Let’s Make Happiness Contagious for Children the World Over
By Jawahar Malhotra
PEARLAND: A new charity was born in August last year and this past Sunday, May 31, was its christening, you might say, as it launched its first coming out function at the Hilton Garden Inn near Hwy 288 in Pearland. And though the turnout was thin, the founder and organizer Jacob David couldn’t have been more proud.
“All good things have humble beginnings,” said David from the podium as he explained what had drove him to start the 501(c)(3) non-profit Happy Children Happy World. A few years ago in India, he saw a restaurant throw out food and dogs started to eat it. When he saw a young child fight with the dogs for the food, David was appalled. Later, he saw a child scoop up water from a dirty puddle and drink it.
The images stuck with him and he decided to act last year, raising $3,500 which he then used to buy needed items and donate them to three groups in India – Baby Sara’s Home in Pondicherry; Divine Mercy in Bangalore and Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity in Pondicherry. Since then, David’s passion to help little kids escape child labor, trafficking and poverty has only grown as he sets his sights to helping them in the US and Asia. David presented a slideshow of the terrible conditions many kids have to endure growing up poor and then outlined his goals.
His co-founder is this effort is Van Trong Ly, who came to the US as a refugee from Vietnam and now works as a Team Leader of Inventory Control at Sysco Foods. Van recalled how he had to suffer pangs of hunger growing up as a poor child in Saigon; which has prompted him to work with David on this charity.
Jacob David has been in the US for about 20 years and is a known figure among the South Asian community in the Metroplex; having worked with this newspaper and the Voice of Asia, as a graphic artist, journalist and in marketing. He is also a realtor with Champions Real Estate Group.
The function was generously supported by the Hilton Garden Inn; piano music by Scott Graham and photography by Harsh Mahadeshwar and Sayani Bhat.