representing Lotus Petal Foundation. We were astounded by this. He completed the run, collected his thoughts, and again called us back with a promise of running 12 marathons in 12 months in 2017 to raise funds for Lotus Petal.

One marathon a month. 12x12.

He pushed his boundaries. People started reaching out to him on the campaign page wishing to contribute and his circle of friends and well-wishers started to grow. Keeping his word, he did not even let the scalding heat of California in July deter him from his goal and completed the stipulated run indoors. He finished each and every one of the marathons, the final one on 24th December, his birthday, where he cut the cake at the end of the run. He shared how this for him had been such a year of meaning and purpose.

Over the years Arun has become an essential part of Lotus Petal. A member of the board of Lotus Petal USA, Arun has time and again pulled out all the stops to support the cause. His family has also become resolutely involved in assisting as much as possible. He has opened up his home to us and has hosted galas for us at his California residence. Arun has helped us avail the corporate matching programs of his office as well.

Once when Arun and I were driving back from his office to his residence in California he shared with me “All of us have so many struggles in our lives. There is so much pain in this world one wishes to alleviate. It used to bother me earlier that maybe I could do more. But somehow, through my association with Lotus Petal, I feel fulfilled. I feel complete.”

For Lotus Petal, Arun is a hero, a true champion of change. Anytime there is a need and we approach Arun, there is always a solution. The solution may sound impossible to begin with but somehow thanks to his commitment and zeal we always end up accomplishing what we set out to do.

During the pandemic as the world came to a halt and we struggled for digital devices for our students’ education, Arun was one of the first people to take up a campaign to raise funds for the same. With Arun’s Mission 30x30 campaign he ran 30 Half Marathons to raise $30K for the purchase of 300 Tablets for the children of Lotus Petal Foundation. He achieved this as well and was able to become the solitary reason so many children were able to continue their education in the pandemic.

We at Lotus Petal thank Arun, a humble kind man for his commitment and steadfast determination towards transforming lives, one child at a time.