Hey All,We are in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A few of us went out to the city while the rest of us took a much needed shower!!! Now we are at the airport getting ready to board for our flight to Ahmedabad, India. Kuala Lampur is very hospitable and friendly. The city is very green and lush. It is extremely humid out here!!! We are just discussing how beautiful the local people are here.We will soon be in Ahmedabad with Manav Sadhna. Thanks for being a part of our journey.Sukh [and Lanie and Kristeen]PS Lanie and Kristeen are flattering me right now. They definetely need sleep!!!

So after a 14 hour flight, we have finally landed in the International Airport of Taiwan. A bunch of us have been sneaking around the airport trying to escape, but they won't let us out of the airport. We figure we would honestly say that we visited Taiwan only after breathing its fresh outdoor air. After a few trys we were thwarted by the authorities. Be the Cause definetely leaves a mark everywhere we go.Instead we snuck into a VIP lounge to get some free internet access. We love international travel!!!We are all doing good. Some of us jetlagged, some of us ready for the next leg of the journey, but all of us ready to do something good with our lives. Everyone is healthy.Our flight to Kaula Lampur boards in a few minutes. We stay there for about 7 hours before making our way to Ahmedabad, India. More later!Life is good.Sukh and SupunBe the Cause Tiawan Division :)

On December 17th, sixteen of us will embark on a 2 1/2 week journey to discover India. We go to understand ourselves and to witness the capability of our collective humanity. We will be volunteering at an organization called Manav Sadhna, which literally translated from Sanskrit means: Service to Humanity. Hopefully the journey will lead us inward. What Manav Sadhna does to its community is virtually impossible. Housed at the Mahatma Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, they coordinate hundreds of projects and provide relief to thousands of people. Their projects include Education, Health, Welfare for Women, Earthquake Rehabilitation and even a theatrical production that allowed children from the slums to perform all over the world. They do this with so much humility that it becomes difficult to fathom that it even happens at all. With Gandhian principles in mind, I guess somehow, someway, the love from Manav Sadhna finds a way to make it all come together.One week before we depart, we got together to ask ourselves what it all means. One thing is apparant, our original plans of service have already been thwarted. We thought we were going to do service for Manav Sadhna, instead they are already doing service for us. They have lined up many projects and many opportunites for us to grow and learn in the coming weeks. By taking time to prepare for our trip, they are showing us that service doesn't begin when you land in another country, it can begin in any moment, as long as we allow our minds and hearts to remain open. Most of us are still unsure of what is in store. Partly because with any adventure you can never know the journey that lies ahead, but mostly because our friend Nirali, who is organizing our activities there, is keeping everything a secret. :) (although me and Bharti have had a sneak peak at what's coming)From what we know so far, there will be a lot of love, a lot of laughter, and a lot of work!!!We will keep this blog updated with news, information, and inights as they become apparant to us. For more information on our itenirary visit our wiki page:http://www.bethecause.org/wiki/index.php?title=India_Plans-- Read about last year's trip to South Africa-- ... and see the pictures

On Saturday, June 18th, the Baha'is of Aliso Viejo presented Be the Cause with an award for its work on uniting individuals in the common goal of service. It was a most awkward feeling.I stood with a crystal award in my hand, smiling like a little boy at the podium. Faces stared back at me waiting for a recollection of our four year journey. But that did not happen. Instead, I stated as proudly as I could that none of this had anything to do with us.The true recipient of this award was neither an organization, nor an individual, but rather a silent emotion that moves us all to action. It is that compassion within us that forces us to create new organizations, inspires us to help others and calls us back to our true nature. Compassion exists in all of us.So we accepted the award, not only on behalf of Be the Cause volunteers, but also on behalf of everyone in that room, and everyone reading this newsletter. Thank you to all of you for having Compassion in your hearts and to the Baha'is for their continued dedication to make the world a better place.May you and I truly unite in our love for humanity and in our compassion for each other.See pictures from the eventSukh

