EVENTS
Diwali Mela
On its first ever festival of lights, Team uP decided to light uP the lives of the people at the slum.
Diwali, 2019, has been one of the most memorable times at Project uP. We set uP a Diwali Mela at our site in Delhi Cantonment. The day was full of smiles on the faces of the little ones, as they were busy winning prizes, switching between throwing hoopla rings, building pyramids out glasses, or placing the bindi correctly on a face painting.
The children had such a great time, they were brimming with joy, and to see them that happy was extremely overwhelming.
Project uP’s goal has always been to teach children and make them smile, but the fact that it has become a two way road- in the sense that whenever we come back from the sites, we do with wide smiles on our faces, and we always learn something new, is what fills us with gratitude.
A few days prior to the mela, we had started a Diwali Donation Drive, with the help of which we were able to collect over 150 gifts, which were later distributed amongst the children as prizes for the games they won.
Sticking to our aim of lighting uP their lives, we also distributed decorated and distributed diyas, in order to make sure that every household in the community is able to ignite the flame of hope and prosperity.
Umang
Back in the December of 2019, St.Marks School, Meera Bagh, hosted Umang, an event organised solely for children who aren’t privileged enough to otherwise attend school and thus, be a part of such events.
The day started with all the children waking uP early in the morning, getting ready, putting on the best pair of clothes they had, getting on the bus, and requesting us to play all of their favourite rhymes. To watch them sing and dance along to the rhymes was a sight of sheer joy we had never seen before. That moment in itself was one of the most overwhelming ones at uP.
When the event started, they were a little hesitant to leave their spots. But, it was just a matter of a few minutes; later, they were seen dancing, singing, engaging in meaningful activities like drawing and sports competitions, and at the end, their faces made it evident how big of a success Umang was, as it had achieved its sole purpose, that of making the children smile; in fact they weren’t just smiling, but brimming with joy. They were too eager to go back home and tell their parents about their day, about the friends they had made, the prizes they had won, and the gifts they had received.
Words fall short when it comes to describing how we feel to have been a part of that moment, to see each and every child just be, in such a pure and innocent sense.
Being away from their parents isn’t something usual for these children. That day, while that happened, these children showed us how much they trust us, and through their little acts, be it holding hands with us or dancing with us, they manifested the love and care they have towards us. And this is precisely why Umang 2019 will always be an exceptional experience for Team uP.
Secret Santa
Back in 2020, we put uP a post on our social media platforms in the same week as Christmas, announcing that for every share on that post, we will be donating one pack of gifts to the children at our sites! And this is how through Secret Santa, we were able to bring smiles on the faces of over a hundred kids!
