CAMAGA’s Musical Program at the Hindu
Temple of Atlanta
A Fund-Raiser for The Haven House,McDonough
The Haven House is a shelter for victims of domestic violence (
www.henryhavenhouse.org
). It accepts women and children who are affected by domestic violence and
who need a safe place to live until they resettle. Though the shelter is in
McDonough, Henry County, it provides care to people from the entire metro
Atlanta. During the year 2017, the shelter had accepted and provided care to
400 destitute women and 350 children. In addition to providing temporary
shelter, the Haven House also provides the women and children with medical
care, medical supplies, free transportation to work/school and needed school
supplies. The shelter eventually helps the residents to relocate to a safer
environment, by finding them affordable housing and by providing them with
the initial requirements of furniture, clothes, and other household items.

One of the board members of the Haven House shelter is Dr. Manohar
Nallathambi, a surgeon practicing in Henry and Clayton counties. He wanted
the Indian community to help the shelter by donating money and by
volunteering to support the shelter in other ways - several of the residents
sheltered at the Haven House are women of Indian origin. With this
objective, Dr. Nallathambi approached Dr. Seshu Sarma, a long-time resident
of Atlanta and an active member of the Hindu Temple of Atlanta. Dr. Seshu
Sarma offered to help with the cause by holding a music event and raising
money for the shelter. With the Hindu Temple of Atlanta, Riverdale and
CAMAGA (The Carnatic Music Association of Georgia) offering to co-sponsor, a
musical and fund-raising event was held at the Hindu Temple of Atlanta
auditorium on Saturday, April 28th,2018.

Dr. Ram Sriram, President of CAMAGA designed and produced an Indian
classical music program that was presented by the teachers and students from
the Atlanta Indian community. Over fifty musicians (students and their
teachers) participated in the musical event. The participants not only
showed their musical talents but also highlighted the great contributions of
Indian classical music composers for the last four hundred years. The
highpoint of the program was the violin ensemble conducted by Ms. Jassotha,
a well-known violin teacher and the percussion ensemble led by Mr. Santosh
Chandru, a Mridangam teacher. The audience gave a standing ovation after the
conclusion of the two ensembles. Dr. Kalpana Rengarajan, as master of
ceremonies, managed the event and the time with meticulous care. Shiva
Vaidyanathan and Vasudevan managed the audio support with perfection.
After the musical performances concluded, Dr. Manohar Nallathambi shared
with the audience about the role and contributions of the Haven House
shelter and how, over the years. After he concluded his speech, Dr. Seshu
Sarma recognized the following members of board of directors who were
present for the musical event and presented each of them with a shawl: Ms.
Lucinda Wirt, Chair of the Board; Board members: Honorable Judge Wesley
Shannon, Dr. Stephanie Gordon, Ms. Kristy Coughlin, Ms. Keli Hazel, and
Executive Director of Haven House, Ms. Kathleen Tucker.
The fund-raising and the musical event both were very successful in bringing
the Indian community to together and raising over $20,000 to support the
Haven House Destitute shelter.