Shiv Mandir of Atlanta Annual Fund Raising Dinner
December 12, 2104 was a magical night in Atlanta, GA. Shiv
Mandir of Atlanta Performed its Annual Fund Raising Dinner at
Holiday Inn on Holcomb Bridge Road. Nita Sardana, Shiv Mandir
board member, along with numerous volunteers coordinated this
unique and exciting fundraiser in which about 300 people
participated. This event started with a prayer from Pandit Gyan
Praksh Ji of Shiv Mandir, silent auction, followed by an
excellent musical program, and then dinner. This fundraising
dinner was organized to benefit the construction of Shiv Mandir.
The day of the fund raising dinner started on a very positive
note. Al the Auction items that were donated by the Atlanta
community were displayed beautifully in the hall, where eager
guest were able to bid on their favorite items. Mr. Girish Modi
who is a philanthropist, and revived his passion for music,
photography, videography contributed a major amount even before
the program started. Mr. Jaydev Jani and Ms. Seema Jain were the
emcees for the program. They did an amazing job keeping in mind
the goals of the Shiv Mandir.
Our very own Shyam Gupta also did an outstanding job with the
Audio Visual portion of the program. Having 3 huge Screens to
display the entire program allowed the guest not to miss a
moment of it.
This magical evening included musical entertainment by Atlanta’s
very own renowned Singer Aarti Pandya MD. Aarti has performed
with artists such as Ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali, Sarangi Master
Ustad Sultan Khan, Tabla great Ustad Tari Khan, Playback singer
Kumar Sanu, Anup Jalhota and legendary singer Manna Dey. Her
voice mesmerized the entire audience that the program lasted
till 1:30 AM. Along with Aarti, Vishal Vaid also entertained the
audience with his melodious voice.
Distinguished guest, Ambassador Ajit Kumar, Consul General of
India shared his thoughts on the importance of temples.
Sunny Duddilla, Chairman of Shiv Mandir Atlanta said that Today
I stand here in pride because of you and countless other
volunteers who have over the years readily offered their
services to Shiv Mandir. He also stated that “Because of the
volunteers, donors, priests, and the community, the actual
physical building of our Shiv Mandir is not a distant dream any
more…now it is just around the corner”. The construction of the
temple has started. All of us need to work together to make this
happen. We are reaching out to our membership and the community
to offer you the chance to be a vital part of Shiv Mandir’s
construction and to partner with Shiv Mandir in this endeavor
Nita Sardana, the coordinator of the 2014 Shiv Mandir’s fund
raising dinner shared her experience with Hinduism, importance
of association with temples, and how thankful she was to be a
part of the Shiv Mandir. She also thanked Dr. Aarti Pandya and
her group…for not only performing tonight but also becoming a
part of Shiv Mandir. Now Shiv Mandir can proudly claim that we
have an acclaimed singer in our Parivar
Ram Shahani, President of Shiv Mandir was thankful for the
encouragement Shiv Mandir of Atlanta has received from many
organizations and individuals so far. The passion these
organizations and individual volunteers have shown in serving
the temple is a true inspiration to all of us. Their generosity,
zeal, and ever-smiling faces must be really contagious as I see
more and more motivated people joining the movement. Ram Shahani
also mentioned that “With your energy and Shivji’s blessings,
this magnificent temple will be built soon”.
The night ended with Shiv Mandir achieving and exceeding its
goals for the fundraiser. Shiv Mandir of Atlanta is overwhelmed
with the participation, contribution, and the commitment of the
participants to be a vital part of the Mandir’s construction and
to partner with Shiv Mandir in this historical endeavor.
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