Chennai fundraising event Battle of the Buffet 2019 sees participants from across Tamil Nadu

Chennai’s largest annual fundraising event, Battle of the Buffet witnessed the presence of the who’s who from across Tamil Nadu. This year several NGOs working for the disabled community made their presence felt.

The annual fundraising event Battle of the Buffet (BoB) by NGOs United Way of Chennai and Chennai Mission is an important event that helps raise funds for various NGOs that have limited resources. Many NGOs, especially rural-based ones, lack the resources to generate enough funds to survive and sustain their work. Realising this United Way of Chennai decided to step in and make a difference.

Since 2009, the BoB has raised over ₹ 27 crore and the amount has gone to many NGOs working in the fields of health, education, etc. BoB also provide exposure to upcoming NGOs and helps them promote their social causes.

We are proud of the NGOs who are participating in the Battle of the Buffet. Considering most of them are the upcoming NGOs coming from the rural areas and small towns, BoB acts as a platform to these deserving NGOs to get recognition. The fact that we could connect their social causes to the corporates through a ready reckoner, the Proposal Bank, is something that we are proud of. We raised ₹1.1 Cr on Give India platform and it makes us realise the potential each individual is capable of making a difference in the lives of the people.- Archana Raghuram, Executive Director, United Way Chennai

The event is important for the various NGOs associated with the initiative as they rely on funding to help those in need. Representatives of the NGOs got the opportunity to connect with donors and contributors and pitched their ides to them during the BoB.

G Karthikeyan is the founder of Sristi Foundation, an NGO in rural Tamil Nadu that has been working to support the disabled community for years. “We are based in a small town and that makes it difficult for us to reach out to potential donors, Through BoB we have been receiving a lot of financial help that has helped us continue us with our work here.”

The event also saw ‘Stand Up Show’ by Alexander Babu of ‘Alex in Wonderland’ fame and a mesmerising musical performance by the singer Srinivas.

For Roshni a volunteer with Dhyaan Foundation, taking part in BoB 2019 was a unique experience. ”We are happy to have been a part of this initiative. Our focus is primarily on animal rehab and we hope to continue working in our field with the support of such initiatives.“

To know more about the initiative visit the website : https://www.battleofbuffet.org

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