On 31st May 2009, the small team of 35 people from Akshaya Patra, was charged with excitement. We were geared for the Majja Run at the Sunfeast World 10K Marathon, being held in Bangalore. Having collected at the Kanteerva Stadium, we were all set for the 5.6 Km run (or brisk walk!) that we were doing to garner support for our cause – unlimited food for education!

With the firing of the gun, our team started running, banner in hand and a smile on our faces. The thrill of running to create awareness for Akshaya Patra was tremendous and we were happy to be speaking about our work and program, to the media and interested individuals. Just like us, various charities had turned up to do their bit and people from all walks of life were running in the spirit of participation.

From the group of 35, 32 of us kept up to our promise to our donors – of running the entire 5.6 Km of the Majja Run; the remaining 3 - Ramaswamy, Williams, and Ravi, did even better – they ran the full 10 Km distance! A big ‘thank you’ to all the people who helped us generate funds from this initiative.

Since the past few years marathons have become a regular activity across the metros in India and each city hosts 2-3 marathons, half-marathons or night-marathons in a year. This is a wonderful opportunity for NGOs like us to tell the people about the work we do and inspire people to come forward to make a collective difference to society. While this time round, we put up a small effort, we would like to magnify this in the forthcoming marathons. We request those of you who would like to run the marathon in your city for Akshaya Patra, to mail us today! Our team of fundraisers will work closely with you to ensure that you are able to make your run more meaningful by asking people to pledge their support for your run. As you run for fun, make it an event to remember – not just for yourself, but for the 1 million children who benefit from your run, when you support for Akshaya Patra!