Q&A with 21-Year Old Diana Award Recipient Meera Mehta
We had the privilege of interviewing and featuring Meera Mehta, one of the youngest recipients of the prestigious Diana Award. In this Q&A, we discuss Meera’s social action and humanitarian work through global non-profit organization, Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care based out of Dharampur, Gujarat, India and get to know what inspired her on a deeper level.
Your work with Shrimad Rajchandra Love & Care was inspired at such a young age. What led to your journey and long-term commitment to social action and humanitarian work?
Meera: When I was 6 years old, I accompanied my spiritual master Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshbhai to a rural medical camp in the interiors of Gujarat (in the poorest belts in India). It was a free camp set up by the NGO, Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care. That was the first time I saw the plight that some people are forced to live in. Out there, Pujya Gurudevshri gave me gifts to give to the tribal children. Every time I'd give a gift, He’d tell me to say thank you. That’s when He explained that they are the ones giving me this wonderful opportunity to serve and that is why I should express my gratitude towards them.This incident is also what motivated me to continue volunteering with Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care and also fundraising for the same.
What are some of the rewards and challenges that can be attributed to your experiences as a change-maker for underprivileged sections?
Meera: The biggest reward is seeing a smile on the faces of the beneficiaries. Nothing gives me more joy than being able to interact with them! My challenges include managing time between studies and fundraising and feeling shy asking for funds.
What are ways that you feel your work with Shrimad Rajchandra Love & Care has had a positive influence on the way that you see the world, yourself and what matters to you?
Meera: It has made me experience the true joy of giving. Moreover, it has helped shape who I am as a person. I used to be so shy but this journey has instilled the values of confidence, responsibility and empathy in me.
What are your future plans for the NGO?
Meera: Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care is a benevolent 10 care program which aims to uplift all sections of society. One such Care is Health Care - under which one of the projects is Shrimad Rajchandra Hospital. It’s a free of cost multi-speciality hospital in Dharampur Gujarat. Since I’m currently doing MBBS, my dream is to be able to volunteer at this hospital and of course to continue fundraising.
How have your contributions to Shrimad Rajchandra Love & Care evolved to cater to COVID-19 relief efforts?
Meera: Under the Emergency Relief care of Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care, the day that lockdown was announced, several projects were launched. To name a few; providing personal protective equipment and meals to front-liners (doctors, policemen, etc), providing meals and ration to migrant workers and the underprivileged, providing ration to those who needed it, providing food to stray animals. I started fundraising for these projects. What really touched me was the amount of people that wanted to donate. Since everyone is feeling helpless staying at home, so many wanted to help out. So they believed that the best way to do that was donate to Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care.
What is your advice to give to young people around the world looking to get involved in this type of work?
Meera: This is something I learnt from Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshbhai: In taking one small step to uplift others, we may not be able to change the whole world; but we will definitely be able to change someone’s whole world. Hence, any act of benevolence, no matter how small, will help uplift society. So do it!