How I Discovered My Love for Giving

Last summer, I traveled to a small village in India to donate ₹100,000 raised through my nonprofit to a struggling local school. I was expecting to hand over the check, buy the kids a treat, maybe take a few photos and leave feeling satisfied. What I didn’t expect was to be called “anna”(older brother) by a hundred kids who changed how I see giving back forever.

Before deciding to donate, I went to see the school a few weeks in advance to see how it was and meet some of the kids. It wasn’t much by typical standards. The walls were cracked, the paint was faded, and kids were sitting on the floors to learn. But the energy was palpable. Kids of all ages ran up to me to say hi, eyes wide at the sight of a foreigner. Many were nervous to talk to me, but became much more comfortable once they realized I spoke Tamil as well. I returned to the school a few weeks later, this time with a check for ₹100,000 and ice cream for all of the kids.

The kids recognized me from the last visit, running up to me calling me “Anna”. There was something humbling about that word. Anna. Not “sir" or “guest”, but older brother. Before they had even realized that I was donating to help them, I had become something to them in those few moments. The connection I had created with them made me feel much more responsible for their wellbeing. 

As part of the visit, we bought all of the kids a cup of ice cream. It may seem like a simple gesture, but many of the kids came from unfortunate financial backgrounds where treats like ice cream were few and far between. I’ll never forget the scene: kids were laughing, running around barefoot, trying to cut in line while pretending they hadn’t already gotten their first cup. It was chaos in the best possible way. The boys pulled me to the side, yelling excitedly about soccer. They were obsessed: debating who was the better player and calling each other by Messi and Ronaldo’s names. In that time, we weren’t donor and recipients, we were brothers.

Seeing the personal impact of giving lit a fire in me that will never go out. It inspired me to keep helping the disadvantaged who nobody else will fight for. You don’t need a huge organization or a crazy amount of money to make a difference. Sometimes all it takes is some ice cream, a soccer ball, and the willingness to be someone’s Anna.