Philanthropy doesn’t come as naturally to everyone as it came to Sudhir Prathipati. Sudhir believes that he was born to help. He has been living by this idea for the last eight years. His intention of philanthropy is not limited to a single day’s charity like most of us. Sudhir provides long-term support to the people in need of food, shelter, clothing, and endless love. How does he manage all this? What compelled him to take up such a big responsibility? When Sudhir patiently answered these questions, it became a beautiful story.
Philanthropy Spark In Sudhir Prathipati
Sudhir Prathipati’s thoughts and ideas have been inclined towards philanthropy since his childhood. The financial condition of his family taught him many harsh but valuable lessons. Being a lorry driver’s son, he knew how it is to live within a limited income. At that point, he decided that he would do everything in his capacity to help people in need. Sudhir’s philanthropy is the product of his hardships. He started doing part jobs in his childhood itself. A portion of the money that Sudhir earned from this went to the needy. For a long time, his help was limited to specific occasions.
When he started earning in 2009, he decided to donate at least 2000 rupees from his salary every month. After this job, Sudhir went to Dubai, and from there, he went to Iraq. He worked in a war zone as a transport manager till 2012. He earned a lakh per month in this job, but his life was constantly under threat. He wanted to live and make himself useful to others. Although Sudhir Prathipati never stopped donating, the philanthropist in him was not happy. He knew that a single person’s donations could not make a big difference.
Philanthropy Is Contagious
Sudhir took another step towards his mission. He motivated his friends and colleagues to join hands with him and donate according to their capacities. Together they provided food to around 200 families. Luckily, Sudhir met many like-minded people through Facebook, and his philanthropy went to the next level. He and his friends would donate old clothes to people living on the streets or in orphanages and nursing homes. While this seemed to be going well, Sudhir Prathipati realized that his charity was not reaching the actual stakeholders. The middlemen ate up the more significant chunk of donations, and the stakeholders got only the leftovers.
Philanthropy Runs In The Family
Disappointed by people’s greed and the pathetic situation of the needy, Sudhir thought of a solution. His philanthropy drove Sudhir to establish the Yuvatharam Foundation in 2013. Yuvatharam shelters and nurtures children who are in dire need of care and love. It gives many orphans a home they can call their own. The caregiving is so good at Yuvatharam Foundation that kids have fallen in love with the organization. Yuvatharam Foundation rose to popularity through word of mouth.
Sudhir Prathipati has always been against asking for donations. He wants the organization’s work to speak for itself and motivate people to donate by their own will. Sudhir Prathipati is supported by his family and friends in his philanthropy. His mother ensures that the children are well-fed, and his wife takes care of their education. His father, on the other hand, looks after transportation requirements. It is very inspiring to see the entire family come together for a noble cause like this. Philanthropy seems to be the core value of the family.
More Hands Supporting Sudhir
Apart from family, Sudhir Prathipati is greatly supported by an enthusiastic team he connected with through Facebook. His friends Vasu, Raghu, Akhbar, Sai, Sai Krishna, Ashok, Sahithya, Yasaswi, Hari, Ram Chand, Shamili Yaswanth, Srilalitha, Venkatesh, Sandeep, and Sasi support Sudhir unconditionally. Vasu is a blood organizer in the team who has facilitated around 12,500 blood donations since 2014. On the other hand, Raghu always comes forward to take care of things during natural calamities on behalf of the organization.
A Happy Family
Sudhir Prathipati and the team established Yuvatharam Foundation in Vaddeswaram. At Yuvatharam foundation, children are not just well-fed and educated. Sudhir and his team take care of the overall well-being of every child. Every significant event in a child’s life is celebrated lavishly, just like one big happy family. It sometimes leaves Sudhir in debt, but fortunately, people who lend money also have a heart of gold. Sudhir proudly speaks of the good connections he has made. They never pressurize the man to return their money, and they know his intention.
Philanthropy Is Not Limited
Yuvatharam Foundation does a little more than just taking care of children. Sudhir also expands his services by being an active volunteer during natural calamities. He rushes to areas wherever he’s needed. Sudhir Prathipati spent a few weeks in Hyderabad when the city was drowning due to rains recently.
They stayed around for a week to rebuild the flood-stricken places. Sudhir is also actively involved in blood donation and distribution. Not only this. The man has adopted many old, bed-ridden, and helpless families for the last two years. Sudhir and the team have taken up the responsibility of 70-100 families. Driven by his philanthropy, Sudhir provides a significant part of necessary groceries to these people.
However, coming to this level with the idea of philanthropy was not easy. There came the point (during the initial days) when Sudhir almost dropped the idea of the foundation. It was because of a lack of money. Despite this, his spirit kept things alive, and today there is a home for many children.
A Self Sufficient Organization
As mentioned earlier, Sudhir is not someone who will go around asking for donations. Even though his philanthropy could generate a lot of donations, he wanted to make Yuvatharam Foundation self-sufficient. So, now instead of buying necessities every month, they were stable for a couple of months. With this idea in mind, Sudhir and his team started farming. They organically grow their vegetables and pulses.
They also rare cattle at the SNS farms to generate profit used for improvements of the organization. The foundation has grown to a level where Sudhir Prathipati invites investors and returns their profit within a year. Although the foundation is still clearing debts, its members thrive to provide the best life to little ones.
No Hunger For Fame
You may ask why such a generous organization never came into the public eye. Answering this question, Sudhir narrates a heartbreaking story. When popular newspapers narrated Yuvatharam Foundation’s activities like Eenadu, Andhrajyoti, and Sakshi in 2014, people misinterpreted it.
They turned Sudhir’s philanthropy into greed for fame. It impacted Sudhir’s mind, and he decided never to publicize his acts of charity. Hatke Story is honored to publish his story. Sudhir gives the credit of Yuvatharam Foundation’s development to his family and friends who supported him financially and emotionally. Through this story, we wish to instigate philanthropy in the minds and lives of many others around us.
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