Dear friends, Kerala is suffering from unprecedented devastation due to major floods, putting thousands of people out of their homes and many lives at risk. Many of our near and dear ones have gone through tremendous hardship in the past few days and is still continuing to face challenges as they try to get back to their homes and their lives. Keeping this catastrophe in mind, the Minnesota Malayalee Association Board has decided to cancel the 2018 Onam celebration. Instead, the focus will be concentrated on relief efforts through both material and monetary donations. These contributions will be made to the CMs Distress Relief Fund or various NGOs battling the crisis at hand.
We are aware of the hard work and several months of ongoing practice that has been happening in preparation for this Onam festival, and understand this may come as a disappointment to many. Rest assured, this was not an easy decision to make. The Onam celebration is a flagship event for MMA, and any resolution regarding it is not taken lightly.
Kerala and her people are in dire need of an infusion of funds. Every donation makes an impact, regardless of how large or small. To do our part as Kerala natives, we are planning to run a relief campaign in two separate phases. Phase 1 will focus on short term relief. Our current goal is $20,000 by September 8th, 2018. We will be setting up a donation page on Facebook to track this effort. Phase 2 will be focused on long term relief. The logistics are still being sorted, but current plans are to include a fundraiser event targeting the long term recuperation that Kerala will have to go through.
Below are some FAQs to answer any potential questions at hand. Feel free to email MMA separately at info@mnmalayalee.org if you have other concerns or clarifications.
1. How long do you plan to run this campaign?
Phase 1 will run through September 8th, 20182. Who are the funds being sent to?
We will be wiring the funds to CMDRF (Kerala Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund) and other NGOs, based on need. Please let us know if you know of any NGOs that are working with the people at the grassroots level and we can evaluate them as potential recipients of the relief fund.
3. Can I get information regarding who benefited from my donation?
Unfortunately, we will not have access into that level of granularity for the funds we send.
4. Why should I use MMA?
MMA is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization that champions charity work as one of its key charter items. If you do donate through MMA, you would get a tax break from the donation or could utilize your company matching program. 100% of the funds we receive will go towards CMDRF.
5. Can I donate to MMA through my employer portal?
Yes, you should be able to find us with our EIN number 41-2007626 in your company’s giving portal. Make sure for tracking purposes you send a note to info@mnmalayalee.org on the amount you donated using your company portal. We will not have visibility to the amount and match until we receive the payment from the company. If you donate through PayPal and then request a match, you do not need to send us any note. In case your employer has a matching program, please add a note in PayPal saying that the donation will be matching by <<Employer Name>>.
6. Will I get confirmation after I donate from MMA?
Yes, we will acknowledge your donation ASAP.
Thank you for your support,
MMA Board
info@mnmalyalee.org