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Club Programs

Let me Bloom or Pehel. Pehel means start or beginning.
Under education we have the school support project with activities such as
Scholarship for girls (Let Me Bloom ), Math Yes we can – maths education project, English language project and gifts and awards for children excelling in std X

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Report of a visit to Ushatai Lokhande Charitable Trust Schools (ULCTS) Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Kawthe Malkapur and Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Wablewadi

The visit to ULCTS, Madhyamik Vidyalaya (Malkapur and Wablewadi) was arranged by Mrs. Ranajana Taskar on 29th Feb 2024. This was undertaken on the request of our guest, Mrs. Nandini Sonthalia, partner of Maths Yes We Can LLP; members accompanying Mrs. Nandini Santhali were Mrs. Ranjana Taskar, Mrs. Kulsum Lookmanjee and Mrs. Malika Siamwalla. Further, Mrs. Nandini was felicitated with a shawl by the Principal, staff, and members of SI Poona. Soroptimist International (SI) Poona had implemented the “Maths Yes We Can” project in the ULCTS for the academic year 2022-2023 and 2023-2024. In the academic year 2022-23, the project

Workshop on Communication Held at NIN

Presenter: Hazeka H Ginwala Mode: Offline National Institute Of Naturopathy Day and Date: Thursday 18 January 2024 Duration: 2 Hours  The workshop was held at NIN, President of the club Dr Naina Athawle invited Hazeka H Ginwala to conduct a Soft Skill workshop on the topic of Communication. It was conducted as a part of program of Soroptimist Internation Club Poona. The duration of the workshop was 2 hours. The participants were a part of a workshop on Acupressure of age group from 25-40 years. They came from all over India. The session began by formally introducing Ms. Hazeka H Ginwala and a token of appreciation was presented. The workshop began with an

Progress Report of girls receiving scholarship under Soroptimist

Educational Program - ‘LET ME BLOOM’ (2022 - 23) [A] Names of students who were awarded scholarships in 2021 and now have completed /completing their education in 2022. Trupti More - Passed B.A. with 60.62% and now doing job at ‘Solitair Lab’. She is getting salary of Rs.15,000 p.m. Vidya Darekar - Passed B.Tech. (ENTC) with 72% from VIT college. Presently working at “Michelin India Technology’ at Kharadi and getting salary of Rs.40,000/-. Her father died of Covid last year. Sejal Savant – Appearing for Final BCS. (Computer Science) examination. Secured 8.1. percentile last year. [B] Names of students continuing

Let Me Bloom

Education Project Education Sponsorship for girls who are physically / economically challenged, with no support and role model for guidance Started in 1993, this Key Project gained momentum year on year. Apart from books, stationery, tuitions and career guidance support, girls from Std. XI onwards are guided through aptitude studies either to acquire a degree or do a vocational course which guarantees employment. We are happy to report that today each and every girl whose life we touched, is economically powered and gainfully employed - be it Pratibha Aveshkar who despite being visually challenged is now an Asst. Manager in

English Project at UshaTai Lokhande Edu Trust School

I had visited the schools sometime in the beginning of this year and was impressed to see the students and teachers . The cleanliness, discipline was meticulous and the enthusiasm running high. When I interacted with the teachers and the students I could see the need for a bit of an impetus to make /encourage the students to speak more in English in order to prepare them for the outer world of higher studies and jobs. I also realized from my earlier experience of working in rural schools that It’s difficult for teachers to do extra work with students in

Joy of Learning

The joy of learning was coordinated by Mr. Mujtaba Lokhandwala Our both schools kai. Ushatai lokhande charitable trust sanchilit madhyamik vidyalay kauthe malkapur and wablewadi are both schools are running in tribal and rural area. We are in need of the correct direction according to the overall development of the school students and teachers . also the need of the inspiration for the students and teachers have get form this programme. The programme go through the following way. First day of 11th December is for the teachers training. We learn form this workshop Science , Math, Art& creativity , Geography

Math Yes We Can

Implementation of ‘Math Yes We Can’ Programme in Ushatai Lokhande Charitable Trust Schools Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Kawthe Malkapur and Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Wablewadi The ‘Math Yes We Can’ program implements the workbook “The Language of Mathematics” written by Dr, Rahael Koshy Jalan, Founder Eagles of Tomorrow, Canada. This program was first successfully implemented in Canada and South Africa. Inspired by the success in these countries it was implemented in India in 2016. The “Math Yes We Can” program is designed to upgrade the math skills of students enrolled in high school. The program targets students in grades 8, 9, 10 and 11,

Advocacy in support of ‘School for Justice’

SI Poona held an Advocacy Programme  on 15th April 2017 jointly with the University Women’s Association, Pune. A presentation   on   the “SCHOOL FOR JUSTICE” was made by Ghazala Shaikh  of  “Free a Girl Movement “ which is supported by Dutch Soroptimists.This is a worldwide initiative which aims to fight against human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of minors as well as others. The idea of starting a Law School for survivors of forced trafficking was floated by a Soroptimist club in the Netherlands. These girls then would fight their own legal battles and help others of their community. A member

Fundraiser for Girl ChildEducation

An audiovisual show on the life and songs of the noted singer of yesteryears, Ms. Geeta Dutt was presented by Mr. Vishwas Kale. It was a nostalgic evening of haunting and ever popular melodies showcased with their film history.  The venue was the University Women’s Association hall, at Pune. The show was highly appreciated by the audience and a substantial   amount was raised for our Education sponsorship project named ‘Let me Bloom’

REA (stands for Rejuvenate, Empower and Advocate) These are mental and physical health projects focussing on sessions on yoga, soft skills, coaching, legal awareness.