Hello All,Looks like BTC is getting an award for our work in uniting individuals and organizations in the goal of service. Sounds like BTC to me!For all those local to Aliso Viejo, California, it would be great if you can attend so that we can receive this award as a community.Congratulations to all of you for making this happen. Many times I am asked for the secret of our success, to me it has always been as simple as a four letter word: LOVE. In truth, all we really are is just a network of individuals who care deeply enough about the planet to make a difference.LOVE,SukhBIG THANKS to the Baha'i community for continuing to highlight the work of the many organizations that are doing amazing work. -----Original Message-----To: Sukh - Be The CauseSubject: Models of Unity Award Baha’i Faith of Aliso ViejoP.O. Box 2157, Laguna Hills, CA 92654-2157May 5, 2005Dear Sukh:As you may know, Be The Cause was recently nominated to receive a "Models of Unity" award. I am pleased to inform you that have been selected to receive this award, and I would like to invite you to attend the 8th Annual Models of Unity Award Ceremony hosted by the Baha'is of Aliso Viejo on June 18, 2005, where your organization will be honored for its uniting individuals and organizations in the common goal of service.A “Model of Unity” is defined as any successful effort, whether intentional or not, which demonstrates the process of inter-group unity. Awardees include individuals, groups, or organizations. Efforts to bring people together are aimed at a neighborhood or an entire group, city or region. Past awardees include city and county legislators, community, religious and business leaders, as well as outstanding individuals.Baha’is are concerned about the prominence of publicity about inter-group conflict and are convinced that examples of inter-group harmony, peaceful coexistence and unity are common, yet less well known. The Models of Unity awards project was conceived as a small step in redressing this imbalance. We would like to invite you to accept the award at the Models of Unity Awards Ceremony that will take place Saturday, June 18, 2005 from 1:00 - 3:00 PM at the Aliso Viejo Public Library. If you agree to accept this award, I will send you several invitations so that you may invite your colleagues, friends and family to the event. We will be serving light refreshments after the program which will include opening remarks, the presentation of awards, and some brief entertainment.We hope we will have the honor of your presence on June 18th. Please call me at your earliest convenience to let us know if you would like to accept this award. My home number is 949/831-8212. I look forward to hearing from you.Sincerely yours,Teri A. Knoll-BinaeiRepresenting the Baha’i Faith of Aliso Viejo

Most folks from Be the Cause know that I don't necessarily plan all my talks. But for this evening in Africa, because of the complexity of the continent, I thought it would be good to prepare something. I felt that the audience should know how poverty, women's rights, health care, HIV/AIDS, corruption, culture and education all tie in together. So at 2:00 in the afternoon when I should have been getting ready to leave, I decided to go for a walk to think about what I would say. I thought to myself, I have to talk about third-world debt and how some African countries accumulated an exuberant amount of debt through unfair practices... and how crippling it is for these countries to now repay these loans back. I thought, I have to talk about Bono from U2 and how inspiring his work with one.org is. I thought to myself, I have to talk about Be the Cause and how a simple act of kindness three years ago has rippled far out into the community.So as I'm thinking of what to say, I make a turn on my block and a woman comes to approach me. Then she turns away, and then approaches me again. She asks me "Are you busy right now?". I obviously reply that I am free, after all the event is only in a few hours. She proceeds to tell me that her husband is lying on the floor of their house and cannot get up. He has been lying there for two hours and just got back from the hospital after a heart attack a few days ago. The husband is not allowing his wife to call the paramedics.As I followed her into the house I thought to myself, anything can happen, I don't even know who these people are. In that moment, I decided that whatever belonged to me, I would give away freely to these people.Sure enough, as we walked into the bedroom, her husband lay there on the floor. I could tell he was embarrassed as the only article of clothing he wore was a pair of boxers. His wife grabbed him from one side, I from another. Struggling, we were able to place the upper half of his body on the side of the bed. We then went for his legs and somehow twisted and maneuvered until he was finally safe in his bed.As I left the house, I thought to myself, finally I have a story to tell. I walked around the block recounting the experience I had just had when the woman approached me again. This time all she said was a sincere "Thank You". She proceed to ask me if I was friends with her neighbor "Mary Ann". I knew Mary Ann and had walked with her before... it was in that moment that I realized that this experience on my block in sunny Southern California was related to the continent of Africa 9000 miles away.In Kenya, several months ago, when a few of us were volunteering at a Medical Clinic, we were asked to give a presentation on who we were and what we were going to do in Kenya. At the presentation, we made it clear that we did not have anything to offer the people of Africa, but had much more to learn. In the rural town of Mbita, Kenya, all the locals knew each other by name, they left their doors unlocked and their kids roamed the streets with no fear. Many times we would find children playing in the streets with no adult supervision.During that presentation, we confessed that in America, we did not even know the names of our neighbors.This afternoon, around my block, a neighbor now knows me. If we do not think of our neighbors as one of us, then we cannot help them. If we do not think of the people of Africa as one of us, then we cannot help them.With the words of U2: "We're one, but we're not the same. We get to carry each other. Carry each other. One".Sukh

