Rima Kotak, Rajvi Shah, and Poojitha Regulapati, all of Plainsboro, will represent New Jersey at the 50th Anniversary March of Dimes National Youth Conference: Saving Babies, Building Leaders, held in Washington, D.C. later this summer. The three are among 10 New Jersey teens selected to represent the state. ##M:[more]##
All three students help to organize a community event held at High School North called Rangeela (or festival of colors) as a way to raise awareness and funds for the March of Dimes. In 2005, Rangeela raised $36,”500.
“Rangeela has really proven to be a great success throughout these past four years and we hope to raise more and more money each and every year,” Regulapati says. “We are not only here to raise money for the organization, but to educate people about the fatality of prematurity and that there are ways you can reduce the risk of prematurity.”
Regulapati, a rising senior at High School North, has been volunteering with the organization for the past four years. This year she was vice-chair for Rangeela and next year she will be chairperson of the Mercer County Chain Reaction as well as Rangeela. She is also in the school’s Culture Club and Red Cross and is a volunteer at the University Medical Center at Princeton and involved in dance competitions.
“My involvement with the March of Dimes really started because I have a cousin who was born prematurely,” she says. “Seeing him go throughout his life with the medical problems caused by his prematurity has been a very heart wrenching experience.”
“I really wanted to get involved with this organization because I feel that while raising money for the cause I am helping so many babies live the life that my cousin can never have,” she says. “It allows me to help the community and in a way help my cousin as well.”
Shah, a rising senior at High School North, currently serves as vice-chair of the March of Dimes Mercer County Chain Reaction Youth council. She has been volunteering for four years. “My participation in WalkAmerica and other March of Dimes events will definitely be lifelong — the mission has become ingrained in my heart,” she says.
Kotak, a rising junior at High School North, has been volunteering with the March of Dimes for two years. “I enjoy my interaction with all the other youth volunteers. The experience has really broadened my horizons,” says Kotak.
The first March of Dimes youth program, Teens Against Polio, began in 1955 when student leaders came together to educate their peers about the importance of receiving the polio vaccine. Founded in 1938, the organization’s mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality, through programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy. For information visit www.marchofdimes.com.
“By attending the conference, I will not only increase my fundraising skills so I can raise more money in the fight against prematurity, but I also will be learning valuable leadership and networking skills that last a lifetime,” Regulapati says. “We all work really hard to put together Rangeela and it really pays off to see and know what you’re contributing to.”