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Sustaining Mental Well Being

Started: May 2021 Why? Mental health is one of the most critical areas that defines our sense of overall well-being. Unlike other physical illnesses, this is often more “invisible” and is often a taboo to acknowledge and discuss..In India, there are 3,16,95,958 cases reported. Many more are unreported . Women suffer more from this then men. There is a need to build awareness around this and provide a supportive eco-system to handle this. What? SI Poona organized a series of Awareness Building Workshops on Mental Well-being both from a generic perspective plus from COVID impact.This was done in collaboration with

COVID Relief

Started: April 2021 Lending a Hand Why? The second wave of COVID pandemic impacted India hugely. Due to Lockdown, economic activities were highly curtailed. Underprivileged communities especially women and children were impacted the most. What? SI Poona provided Financial Support plus Food and Health support during the COVID Pandemic. Food grains, lentils, oil, sugar, onions and other essentials were distributed in two slum localities in Pune. The recipients were mostly women, wives of daily wage construction workers who have lost their jobs as a result of the countrywide lockdown in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis. SI Pune members also

Fistulf of Grain

Food Security Instilling values of Sharing and Caring Initially SI Poona started the project with indivdual contributons from members. Grains and sugar were bought by members and the collection was donated to old age home. Later cash collected from members was used to buy pulses and sugar and donated to an orphanage in Sangise village. In April 2017, SI Poona started the NASI project "Fistful of Grain" at the Kalmadi High School in Aundh Pune, with 90 school children from Class 5th and 6th. Cloth bags, specially prepared for the project, were given to the children. This initiative aims at

Girl Child Safety

Girl Child Empowerment & Safety Toolkit Towards a brighter future for Women..! A workshop on 'Safety & Empowerment' was conducted for tribal girl children in Plaghar district of Maharashtra. The purpose was to make girls understand safety and empowerment issues and involve them in their own protection and devise personal strategies to deal with violence against them. The workshop covered elements of self defence, cyber safety, awareness building and advocacy. This is part of an ongoing 2 year project which aims to cover social workers, teacher, parents and many more girl children. This Project Addresses UN SDG GOAL

Workshop on Menstruation and Hygiene

The Workshop on Menstruation and Hygiene was conducted by Ranjana Taskar with Anjana Mitra and Hazeka H Ginwala as attendees for the children of a corporate CSR group. The students consisted of both boys and girls, mostly between the age group of 17-21. Three academic year batches attended the workshop, with a total of 90+ students present. The workshop began with the display of a handbook on menstruation, followed by a PPT presentation prepared by Ranjana Taskar. The presentation consisted of 7 slides that explained the menstruation cycle, the monthly calendar of a girl’s cycle, the emotional and physical changes

Health Awareness Medical Camp

Halthcare Small steps towards a Healthy World..! SI Poona conducts ongoing Awareness programmes on 'Anemia' prevention of rural women and young girls. Haemoglobin testing is carried out for them along with Pap smear testin collaboration with FPAI (Family Planning Association of India). Medical checkups are done for school children. The very recent conducted was health awareness cum medical camp at Ambavet - a small village on the outskirts of Pune, largely inhabited by a backward, illiterate gypsy community. 29 children in the age group of 1 to 12 years and 13 adults were benefitted. Blood tets and HB counts showed

Seminar on Mental Health

SI Poona, conducted a seminar on ‘Enhancing the Mental well being of Women and Girl children’ as part of its Girl Child protection Initiative, by addressing issues of obesity and child sexual abuse. Sexual abuse of children has been on a rise and so is physical violence. Children who are sexually abused experience several mental health issues and this affects their studies or work, if employed. Obesity too, is a silent killer that can cause unwarranted diseases, stress and depression. The speakers were experts in the respective fields. Dr. Jayashree Todkar, renowned bariatric surgeon spoke about the importance of a

World Yoga Day

SI Club of Poona celebrated World Yoga Day with a talk by Mr. Bhinde, a Yoga teacher who has been practising Yoga for the past 30 years. He stressed the need to practise Yoga, which can help rid us of several ailments.Young Geeta, who has been learning Yoga since she was ten,demonstrated some simple asanas, particularly for senior citizens, which are not very strenuous and can be done every day.

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Health Awareness Medical Camp

Halthcare Small steps towards a Healthy World..! SI Poona conducts ongoing Awareness programmes on 'Anemia' prevention of rural women and young girls. Haemoglobin testing is carried out for them along with Pap smear testin collaboration with FPAI (Family Planning Association of India). Medical checkups are done for school children. The very recent conducted was health awareness cum medical camp at Ambavet - a small village on the outskirts of Pune, largely inhabited by a backward, illiterate gypsy community. 29 children in the age group of 1 to 12 years and 13 adults were benefitted. Blood tets and HB counts showed

Charter ceremony of SI Club of Srinagar (Kashmir)

One of our members, Anu Wakhlu took the initiative to introduce Sorptimism in Srinagar. As a result, on 19th Aug 2023, the first ever SI Club of Srinagar (Kashmir), saw the light of the day. The venue chosen was the College of Education, Srinagar. The Charter ceremony was conducted by SIGBI President Catherine Cottridge, who flew down from UK, to grace the occasion. The chief guest for the Installation ceremony was Prof. Nilofer Khan, Vice Chancellor of Kashmir University, who attended the Charter ceremony online. She later joined the members for lunch; SI Srinagar was further honoured by presence of