To all those attended, participated or inspired the Evening in Africa on Saturday, from the 'depths of our being', Thank You. Michele puts the mission of our work so beautifully: "Getting more and more people inspired into service to make the world a better place. I really believe that people are essentially good. Sometimes they just need an opportunity to put their feelings into action. "I think the below comments speak for themselves. Also, be sure to check out www.one.org to fight global poverty and AIDS.***********************************From Michele:Hey Everyone!Hopefully, I'll get the chance to say this personally to each one of you, but in the meantime, I really want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your thoughtful contributions to our evening in Africa. I love doing the evenings of awareness, but I think it might be a while until I'm as emotionally invested in one as I was for this one. My focus in life was changed forever by my trip to South Africa and I wanted the people who came to this event to leave with a positive feeling about a place I really love, and I think, thanks to you all, that happened. I've gotten several emails since Saturday giving us glowing reviews. The tables were set beautifully, everyone interacted with the guests and the panel was thoughtful, articulate, and real. Most importantly, Joanne and Alka made a lot of new contacts that will be able to support them in their work. Again, I'm so proud of this event, and I didn't want any more time to pass without telling you all how much you all mean to me, and how I totally recognize that this event would never have been so successful with YOU! Enough with the mushy stuff. Now that you all know how to do this, be ready for Evening in India... To Joanne with Tias Arms:I'm very glad that this event went well. I had a lot personally invested in it. I really wanted people to come away with a good feeling about Africa. I'm really happy that you have made some new contacts. One of my friends from school, Maureen told me she is going to be doing her internship with you and a girl from South AFrica that I talked to on the phone before the event told me she met you and was going to start volunteerig with Tias Arms. That's what its all about. Getting more and more people inspired into service to make the world a better place. I really believe that people are essentially good. Sometimes they just need an opportunity to put their feelings into action. I feel very priviliedged through my association with BTC to be able to create those opportunities and it's been an absolute pleasure for Ben and I to support Tias Arms in whatever way we can. If I dont see you before, I'll definately see you on June 11th at your fundraiser. Let's hope we have many more opportunities to work together to inspire people into service. Much Respect, Michele ***********************************From Joanne Baker with Tias ArmsDear Sukh, Michele and Be the Cause, What an absolutely marvelous evening you put on Sat night. It was so heartfelt and personal. Not to mention beautifully planned and executed. I was so happy to see so many people there in response to your efforts. It was also wonderful to see your faces again and it brought back so many memories for me of our time together in S.Africa. I so admire each of you. Michele and Sukh, your presentations were very touching and thought provoking. And the panel was so appropriate in answering from a "human" stand-point, your experiences. Especially, I feel grateful on Tias Arms behalf for your continued partnering with us and for giving me the opportunity to tell folks about our focus in S.Africa. I think we made some good new contacts and I look forward to our continued growth together. Take good care and thanks for all the work you do. Warmly, Joanne***********************************From Elizabeth at African Well Fund:Michele - I want to thank you so much for inviting the African Well Fund to participate in last Saturday's event. It was a wonderful night and we met so many great people. I think you could definitely call that event a success! Only 50 RSVPs, yet you had a full house! I hope we are lucky enough to have that for our World Environment Day event in June. I hope that we can work together again someday. I've subscribed to the Be The Cause newsletter and I'm very interested in your organization as a whole. I really love your mission and have been spreading the word about you to everyone I know.Take care!Elizabeth Beech***********************************From Alka Subramanian with Power of Love: Hi Sukh, Mahsa, and Michele: Thanks for inviting me and my daughter to be a part of “An Evening in Africa”. The event was very well coordinated and I had a great time. I met with and chatted with many wonderful people. Would love to get together sometime again soon. With the power of love, Alka***********************************From JasonDear Michele, I just want to sincerely thank you from the depths of my being for the wonderful event you helped to inspire and put on. I must be completely honest when I say I was BLOWN away and riveted by the eloquence of your speech and was extremely appreciative to have you tell the story of our S. African adventure...you did a fantastic job. Its not easy speaking in public, especially when you're sick and you pulled it off with a perfect score of 10. We recognize and bow in gratitude. Kudos.In Heart & Mind,JT***********************************From GiannaHi Michele and everyone, wow...again, Michele---ya did it again and I'm so proud of u and all of us...I really loved how u spoke about the trip and all, Michele...made lots of sense and just was spoken very eloquently. Sonali, first of all...the slideshow you put together...beyond incredible...I really wanted to cry, but maybe not in front of guests at my table :) There was lots going on, so I saw pieces here and there...if some inspiring song was playing in background along with...like even some songs we heard in SA, that would've been the end of me :) Anyhoo, update!! Fantastic!!! And you were very much presenced with that slideshow. I thought of you through it. It was a full house!!! I didn't know if there'd be enuff tables! Panel was neat, so was Makhososana's dance, and just felt very festive and worthwhile...I could write more to you personally about event. Just want to include everyone in how you were missed and how your slideshow was off the hook. Hi again Michele and everyone...along with Jason, I was blown away...Michele, u also have a sense of authenticity that comes across that is very refreshing...Sukh, I liked your speaking too...and your story, plus humor oh and game show host...and just all u and Michele and team did to put event on!! Gianna :)***********************************From Farshad:... and a special thanks goes to Michele for bringing everything together for this event. Thank you for all the time and effort that you put into this event. As you all witnessed, this event was Standing Room Only. I guess we need to get a bigger facility for the next one...Congratulations to all for holding such a successful event...***********************************From Sande Hart with SARAHHi Sukh,Saturday night was informative, empowering, inspirational and a lot of fun.Thank You.***********************************Dear Great Members,Thank you so much for such a great night! I appreciate your letting me work with you all and I look forward to doing so in the future. I still hear wonderful remarks from some of my friends about the beautiful organization of the event, eloquent speakers, the panel, great food, and the drumming. Michelle, Sukh Mary Ann, Vincent, Mahsa, Farshad and everyone, you all did a great job. The Volunteers worked with such a wonderful spirit - serving and cleaning up.Thanks Farshad and Michelle for the CD. Love, Makhosazana

