2021

TWCA 2021 Lunch Packs in Kerala

The Together We Can Association (TWCA) & the Iam Not Alone (INA) created a great community lunch pack program to help feed the needy and struggled to find support during the pandemic.  All the meals are made by volunteers who make homemade at least 30 packets per food box; a total of 37 located throughout Cochin, Calicut and Palakkad in Kerala with plans to add 10 more boxes in another district to reach even more people!  These amazing people even take the time to drive to areas where people cannot access the food boxes and hand distribute food packs to people on the streets.  After a representative of the TWCA organization reached out to the LYN Project, we were able to immediately fund 6 whole days worth of food!  After realizing their financial struggles for their righteous efforts, we have committed to granting them 643,200 food packets per month.  If you are interested in donating to this cause, please check out TWCA website to get directly involved: https://www.facebook.com/karuthaltwca

2020

Ventilator Project for Kerala, India

The LYN Project collaborated with Kerala Association of Washington Charity and Dream Vision Charity to collectively purchase two new ventilators for the Kozhencherry District Hospital in Kerala, India. On December 20, 2020, the ventilators were received by the hospital staff and various organization members who helped to bring medical aid especially during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic that hit India in February 2021.

Meet Ahron

Ahron was granted an educational scholarship to attend a college in Oregon. Ahron is giving back through volunteer opportunities through his sports team and college fraternity. Here is a letter from Ahron :

On October 31st my fraternity went to a beach about an hour away from campus where we walked all around the beach from 8 am to 4 pm cleaning up any garbage or debris that we found. Our goal was to make a place where a lot of students spend their time, a cleaner place so that we could enjoy it more and make it look better for the community. It was a very fun time since it was at the start of the year so it gave me a chance to help my community and also become closer with the guys whom I will be living with for the next 3 years.

At our home course for the men’s golf team there is a junior clinic that goes on every week. I asked my coach if I would be able to volunteer with that program to work with the kids because that was something I had done in the past and something that is very enjoyable for me. So, every week starting from September 6th – November 15th, I volunteered with the junior golf program teaching them the basic golf skills and helping them develop their playing ability.

Once a month my golf team volunteered at our home course and volunteered for the day where we would clean carts, clean pick the driving range and do anything else that the course needed. We would generally do it on tournament days so that the course staff would not be too overwhelmed and we could have lots of our golf guys doing the work for them. It was nice to be able to give back to the course that allows us to play their everyday and it gave me the opportunity to meet members at the course and make connections with them!

Overall, my semester was a great one and I got a lot more involved so there is a lot to look forward to over my next 2 1/2 years there. I am very excited for what the future holds for me and I can’t thank you enough for giving me the scholarship in the Fall that allowed me to continue my time.

Families Fed During Pandemic

A teacher from Beacon Hill International School in Seattle, Washington posted a message on her social media asking for help during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.  The sudden shutdown of the world was not only devastating for American citizens but to the many undocumented immigrants who come to the United States for a chance at a better life. Here’s what she wrote us:

“Hello LYN Project, A little background about my school: Beacon Hill International School is located in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Seattle Washington. For the 2019-2020 school year we have roughly 50% of students qualifying for free and reduced lunch. Most of our students are immigrants, refugees, bilingual and brown!

Along with free and reduced lunch 40 families get fresh groceries every Thursday. After COVID hit, 80-90 families have requested groceries. These bags of groceries last about 3-4 days. We give gift cards to supplement the other days. These families work in hotels, cleaning businesses and restaurants. They are really struggling to find work after the pandemic. Many of our families are undocumented and are trying to find a good life here in the US, because life back in their home countries are pretty terrible.

Our hope is that we can find a way to help them sustain life here in Seattle until the pandemic has calmed down. These families want to work, but they just can’t find the opportunity. Let me know if you need any more information.”

The LYN Project worked with the Auburn Food Bank to coordinate more diverse food options for weekend lunch program and increased food supplies from 3-4 days to the entire week. With extra sponsorship from T-Mobile, we were able to provide 80-90 families nourshing groceries for the rest of the 2020 school year.  

We are humbled by the teacher who made this request and volunteered every Thursday at the food bank to pack up the weekly supplies for the students and their families. Thank you for acts of service to the community and for being a loving neighbor!

Meet Elizabeth

“When I first connected with the LYN project, I wasn’t sure what to expect. What I found was an empathetic group of people whose aim is to empower others. They listened to my story, set me up with a personalized therapy practice called Therapy Lab, and got my first sessions rolling.

For me, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) was very helpful. I realized anxiety was manifesting itself through my responses in a multitude of little ways as opposed to one big projection. Small enough to slip through the cracks unnoticed by me, but exposed enough for others to spot more easily.

To help me better understand CBT, our sessions were structured around the reading and comprehension of training chapters. We would go through different exercises to break down and analyze instinctual reactions that were deep rooted in emotional and mental triggers.

The sessions were short, but incredibly valuable. Each one left me with a refurbished set of mental tools that helps me to view, evaluate, and reorganize thoughts, without letting my mind project past memories and experiences. This allows me to truly appreciate the moment and ultimately make better decisions regarding my personal affairs and time.

The lessons I learned here will be with me for the rest of my life. My heartfelt thanks to the team at Therapy Lab and the LYN project for making this possible for me.”