From The President’s Desk

Parvati Climbing, Marathon, Special Dance... Busy Feb

The highlight of February was the annual interschool Parvati Hill Climbing contest, which we have been organising since 2009. Every year there are new challenges, which we have learned to overcome and march ahead successfully. This year, 20 schools participated in the event. There was a good representation of Autistic Friends. It gives me great pleasure to see how enthusiastically the special friends participate in this competition. It is an even greater pleasure to watch their faces when the winners’ names are called out and they go to receive their awards. In a first, we presented an award to a 70-year-old participant (the eldest participant) from Sadhana Village who completed the climb. Nitor Infotech has been sponsoring this event for many years now. Sahyadri Trekkers sponsored the participants from the Autism sector. Volunteers from Indira College, Sahyadri Trekkers and Nitor InfoTech helped us conduct this competition smoothly. I thank everyone involved in facilitating the smooth conduct of the event, especially my colleagues. We are grateful to each one of them.

Pink Studio Dance Fitness Hub Group conducted a dance session on February 15. It was a great experience for our Friends. Dance is an integral part of their life at Navkshitij and they just love it.

We had the monthly Traffic Awareness Program on February 19. A small contribution from our side. This month, our Friends participated in a marathon organised by Lokmat, the daily newspaper, on February 16. Our Friends loved the charged atmosphere and the interaction with mainstream society.

On February 5, we had a celebration for our February-born Friends. The parents had organised a South Indian menu for the party. So it was a dosa, uttapa and medu vada party this time.

Mr. Kolhe, a senior executive from the Irrigation Department, celebrated the birthday of his twin daughters, at Marunji, on February 15. He has been celebrating the girls’ birthday with our Friends for the past three years.

We are now looking forward to the Annual Siblings Conference, which has been scheduled for March 14.

Upcoming Happenings

• March 10 : Holi
• March 11: Dhulwad & Rangpanchami
• March 14: Sibling Meeting
• March 25: Gudi Padva
• March 28: Ghoradeshwar Trek

Monthly events

• February 5 : Parvati Climbing Competition
• February 12: Traffic Awareness Programme
• February 21: Mahashivratri

Thank you from Navkshitij to

• Mrs. Meenal Sathe
• Mr. Sharad Sathe
• Mr. Nachiketas Bhatkar
• Fiserv India Pvt. Ltd.
• Nitor Infotech Pvt. Ltd
• Ms. Padma V. Iyyer
• Bank of Maharashtra Retired Employees Welfare Organization
• Parijat Gaurav
• Rahul Amurtkar
• Mr. Nitin Patel
• Mr. Ajit Salavi
• Mr. Pravin Kolhe
• Mr. Bhuvan Mahajan
• Mr. C. E. Potnis
• Mr. Rajendra Mehrotra
• Ms Anita Deepak Chhibba

Navkshitij now needs

• LED TV (50") – Approximate cost Rs 30,000
• 4 Table Fans – Approximate cost Rs. 6,000
• 1 Colour Printer – Approximate cost Rs 10,000
• 50 Kg Sugar
• 4x15 litres Groundnut Oil
• 24 LED Bulbs

(A monthly newsletter published since April 2012 by Dr. Neelima Desai and edited by Kanaka Cadambi on behalf of Navkshitij)