U2's Bono, when receiving the TED Awards, blatantly proclaimed that if African's didn't look so different from Westerners, we would have found a solution to their problems immediately. With 70% of the world’s HIV/AIDS population, and half of the world's poorest countries, Sub Saharan Africa does look very different from the rest of the world.9000 miles away, at a Compassion Cell in Orange County, volunteer Nirali makes a similar insight. "If I can care for the person next to me, with the same enthusiasm and gusto that I show for myself, then that is true selflessness". But can that kind of selflessness truly exist? With this mind always being attached to this body, is it possible to care that deeply for others? Yet, when I find a Printer-Scanner-Copier at my doorstep with nothing but a smile card, I begin to think that maybe it is happening. When countless volunteers around the world engage in senseless selfless acts of kindness without any expectation of reward, I think that maybe a better world is possible after all.... and no-one knows this better than the people of Africa. Yes, we do have to make leaps and bounds for the sake of humanity on that continent, but they have something that we can never dream of. While a few of us were in Kenya we were asked to make a presentation at a local church. We stood up in front of the audience and declared that we as westerners had nothing to offer them, but instead only had something to learn. The people of rural town Mbita, Kenya knew each other by name, by family relationship and by friendship. They left their doors unlocked and cared for each other's siblings as their own. Inside that church, we admitted that we Americans did not even know the names of our closest neighbors.As we make plans for more world changing projects, I hope we will not forget that true change must begin within. With the walk for hope coming up in September, I wonder if more people will be inspired to engage in senseless selfless acts. I wonder if I will be one of them.Oh yeah, - Manveer created the Be the Cause photo gallery. Check out all of our pictures to date!- The Houston and Los Angeles Compassion Cells, in addition to Orange County, are now monthly affairs.- Gianna and Vincent are going nuts on the on-line calendar and web content.- Michele and the rest of the SAevent team is gearing up for the Evening in Africa this Saturday! Plans for the next Evening of Awareness are already in place as well: Refugee Resettlement and Human Trafficking on June 25th. “We're oneBut we're not the sameWe get to carry each othercarry each otherOne”- U2One,Sukh :)PS Check out one.org to fight global AIDS and poverty

