Padma Shri Dr. R.V. Ramani being felicitated at the Sankara Eye Foundation USA annual banquet in Fremont, Calif., Nov. 9. (Siva Dhanasekaran/Silicon Photography)

Patrons at the packed house in Paradise Ballrooms in Fremont, Calif., Nov 9, were all in awe and gave a standing ovation to Dr. R.V. Ramani, Padma Shri awardee, when he was felicitated at the SEF USA annual banquet.

Philanthropists, business and social leaders, and donors from the Indian American community came together to celebrate the accomplishment of 1.96 million free eye surgeries through Sankara hospitals and over 80,000 free eye surgeries with our partner, and pledge support to fulfill the mission of eradicating curable blindness in India.

Soulful music by Mandeep Singh, Ritisha Padmanabh kept the guests entertained. (Amar D. Gupta/Siliconeer)

The evening was a mix of fun, great presentations and soulful music by Mandeep Singh, Ritisha Padmanabh and Nishant Bordia. Venkat Maddipati and Sudheer Chemudugunta invited guests and thanked for their support and requested patrons to generously donate for upcoming hospitals in Mumbai, Hyderabad , Indore and Bihar. One of SEF’s largest donors, Dr. Yeturu Ahalad and Subha Ahalad were invited to address the audience, and Dr Ahalad spoke from the heart about why they chose SEF to donate. Bill Gorman, a large donor also shared his thoughts.

Murali Krishnamurthy talks about Sankara Eye Foundation. (Amar D. Gupta/Siliconeer)

Murali Krishnamurthy, executive chairman of SEF, USA, updated the guests on the progress of the various projects, funds to be raised, and the vision for the future. He talked about SEF, USA’s efforts to scale to 1 Million free eye surgeries a year by the year 2030 through partnerships with other organizations and arresting the growth of blindness. Mr. Krishnamurthy and the SEF board then felicitated Dr. Ramani for receiving the coveted Padma Shri award from the government of India and for being selected as the only non-governmental member of the medical board of governors in India.

Padma Shri Dr. R.V. Ramani talks about Sankara Eye Foundation. (Amar D. Gupta/Siliconeer)

Dr Ramani gave a moving speech about the movement and the vision. This was followed by a panel conducted by Sridharan Krishnamurthy, president and board member of SEF USA with Dr. Kaushik, president of the medical wing of SEF, India; Bharath, president, SEF India; Dr. Janaki Raman, executive council member, SEF India; Sundar Radhakrishnan, executive council member, SEF India and board member, SEF USA; and Mr Srivatsan, executive council member, SEF India and board member, SEF USA.

A panel conducted by Sridharan Krishnamurthy, president and board member of SEF USA with Dr. Kaushik, president of the medical wing of SEF, India; Bharath, president, SEF India; Dr. Janaki Raman, executive council member, SEF India; Sundar Radhakrishnan, executive council member, SEF India and board member, SEF USA; and Srivatsan, executive council member, SEF India and board member, SEF USA. (Amar D. Gupta/Siliconeer)

As a non-profit, Sankara Eye Foundation volunteers have been working tirelessly for two decades to eradicate curable blindness in India. Working on a model of 80:20 free to paid patients ratio, the funds raised through these events are used to further the cause. Over 1.96 million free eye surgeries have already been performed at SEF hospitals and over 80,000 surgeries have been performed at hour partner hosptitals. SEF India has an enviable success rate of 98.8% and 96% patients have been able to get back to their basic chores. The organization is not just treating people but also training future doctors through Sankara Academy of Vision.

SEF, USA is striving to provide vision to those in need and your support will accelerate the work. The Charity Navigator has consistently given the organization four-star rating for financial accountability and transparency. There are nine super specialty SEF hospitals and three new SEF  hospitals are coming up in Indore, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. Also, Akhand Jyoti Hospital, a partner hospital, is coming up in Masti Chak, Bihar.  Sankara Eye Hospital in Indore is being inaugurated  January, 2020.

Interested readers can visit https://www.giftofvision.org/ to pledge support towards free eye surgeries or capital projects for one of these hospitals.