A Humble Appeal, Please Read and Support

A very happy new year and a wonderful 2011 to you all!!

Sorry about the radio silence for sometime but as you will read below, I have been a bit busy working and training.  As you may know, I moved from Mumbai to Hyderabad over a year ago and I now work with primary agricultural cooperatives, farmers and rural citizens in Andhra Pradesh, India.

One of my pastimes these last few years has been long distance running, both for fitness and leisure. I am now participating in the Atacama Crossing 2011 or AC11 in short. The AC11 is a six-day six-stage race covering nearly 250 kilometres (or nearly 160 miles). It takes place in the heart of the Atacama Desert in Chile, South America. The desert itself is 15 million years old and 50 times more arid than California’s Death Valley. The entire race will be held at least 1.6km (or 1 mile) above sea level. Daytime temperatures are expected to reach 40 degrees Celsius/104 degrees Fahrenheit, while night-time temperatures may drop to 5 degrees Celsius/41 degrees Fahrenheit. Joining me in this race are over 120 other people from 35 countries, including just one other person from India. The entire race is self-supported which means that each individual must carry his or her own gear, food and clothing for all days in a backpack. There are just checkpoints, plenty of water (at checkpoints and campsites), tents (at the campsites at the end of each stage) and medical assistance – no other outside assistance is allowed.  For more information, please visit http://www.4deserts.com/atacamacrossing/

There are over 20 charities that will be supported through AC11 and it is in this connection that I am reaching out to you all today.

I am running AC11 to support a charity for abandoned children and orphans called the Nethaji Mercy Home, situated at Chennai in India. This charity was started by a gentleman, Mr. A Muthukumar and his wife and is a sanctuary for several children who are either orphans or abandoned by their parents.

The Nethaji Mercy Home is intended to nurture, protect and care for destitute children who are left in the streets and also children from poor and broken families. It promotes the total development of children through loving care in a homely atmosphere with adequate nutrition and healthy social interaction and education for all children till they are mature and old enough to venture out independently. For more information, please visit http://www.nethajimercyhome.org/

I humbly request you all to contribute as much as you graciously can to support the stellar service and work that Muthu and his team are engaged in. As you will all appreciate, the children need food, shelter, clothing and medical care. There are also expenses for various items including school supplies, personal hygiene and many other miscellaneous items required for the day-to-day operation of the orphanage.

Contributions can be made by Crossed Cheque or Crossed Demand Draft favouring the Nethaji Mercy Home, payable at Chennai. Please send any cheques or drafts to:

Nethaji Mercy Home
No. 12, Pandithurai Street
Kamarajpuram
Velacherry, Chennai 600042
Tamil Nadu
INDIA

If you prefer to transfer funds by wire, details are given below.  Please forward this link/post to anyone you believe would be happy to contribute to this charitable venture.

Thank you for your patient reading and also thank you very much in anticipation of your kindness and generosity. Your assistance is much appreciated.

God bless you all
Sumanth Cidambi

PS: Bank details as below.

For money transfers effected from India, please route to:
Indian Bank, Chennai, INDIA
Swift Code: IDIBINBBTSY
IFSC Code: IDIB000V013
Account Number: 474986058
Account Type: (Current Account)
Account Holder Name: Nethaji Mercy Home

For money transfers effected from the United States, please route through:
Wachovia Bank (now Wells Fargo), New York, United States of America
SWIFT Code: PNBPUS3N
Account Number: 2000191062434
FOR ONWARD CREDIT TO:
Indian Bank, Chennai, INDIA
Swift Code: IDIBINBBTSY
IFSC Code: IDIB000V013
Account Number: 474986058
Account Type: (Current Account)
Account Holder Name: Nethaji Mercy Home

Alternatively when transferring money from the United States of America, you can use:
Standard Chartered Bank (New York)
SWIFT Code: SCBLUS33
Account Number: 3582021188001
FOR ONWARD CREDIT TO:
Indian Bank, Chennai, INDIA
Swift Code: IDIBINBBTSY
IFSC Code: IDIB000V013
Account Number: 474986058
Account Type: (Current Account)
Account Holder Name: Nethaji Mercy Home

For money transfers effected from the United Kingdom/England, please route through:
National Westminster Bank (London)
SWIFT Code: NWBKGB2L
Account Number: 440/02/04442903
FOR ONWARD CREDIT TO:
Indian Bank, Chennai, INDIA
Swift Code: IDIBINBBTSY
IFSC Code: IDIB000V013
Account Number: 474986058
Account Type: (Current Account)
Account Holder Name: Nethaji Mercy Home

Alternatively, when transferring money from the United Kingdom/England, you can use
Standard Chartered Bank (London)
SWIFT Code: SCBLGB2L
Account Number: 0170885820
FOR ONWARD CREDIT TO:
Indian Bank, Chennai, INDIA
Swift Code: IDIBINBBTSY
IFSC Code: IDIB000V013
Account Number: 474986058
Account Type: (Current Account)
Account Holder Name: Nethaji Mercy Home