Aids in AfricaResponse to UCLA Symposium held on April 15th, 2005The face of the impoverished is becoming all too familiar for those that travel frequently to Sub Saharan Africa. Although each country in Africa is unique in some way, be it language, culture, geography, or current conflict status, the face of struggle is similar across poverty stricken nations. The plight of women, the level of crime, the lack of resources, and the general lack of hope is widespread. Currently over 40 million people worldwide are HIV+, 70% of them live in Sub-Saharan Africa. Almost half of the least developed countries in the world are in Sub Saharan Africa. At the Aids in Africa Symposiam held at UCLA on April 15th, 2005, Keynote Speaker Stephen Lewis did an amazing job painting the human emotion to these statistics. In one story he recalled meeting a group of HIV positive women that had built a cabbage field to sustain themselves and the orphans living with them. Mr. Lewis asked if they had enough food for themselves, they replied "Yes". He asked if they had cabbage left over to sell to the markets and they replied "Yes". He asked if they had money left over after living expenses, and they again replied "Yes". Mr. Lewis then asked what they did with the money that remained. Puzzled, the women responded matter-of-factly that they used the money to pay for the coffins for all the people that were dying around them. Other incidents are all too common to travelers in developing countries. Local Mothers and Fathers asking for assistance from the ‘developed’ man for their dying children, knowing quite well that drugs are plentiful in the ‘developed’ man's country... and knowing quite well that the ‘developed’ man has the power to save their children. Everything is connected to poverty:A person diagnosed with HIV in the developed world may not even notice any symptoms of AIDS until 10 years after contracting the virus because of the availability of cheaper drugs and state of the art health facilities. In the developing world, however, someone infected with HIV may only live another 6 to 10 years because of the rapid progression of AIDS due to lack of nutrition, lack of drugs, and lack of general health care.Everything is connected to poverty. A lack of drugs, lack of trained professionals, lack of food and safe water, lack of infrastructure, missing education facilities, corruption, unsafe traditional/cultural practices are all causal elements of an impoverished nation. Even education is hindered in the developing world. Second Keynote speaker Laurie Garrett, spoke about nurses that got educated in Africa. Immediately after getting educated they moved to the UK to getter better salaries. South Africa has an interesting program where they have reduced the number of years it takes to graduate from med school but now students are also forced to work in South Africa for at least one year after completion. It helps keep the talent in house. So what keeps a country poor:Many causal relationships have been made to the current economic situation in Sub Saharan Africa. In the past underdeveloped countries have been hurt by their unique situations: high malaria prone regions, drought prone regions, isloated in geography that limit trade, and a lack of natural resources. Colonialism which author Arundhati Roy refers to as the “rape” of the developing world has been largely blamed for the historical lack of economic resources and psychological dependency in sub Saharan Africa. Current payments on ill borrowed long-term debt by long-past regimes also takes significant resources away from the countries development initiatives. See neocolonialism. Money is not the answer:One of the speakers made an amazing comment on how funding for AIDS could cripple Africa. If we start throwing large money at this problem, the limited skilled labor force in Africa will start focusing their attention on how they can receive a portion of the AIDS pie and neglect all the other things are important in that continent (education, malaria, etc). An analogy was made to local health workers in the US that get extensive training on bio-terrorism but neglect other very important health matters. Organizations working on AIDS relief were advised to focus on building an infrastructure that could be used for AIDS relief, as well as everything else that is important to healthy community. AIDS is not the problem:Second Keynote Speaker Laurie Garrett mentioned how the world community has actually helped further the stigma associated with AIDS. She stated that because we continue to refer to AIDS as this huge scary problem, people become more afraid to discuss it and to get tested for it. Think inside the box!Many times the western world comes with outside approaches to Africa's local problems. In many cases these solutions do not apply. What we experienced in Kenya was that many folks would approach us for some form of financial assistance. The western world has bred this mentality with the advent of well-intentioned non-profit organizations and faith-based groups. Wanting to help in some way, these groups come and offer short term assistance that in turn immobilize the local community and encourage dependency on others. In other cases, some of the implemented programs are not entirely thought out. An increase in rape was noticed at refugee camps and after further investigation it was revealed that this would happen when women would go to defecate or to collect wood. Alterations of the refugee camp to keep latrines nearby and have wood brought to the campsites have reduced this problem. Similarily, micro credit programs that require women to sell small items at local markets, need to consider the possibility that women could possibly get raped along the way. Laurie Garrett mentioned that a majority of all the grant applications being sent to the United Nations Global Aids Fund are being written by Western Med Students, who have never even stepped foot in Africa. However, if you took the handful of existing grant writers in Africa to start sending in applications to the Global Aids fund then all their existing programs for Malaria, TB, etc. would dwindle away. Creative solutions will be necessary to deal with current problems. Many believe that the only way to help is to empower, support and nurture the local community to lead their own efforts. Collaboration:Many speakers talked about how 'collaboration' or better put 'cooperation' would have to be strengthened in order for significant changes to be made with the AIDS crisis. At the conference they had representatives from Pharmaceutical Companies and Mining Companies speaking alongside Professors, Artists, Doctors, Government officials, CEOs, United Nations Organizations and of course grassroots change makers. Keynote speaker Stephen Lewis mentioned a recent incident where the South African Health Minister defended a billboard advertisement that stated "vitamins and nutrition therapy alone could prevent AIDS-related deaths". The amazing thing about this incident is that the three of the larger development organizations actually collaborated on a written statement to condemn the advertisement. Mr. Lewis remarked that even the collaboration on the letter was a step in the right direction for these organizations. The advertisements have subsequently been removed from circulation. Corporations:Although there were a few representatives from the business world, many attendees expressed their desire to see more support from the corporations at these conferences. Mr. Michael Steinberg, former CEO of Macy's West and Honorary Chair of the event recalled how many invitations they had sent to the business community and what little response they had received in return. Two speakers however did show up from the corporate world. A pharmaceutical company representative talked about what they were doing in Tanzania, and a mining company talked about how they are working on providing relief to individuals who were once laid off from the mines because of changes in the industry. The mining company actually presented a business case on how it made sense to the corporation to help people who were infected with HIV as opposed to laying them off. I didn’t catch the economics from the quick slide show but I believe the business case is valid only because of the strict controls that are placed by the government of that specific country. One speaker mentioned how much business Coka Cola was reaping in Africa and how little they were doing to build infrastructure or give back. When the three of us were in Nairobi, Kenya, we did notice that Coke was more readily available than food or water. An another side note, Coke is recently being blasted in India for using contaminated water in their processing. The Big Picture:Ultimately, the conference didn't provide any practical solutions either. They too started the event stating that they could not give us a magic bullet that would fix this. Many folks said that collaboration among NGOs, business, politicians, and academia was all going to be needed to make this work. During one workshop a few ballet dancers came out and did a theatrical representation of AIDS in Africa. It was mind blowing. It had several narrators and many people speaking to the audience at once... it gave us a glimpse into how many players there are in Africa and how all their messages and intentions are a little different. The Big Solutions - Erasing World Debt: Ultimately if we look at reducing the debt to the third world countries we also have to look at how these countries will utilize the funds that remain. Countries that are still struggling with internal conflicts may continue to prioritize military spending above health and education concerns. In addition, this reduction of debts owed to the developing world will ultimately result in a change of lifestyle for all of us. What will this mean to the over 3 trillion that the US currently owes in debt? How will this effect State of California budgets and ultimately how we prioritize our own domestic spending? Are you and I ready to make changes in our own personal lives?One speaker mentioned how infectious diseases was becoming a security issue for the United States so that we can protect our troops and ourselves from the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Although the reasons are selfish, the money going to the military budget could end up being used towards innovative solutions.The Big Solutions – G7 to contribute 0.7% of economy into Foreign Aid:If developed countries do eventually contribute the agreed upon 0.7% of their economy to foreign aid, we will need to closely scrutinize the channels in which these funds are distributed. Historically we have seen Foreign Aid used as a weapon to keep countries ideologically consistent with the donor countries beliefs. The money can be used as a form of control and can further the destructive mentality that the benefiting country needs the Western World to help it achieve its goals. Be the Change:Bono, after receiving a recent TED prize, spoke immediately on how Africans, because they are black and look different from the rest of the developed world, are ignored. He stated that if the people of Africa contained skins of whiter color, the global community would immediately rise to the challenge of support. It seems that we do separate the world into categories of 'us' and 'them'. Until we can break through these barriers in our own minds, empowering our brothers and sisters will continue to be a difficult challenge. One thing I immediately noticed at the conference is that the 'blacks' were sitting next to one another and the 'whites' were sitting next to themselves. I hope that even we, the attendees of an 'AIDS in Africa' symposium, are taking the challenge of looking within to see how we continue to separate ourselves from others. I am also reminded of a quote by a friend who spoke about nuclear disarmament. He stated that if you took all the weapons away from earth, humanity would find another way to kill themselves. If we took away poverty from the world, would we somehow recreate it because the greed that caused it in the first place still exists. Is true human transformation measured by how much economic stability there is in the world, and is there any other way to measure how much compassion exists in the world. It seems that if we do not change the mentality of human nature, then we are doomed to continue this struggle between the haves and the have nots. The story of the Exxon Mobil CEO receiving $30M USD is more than a story of inequity. If greed was left to its own device, entire nations would continue to be crippled by the economic strength of the fortunate few. If we are unable to curb the mentality of the people, to alter our consumerism, to work through our addictions, then the work we do will be largely superficial. New governance models will be needed to ensure that greed does not recreate global poverty.If we can somehow help people to realize that helping others is good for everyone, and that there is great reward in giving selflessly, then maybe we can create the world that we are all after. A world that is beyond global poverty and where there is equality of opportunity for all. Sukh

