We did it! Such chutzpah! After taking a ten-week course in fundraising, Nileshwari, Tara and I organized a two-day workshop here in Dehradun. We invited Rati Misra from the Resource Alliance, Amita Puri from CRY, and Jerry Almeida from ICONGO, (all of whom were wonderful), but we also had the himmat to do one whole session ourselves. What fun! We did the communications section and it was great.

Nearly 30 people from different Dehradun organisations attended and all seemed to feel the experience was a valuable one. It’s liberating to have things de-mystified. Fundraising is so shrouded in mystery and hype that many people feel it’s beyond them, when in fact, almost anyone can do it provided they are prepared to learn the skills required.

Tara and I were particularly thrilled about Nileshwari’s performance. Not only did she do all the organizing for the two days (including planning the food, making the hotel and train reservations, rounding up the participants, collecting fees and preparing handouts), she also managed to give a fabulous presentation herself – with poise, enthusiasm and charm. It’s so good to see the young ones shine!