Louisiana Himalayan association

Tashi Delek! (Hello in Tibetan)

We are raising funds to support the Louisiana Himalaya Association Clear Vision Program! Sponsored by you, this program provides eye exams and glasses to Tibetan refugees who cannot afford these services. A donation of $20 covers the cost of the examination and the glasses for one person. Any donation helps, the more we raise, the more Tibetan refugees with clear vision!

During our time in India we traveled to the Himalayas where we visited Dharamsala, which is the current home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile. There we volunteered with the Louisiana Himalaya Association (LHA), helping and learning from Tibetan refugees.

LHA is a grassroots social work organization founded in New Orleans in 1997, with a counterpart in Dharamsala. It hosts a variety of programs to support the Tibetan refugee diaspora. LHA is 100% volunteer based, meaning all of the money that you donate goes directly to Tibetans in need.

During our time volunteering we were fortunate to meet and become friends with many Tibetan refugees, learning about their culture and hearing their stories. Kindness and compassion seem innate, and the Tibetans radiate joy and optimism despite exile from their home. Many of our Tibetan friends have not seen their families or home since childhood.

They were forced to leave their families and home in hopes of a safe future. In groups they daringly hiked over the Himalayas, some passes over 19.000 feet, to freedom in India. This journey to freedom, still happening today, takes up to a month with much of the walking done at night in freezing temperatures to avoid Chinese troops. While some make it over, unfortunately many have died while others have been caught by troops and put into labor camps where they are often severely tortured even today.

Some background - Tibet was invaded by China in 1950. By 1959, over a million innocent Tibetans had been killed by Chinese troops while thousands were forced into labor/torture camps. The fifteen year old Dalai Lama, followed by thousands of Tibetans, were forced to flee to save their lives. Those left behind have been faced by harsh punitive measures and bans on Tibetan culture and language in an act of cultural genocide.

This exodus from Tibet has been ongoing since that time. Oppression and extreme human rights violations in Tibet have continued up until today. There was a sharp deterioration due to the global attention that China received for hosting the 2008 Olympics and the subsequent uprising in Tibet. Now whole families are prosecuted if a member tries to flee. Also border security has tightened, resulting in a steep decline in successful escapes. The resulting situation is so hopeless that certain Tibetan activists have turned to self immolation in a desperate attempt to draw Western attention and aid to their cause.

We are very passionate about helping this wonderful group of humans who have suffered deep injustices throughout their lives. Many Tibetan refugees have never been able to get their eyes checked, and therefore don’t know they need glasses. When people receive the proper prescription for the first time they are amazed at the details in each leaf, and they are relieved of never ending vision headaches. We ask that you contribute whatever you are able, as well as to share this go fund me. Please also share what is going on in Tibet to those who are unaware.

BIG THANKS for taking the time to read this! Please feel free to reach out with any questions to Fabiana or Spencer, and we will do our best to answer!

Below are some resources at your disposal if you wish to further educate yourself on the reality of Tibet today.

LHA’s website - Volunteer Info and more ...

Tashi Delek!

We are raising funds to help support LHA's Tibetan Smiles Dental Program! The Louisiana Himalaya Association (LHA) was founded in 1997 and has been providing free dental services for Tibetan Refugees in India since 2011.

Dear friends and supporters of LHA and the APOCOLYPSE BALL,

The Louisiana Himalaya Association (LHA) is a New Orleans-based non-profit organization that works with Tibetan refugees in the Himalayas of Northern India to increase access to clean water, healthy food, medical services and education.

We all know that clean water is critical to living a healthy life. For the Tibetan refugee communities, we work with, access to clean drinking water is often difficult to afford. That is why, in 2013, the LHA Clean Water Project was initiated. Since then LHA has installed 35 water filtration systems in schools, monasteries and community centers. The LHA Clean Water Project provides clean drinking water to more than 15,000 people every day. To sustain the project, LHA carrys out water hygiene education programs, maintains all the equipment and replaces all the filters annually

For every $100 we raise with the APOCOLYPSE BALL, we are able to provide 200 people with clean drinking water for an entire year!

To help support this project, the Apocolypse Krewe of New Orleans is hosting their 23nd annual Mardi Gras Costume Ball.

Family, friends, colleagues, and Louisiana Himalaya Association (LHA) supporters and volunteers,

We have once again teamed up with LHA for another Green Energy Project to help out our Tibetan refugee friends in Dharamsala, India. This time it's Energy Efficient Windows for their Social Service Building.