A few weeks ago, Stacey and I spent 10 days at a silent retreat doing what most call 'meditation'. The retreat had over 100 participants, all whom had decided to observe how their own thoughts shape their lives, and ultimately shape the entire planet.During my periods of silence, my thoughts passed over many of the people that I have been fortunate enough to know. I recognized how beautiful and unique each individual is. Some people give the warmest hugs, others have the kindest hearts, and some have unending energy to help others. For some their strength comes from their calmness, others make us laugh, and some just make us smile :)I hope to gather all these good qualities that I notice, incorporate them into my life and have them transform who I am. In return, I hope to offer these same good qualities back to everyone I know, so that everyone can see how truly great we all are. A thought arose wondering if there was anything original that I had to offer. Thankfully, I found nothing. Every gift that I have to give already exists. But reflection is not only about positive thoughts; it is about understanding reality as it exists. As beautiful as the planets, stars and oceans are, sometimes Tsunamis occur. As beautiful as our lives are, sometimes storms naturally occur. I felt ashamed for choices I had made for my own self benefit that in-turn had harmed others. In the Jain tradition, once a year after the holiday of 'Paryushana' they practice 'Micchami Dukkadum' that seeks forgiveness. I apologize to the entire universe, and everything in it, for any harm that I may have caused other beings, intentionally or unintentionally.In a following thought, I saw a vision of the webpage for the upcoming Compassion Cells. I thought about how the Compassion Cells are one of the purest forms of service I have ever come across. In the last 3 years, we have taken an illusive concept like 'Compassion' and turned it into a physical reality that has impacted many countless lives, including my own. This Compassion Cell in Orange County has been the bloodline for Be the Cause, mainly due to the relentless efforts of one volunteer, Jeska :) Now, the Compassion Cells are sprouting a life of their own. Melisa started our first Compassion Cell in Los Angeles County on Friday March 25th and one of the participants actually got her picture in the Los Angeles Times. Maushmi is getting a Compassion Cell rolling in Houston, Texas and we still have Orange County on the map.Needless to say, I am profoundly grateful for the compassion that surrounds me, and for the company I keep.Thank you for coming along with me on my journey, and for taking me along on yours. I know our paths are different, and yet I believe they are the same.Adventures in service (and silence),--Sukh :)

