Hi everyone,
My name is AK Malepati,and I am currently a high school student in Atlanta, GA. I created this foundation to help young girls in India pursue their passions in the sports and the arts. Here is some information about my campaign.
My Story: Ever since I was younger, I've always had a passion for playing sports. Throughout the time I was in elementary and middle school, I've watched movies like Chak De India and Bend it Like Beckham (all movies about the struggles that many female athletes in India face). It never truly occurred to me that many young girls in India face a lot of obstacles when trying to play a sport and participate in the arts- until I saw that the hardships that the Indian women's Ice hockey team faces by not having enough equipment, and the Indian women's cricket team not receiving the same amount of recognition as the men's cricket team. Being an athlete myself, I realized that it was my job to help these underprivileged girls by providing them the sports equipment and art supplies necessary to succeed.
My Project: My aim is to provide sports equipment and art supplies to young girls in rural India.
Why it Matters: This project will help promote gender equality in India. Many young boys are seen as superior to their women counterparts. They are able to play sports and practice the arts with more ease than young girls are. By providing these young girls with the means to practice sports and the arts, they can gain the support that they deserve, and we can help foster a new generation of female athletes and artists.
My budget: With each set of sports equipment and art supplies costing approximately $11-$12, with 10,000 dollars we should be able to buy around 850 sets for 850 girls in India. This equipment will be bought on Amazon India (to avoid shipping costs), and shipped to individual girls schools to ensure that they primarily go out to girls. I will also be traveling to India personally every year to distribute the equipment and supplies. Furthermore, the additional money ($750) left over will be used to ship used equipment from the United States to India.
How you can Help:
- Donate money- All proceeds go to creating a "Pink Package" (sports equipment and arts supplies)
- Donate any unused/used sports equipment and art supplies- These will be shipped to girl's schools in India
- Spread the word!- This helps more people become aware, and donate
How Pink Packages will be distributed: I will directly ship to girls schools to ensure that only girls use them, or when I travel to India I will distribute them personally. Prior to ordering, I will contact the schools and ask them how many girls are in their school and their preferences of equipment or supplies. Each school in rural areas will have no more than 100 girls.
Follow @pinkpackageproject on instagram for more information.