As many of our friends and family know, we have been very fortunate to volunteer twice with the Tibetan Refugee community in Northern India, and it has been one of the most influential experiences of our lives. The first time was with our Tulane student group then we returned solo to work on the Solar Project. In exchange for our volunteer service, we've learned so much from our Tibetan friends about the importance of compassion, the power of resiliency, and the value of relationship.

The first and successful project we accomplished with LHA was raising funds and installing Solar Panels on Ahimsa House (the Social Service building in Dharamsala, India which was purchased by LHA and donated to its Tibetan run sister organization, Lha Charitable Trust). LHA is a New Orleans based organization that has provided Social Services with the Tibetan refugee community since 1997. It was co-founded by our former Tulane professor, Neil Guidry and his Tibetan friend Jampa Tsering. LHA and Lha Charitbable Trust now host a variety of programs to support Tibetan refugees and Himalayan communities of Northern India.

The panels from our first project now provide a constant efficient energy source which is vital for this location where power outages occur daily. The solar power also saves on energy costs, helping the organization to be more self-sufficient. Since the panels were installed, the Tibetan staff have followed our lead and have now set up water catchment to further their efficiency. Besides all this, the building now serves as a green model that other organizations and businesses in the area are following. Thanks to the momentum created by our Solar Project, LHA has become a true clean energy leader in the Himalayan community.

Ahimsa House was built about forty years back. It's a strong and sturdy four-story building with classrooms, offices and volunteer accommodation on the upper floors. The ground floor houses a cafe which helps to support the organization. When it was built energy efficient windows were not available or even heard of in the area. As seen in the photos here, the old windows have greatly deteriorated and are in desperate need of replacement.

These new windows will help to keep the heat inside during the cold Himalayan Winters while saving energy and reducing energy bills to the organization.

More energy saved means more funds to sustain LHA's social service projects, including:

- Language and Computer Classes

- Water Filtration Systems - Providing clean drinking water to over 10,000 people daily

- Environmental Projects

- Elder Assistance

- Medical, Dental, and Eye Care Programs

- Student Trips (Tulane, Loyola, and More)

We invite you to join us in this effort

LHA is unique in that 100% of your donation goes directly to those in need. LHA has no overhead expenses; even the office space and properties used in New Orleans are all donated by the LHA Board and/or Team. LHA is totally volunteer staffed and none of the volunteers have any type of expense account; everyone donates their own time, travel expenses, meals, etc. LHA is a 501-c3 non-profit organization which means all donations are tax deductible and will generate maximum Good Karma!

History and Current Situation in Tibet

Some background - Tibet was invaded by China in 1950. By 1959, over a million innocent Tibetans had been killed by Chinese troops while thousands were forced into labor/torture camps. The fifteen year old Dalai Lama, followed by thousands of Tibetans, were forced to flee to save their lives. Those left behind have been faced by harsh punitive measures and bans on Tibetan culture and language in an act of cultural genocide.

This exodus from Tibet has been ongoing since that time. Oppression and extreme human rights violations in Tibet have continued up until today. There was a sharp deterioration due to the global attention that China received for hosting the 2008 Olympics and the subsequent uprising in Tibet. Now whole families are prosecuted if a member tries to flee. Also border security has tightened, resulting in a steep decline in successful escapes. The resulting situation is so hopeless that certain Tibetan activists have turned to self immolation in a desperate attempt to draw Western attention and aid to their cause.

We are very passionate about helping this wonderful group of humans who have suffered deep injustices throughout their lives. We ask that you contribute whatever you are able, as well as to share this go fund me. Please also share what is going on in Tibet to those who are unaware.

BIG THANKS for taking the time to read this, please pass it on with your social media and to anyone you feel may be interested !

Sincerely,

Noah, Nick, and the rest of LHA

If you have any questions about this project please feel free to contact us anytime.

Below are some resources if you wish to know more about LHA and/or Tibet.

LHA’s website - Volunteer Info and more ...

Namaste and Tashi Delek! (Hello in Tibetan)

My name is Nirav Shah, a I Love paying it forward.

I'm raising funds to support a language education scholarship program that I founded during my recent trip to Dharamsala India. After meeting His Holiness the Dalai Lama, I was inspired to help in this way. This program will provide scholarship funds for Tibetan monks to learn English. Many of them only speak Tibetan and need more language skills to move forward with their lives outside of Tibet. Only $200 provides enough funds for 3 months of English classes!