February is a month of love. Just ask cupid, Hallmark incorporated, and any volunteer you know. To celebrate this month, we did exactly what those in love do: act selflessly, give generously and do good. They say that service is love made visible… and what better way to celebrate this month, then to serve with complete dedication.After collecting, packing and shipping over 3,000 stuffed animals to Sri Lanka for Tsunami Relief Aid, we began to realize the awesome power that this ‘Love’ beholds. It can turn any of our lives around, makes us do things we would never dream of, and forces us to give away our entire lives. In that experience, poets say there is more joy than dreamed of. Within that power, I also realized the potential of like-minded committed individuals. Some of us were in South Africa, then some went on to Kenya, one left for India and our website was redesigned, the Tsunami stuffed animal drive was organized, and more people began to care for the earth. I am not sure how it all comes together, but then I’m not sure if I have ever known. I wonder if the world is really changing, or if it is just my view that’s changed.With the spirit of compassion close to our hearts, we embark on new journeys. Our first Compassion Cell in Los Angeles County will happen on Good Friday. We now have volunteers registering from all places near and far. We begin planning for the Fourth Annual Walk for Hope. The only magic to all this is that same Love. It is beyond time and location. It is everywhere within us, and everywhere around us. The possibilities of that power are still infinite.With never enough words to express my gratitude to all of you for making our love somehow become visible.Love,Sukh

Some of the BTC travelers to South Africa watched a movie called Beat the Drum last night at the Pan African Film Festival. The movie was about a young Zulu boy who left his village to find work in the big city of Johannesburg. His entire village was being wiped out by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Upon his arrival to Joberg, he quickly realized that his task would not be very easy, nor that this city was all that it seemed. Joberg too was caught in the middle of a HIV/AIDS epidemic and being a street kid made things that much worse. Through some very emotional twists and turns, the boy finally makes some friends, finds some money and touches the hearts of those who help him.I am sure the movie impacted many of the travelers to South Africa. I personally found myself connecting back to our recent experiences as soon as I heard the local language again. After the movie, a panel discussion ensued. I am still processing the information from the panel session. A lot of questions remain unanswered. How does racism, corruption, unemployment, apathy, illiteracy, poverty, and HIV/AIDS tie into our role here in the United States?After our return from South Africa, I recall a recent conversation that I had with a friend: "its feels like we left them behind". There is a lot of hope and yet a lot of apathy that continues to exist. Some of you may have heard of our experiences in Kenya where life threatening health conditions were not only widespread, but also largely ignored. Part of the experience of returning from a developing nation is to ask the question, how does my life change the way others live? ... or to continue asking the question that service asks of us every day, what now can we do for others?About Beat the Drum: http://www.beatthedrumthemovie.com/ About Next Aid: http://www.nextaid.org/Tias Arms: http://www.tiasarms.org/

The below article comes from the 'Lean on Me' February Newsletter. Lean on Me is the organization that 17 BTC volunteers worked with during the 2004 Service Vacation to South Africa.

On 14 December 2004, Lean on Me welcomed our first organized group of volunteers. 17 People from the American Be The Cause Organization joined us from the 14 – 23 December 2004. The group, who organizes local volunteer missions in their home country, was on their first international volunteer expedition. Lean on Me was honored to receive such an amazing group of people and thoroughly enjoyed their short time with us. The BTC volunteers assisted our other volunteers and staff in hosting our numerous project Christmas parties all of which were a resounding success. Parties filled with presents, sweets and laughter were held at the following venues:The Agape Children’s OrphanageThe Savannah Park Children’s HomeThe Kulanikahle Children’s Centre ( Lindiwe’s project)The Dream CentreThe Ikhayi Lobomi HospiceThe Siyajabula Children’s HomeOnce again we would like to thank everyone who helped us to make these parties a success, the enormous smiles on the children and patient’s faces were enough to confirm that the time and effort was well worth it. Although we appreciate each and every donation, we would like to make special mention of the following people for their generous contributions:*Emily Fess*Sharlene Dubery & Colleagues*The staff of ABSA Bank – Hillcrest Branch*The staff of ABSA Bank – Kloof Branch*Be the Cause Volunteers With our project Christmas parties bringing a very festive end to 2004, Lean on Me is now looking ahead to the Busy and Exciting year of 2005.

