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It was time to introduce our children to the challenges and intricacies of event management.

As part of the Leadership Development Programme for the children of ATMA Gurukulam, it was decided to conduct ‘ATMA Gurukulam Day’ on 7^th October 2018. The children’s committee had a special meeting in late August, to discuss the nature of the event. Through a series of discussions and brainstorming sessions, and with occasional inputs from ATMA Volunteers, the children developed a programme – where each of them got an opportunity to express their talents or talk about themselves – their achievements, dreams and aspirations. They took the initiative in inviting their friends, teachers, relatives and neighbours. They formed themselves into task groups, with each group taking up responsibility for one particular aspect of the event – programme, reception, food, etc.

On the previous evening, a beautiful Pandal (marquee) went up in front of ATMA Gurukulam, with a small stage. The children, with bubbling enthusiasm and magnificent creativity, decorated the premises with the help of ATMA Volunteers. The ‘stage rehearsal’ of the programme went on late into the evening. C K Suresh, ATMA Foundation Director, patiently guided the young performers, giving suggestions for improvements, helping them to relax, boosting their confidence, enabling them to bring out their best on stage. By the time the rehearsals were over, all the nervousness and performance anxiety was gone, to be replaced by a cheerful excitement.

The ‘ATMA Gurukulam Day’ dawned bright and sunny, in spite of an ‘orange alert’ for severe rainfall that had given some anxiety to the people of our recently flood-hit state. The Gurukulam was abuzz with activity, the children going about their assigned ‘duties’, dressing up, helping others dress, redoing decorations, taking last minute rehearsals... As the fear of rain was dispelled by the bright morning sun, the guests started arriving, and the first ATMA Gurukulam Day was inaugurated by lighting the traditional lamp.

Over 200 people attended the programme. The children donned the organiser role with great joy. The reception team welcomed the guests, gave them a welcome drink, talked to them and showed them around the Gurukulam. The programme management team arranged the venue and coordinated the stage programmes according to the previously prepared schedule. One of the senior girls was the MC. The food committee coordinated the lunch arrangements – they managed the queues in the serving and washing areas and ensured that everyone was properly seated and served well. The children also gave their stage presentations with sincerity and confidence. 3 children gave performances – in Music, Mono-act and Yoga. The others each talked about a particular aspect of ATMA Gurukulam which had created maximum impact in them, what they had learnt, and how they were changing.

Friends, teachers and relatives, when invited to offer felicitations, expressed their immense appreciation for the children of ATMA Gurukulam – their health, their elegance, their friendliness, their readiness to help, their initiative, their confidence, their diligence, their intelligence – the list was indeed long!

For the children, it was a day of joy, and a golden opportunity to showcase their abilities, challenge their limits, and learn some new lessons in management. As for the ATMA team, we revelled in the glory of their achievement – another ‘proud parent’ moment that our children so often surprise us with! It was also a moment of reflection – even as we felt proud of our work with the children, we were humbled by the speed and quality of their transformation!

Every volunteer who was part of the ‘ATMA Gurukulam Day’ went home with renewed commitment to this beautiful work.