Mayank and Srija’s Birthday Impact

I would have loved a watch, but this is what I got for my birthday!

Mayank Shrivastava narrates what it was like running a birthday fundraiser on Impact Guru!

You know how before your birthday, you somehow sense the surprise coming? Your family and friends try to be inconspicuous, but somehow end up leaving you hints. Whether you are a big birthday person or not, you do celebrate in whatever way you can.

I was looking forward to turning 25 on 26th of January! (It would finally mean that I would get the above 25 band at the NH7 Weekender, without charming my way into it.) And, I had already overheard conversations of friends planning to give me a watch (which, to be honest, I would have absolutely loved!)

But 25th is a milestone year, and I wanted to do something different. I work in marketing and I stumbled upon Nanhikali through a client.

I was familiar with the work of the NGO in the domain of girl education and I was aware that a donation of Rs. 10 could fund 1 girl’s education for a day! The need was clear and so was the Impact I could create even with the limited resources I had.

I roped in a friend, Shrija Priyanil, whose birthday was on the 27th, a day after mine but since she lives in the US, our birthdays overlapped and decided to start a crowdfunding campaign instead! I wrote a quick blog, shared it on social media and forwarded the link to a few whatsapp groups!

The aim was to raise Rs. 30,000 to which Shrija and I would add Rs. 5,000 from our side! But, boy did we get a response! Within 5 days, we raised more than double the amount!

We brought together 27 donors to raise Rs. 74,242! Enough to educate at least 24 young girls for a year!

It was my most satisfying birthday gift till date. It also made me realize that there so many kind-hearted people who were willing to help, all they needed was an opportunity. I now look forward to running another fundraiser to help a friend from Teach For India!

I may have missed out on the watch, but this surprise was even better!

Take a look at his fundraiser here!

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