I will be working in conjunction with the Louisiana Himalayan Association (LHA). It is a social work organization founded in 1997 based in Louisiana, with a counterpart (LHA Charitable Trust) in Dharamsala, India. Together they host a variety of programs to support the Tibetan refugee diaspora. LHA is 100% volunteer-based with no expense or travel accounts, meaning all of the money that you donate goes directly to the project. LHA Charitable Trust is fully staffed and managed by the Tibetan community, they will oversee and manage the scholarship fund.

During my time volunteering with LHA and LHA Charitable Trust in Dharamsala, I was fortunate to meet and become friends with many Tibetan refugees, learning about their culture and hearing their stories. Kindness and compassion seem innate, and the Tibetans radiate joy and optimism despite exile from their home. Many of our Tibetan friends have not seen their families or home since childhood. I truly feel that what I learned from them is so much more than what I was able to contribute.

They were forced to leave their families and home in hopes of a safe future. In groups they daringly hiked over the Himalayas, some passing over 19.000 feet, to freedom in India. This journey to freedom, still happening today, takes up to a month with much of the walking done at night in freezing temperatures to avoid Chinese troops. While some make it over, unfortunately, many have died while others have been caught by troops and put into labor camps where they are often severely tortured even today.

Some background - Tibet was invaded by China in 1950. By 1959, over a million innocent Tibetans had been killed by Chinese troops while thousands were forced into labor/torture camps. The fifteen-year-old Dalai Lama, followed by thousands of Tibetans, were forced to flee to save their lives. Those left behind have been faced with harsh punitive measures and bans on Tibetan culture and language in an act of cultural genocide.

This exodus from Tibet has been ongoing since that time. Oppression and extreme human rights violations in Tibet have continued up until today. There was a sharp deterioration due to the global attention that China received for hosting the 2008 Olympics and the subsequent uprising in Tibet. Now whole families are prosecuted if a member tries to flee. Also, border security has tightened, resulting in a steep decline in successful escapes. The resulting situation is so hopeless that certain Tibetan activists have turned to self-immolation in a desperate attempt to draw Western attention and aid to their cause.

We are very passionate about helping this wonderful group of humans who have suffered deep injustices throughout their lives. Many Tibetan refugees have never been able to get their eyes checked, and therefore don’t know they need glasses. When people receive the proper prescription for the first time they are amazed at the details in each leaf, and they are relieved of never-ending vision headaches. We ask that you contribute whatever you are able to, as well as share this go-fund with me. Please also share what is going on in Tibet with those who are unaware.

BIG THANKS for taking the time to read this! Please feel free to reach out with any questions to Fabiana or Spencer, and we will do our best to answer!

Below are some resources at your disposal if you wish to further educate yourself on the reality of Tibet today.

LHA’s website - Volunteer Info and more ...

Hello Dear Friends,

Family, friends, colleagues and LHA supporters:

Tashi Delek!

We are raising funds to help support LHA's Tibetan Smiles Dental Program! The Louisiana Himalaya Association (LHA) was founded in 1997 and has been providing free dental services for Tibetan Refugees in India since 2011.

As part of the fundraising effort we are hosting a fundraising event called the Joie De Dent Festival, meaning "the Joy of Teeth"! It's a healing arts and camping retreat festival held at the Lafayette LHA Center which is only a couple blocks for downtown Lafayette. It happens April 26-30 in conjunction with Lafayette's Festival International. For more about the Joie De Dent Festival go to bit.ly/JoiedeDents

Many of those served by LHA come from remote areas of the Himalayas where dental services are not available. Lacking dental hygiene education and financial resources, many individuals experience painful and /or health-threatening dental problems. LHA has been committed to providing a broad range of quality dental services to those in need and to using local, qualified dentists who reside and work in these communities of the Himalayas of Northern India.

We are asking for your financial support to help keep these free dental services available. Only $10 fills a cavity and $20 can provide a general dental checkup and cleaning. $70 can provide a life-saving root canal which would cost up to $2000 in the US. Every dollar goes a long way in India. 107 people received dental care from the proceeds of our 2022 Tibetan Smiles fundraiser which brought in $2700.

100% of your donation will go directly to LHA's Tibetan Smiles Dental Program. There are no overhead expenses or managerial costs, as LHA is a volunteer staffed organization where all volunteers cover their own travel and related expenses (no expense accounts).

Your donations, big or small, will have an immediate, long-lasting impact.

Thank you for your generosity!

Dear friends and supporters of LHA and the APOCOLYPSE BALL,