For more information on Leon on Me visit: http://www.wecare4africa.com/

It was the lady that wasn't participating at all that made me realize how important this event truly was. We were busy preparing for this month's Compassion Cell in our usual fashion: organizing last minute supplies, moving chairs around and making the necessary signs to direct people to our area. This month's Compassion Cell brought Orange County volunteers to the Sunrise Senior Living Home to engage in true acts of selfless service. Our goal was to prepare valentine arts and crafts with the residents and give them our unconditional friendship for a few hours. In the end it wasn't the activities at all, but rather this one elderly woman who taught me what friendship was all about.We were moving chairs from the television room into the overcrowded banquet room to create more places to sit. We were walking briskly so that we could spend as much time as possible with the residents. As we walked past her I noticed her discontent with our actions. Fortunately she was not shy and she quickly expressed her unhappiness to both me and Amit. Amit and I took one look at one another and knew instantaneously that our Compassion Cell had begun. We set the chairs down and finally began to listen. She expressed how things change so quickly, without any warning and without any communication. No-one had taken the time to explain why we were there, or why the chairs were being moved. The moving of the chairs was just one more incident of unwanted change in her life. Staying in a 'Senior Living Center', we can only imagine the changes that she has had to deal with... the chairs were only a symbol of that very change.She was intelligent, far more than what I had expected. She conversed fluently and matter-of-factly. She said that she would join us, only if she was inspired to do so. She spoke bitterly about recent incidents, and yet laughed at our comical jokes. In short, she was like many of my own friends. Later on, when I finally saw her in the banquet room participating in the same arts and crafts as the others, she had a huge smile on her face. I could tell that we had somehow given her some sense of belonging and comfort during our brief stay. It was in that moment, that I too smiled.In fact many of the residents seemed delighted during the activities and expressed a deep sense of gratitude for our stay. As we would thank them for the opportunity to come into their homes, they would in turn thank us for spending our time with them. Along with making the valentines crafts for the residents, Alfred took photographs with a polaroid camera, and BTC volunteer Sonja rocked the house with some amazing opera singing. All of us were blown away by this young girl's talent. After Sonja dropped her talent on the scene, Joshua, a slightly younger BTC volunteer rocked the audience on his clarinet. As usual, after the Compassion Cell we all shared our experiences with one another. A new volunteer expressed that she had gained much more from the residents than she had given. As the saying goes, the more you give, the more you receive.In the spirit of friendship,Sukh

Mbita, Kenya is next to Lake Victoria and is part of the Suba District in Western Kenya. Suba is known for its bad road conditions, breath-taking views, and some of the worst health conditions in the country.Akado Medical Centre was started by the Akado Women Group as a best-in-care alternative to local health centres. The Akado Women Group was originally a small group of women who are about to be removed from the "primary wife" role of the household (in this polygamous community, newer wives were about the enter their household).The role for us three volunteers is to adminster a survey into Akado's target population so that the clinic may better understand the needs of the community they serve. While administering the survey we are also given the opportunity to provide general health advice based on what we know of the region (i.e. boil water before drinking, use mosquito nets to avoid malaria, and get HIV tested). Our goal is to reach 10% of Akado's population so that we may have enough sample data to provide meaningful statistics. We have also prepared a small health brochure that we leave behind at most homes (has also been translated into the native language). The team on this project is 12 members and consists of volunteers, Akado employees as well as Community Health Workers. Akado has turned to us not only for logistical support but also for assuming the leadership role on the entire project. This is a rare opportunity that we have accepted with full passion! We are extremely thankful for this opportunity and much of it feels like magic. We have seen some extra-ordinary things, had some intense conversations, and have already begun to see the difference we are making (HIV testing as already gone up at Akado since we began administering the surveys).More info:- Prevelance of Malaria in the district is about 100% annually (3 team members have gotten Malaria during our duration here)- HIV prevelance is recorded at 41% (validity of statistic is questionable)- Validity of statistics is a district wide problem- Curruption is High- Polygamy is a generally accepted practice- Water borne diseases are high as many drink directly from a Lake that many people use as a public bathroom- Crime is extremely Low- The region has some of the most hospitable people on the planet- Internet is available at only one place from 8am to 6pm :)- Food is very good and very cheap (Indian lentils, chappthi and rice is about $1.30)- The Lake is very beautiful and the hills remind us of East Bay by San Francisco- Two famous words from the local language: Wassungo which means "white boy" and Osama which apparantly means Sukh :)