Service with a SMILE

Organization name: SMILE
Area of Focus: Volunteer Mobilization for Community Development
Location: Chennai
Contact: thesmileworld@yahoo.co.in

It's not unusual to see a SMILE volunteer industriously burnishing a Ganesha temple statue one day, and wielding a water-saving device the next. From temple-cleaning, to canal-clearing, to slum development, SMILE does it all. In the short span of only four years, SMILE, a non-profit based in Chennai, has grown from an initial membership base of 33, to more than 30,000 participants today. Underlying the organization's phenomenal success is a simple, yet lesser-used dictum in the nonprofit world: "SMILE accepts no money and does no fund-raising. All we ask of people is to give of their time and skills."

The inspiration for this philosophy, says Param, the founder of SMILE, comes from a childhood incident with his father, a legendary Tamil filmmaker and producer. One evening, a young Param walked in from school with a bunch of tickets in his hand. The tickets, he was told, were to be sold in order to raise funds for a local charity. Too embarassed to follow his teacher's suggestions to approach his neighbors and friends to buy the tickets, Param approached his father for advice. His father's words would carry through with Param in the many years that followed: "Only give what you have. Give, and give generously, of yourself. What we can give of our time and skills is invaluable compared to money."

This versatility is one of the major reasons for SMILE's immense popularity. There are no monetary or skill requirements to join SMILE; one must only have "the desire to serve." As a result, volunteers come from a wide range of financial backgrounds and age groups, and can dedicate as much time as they would like to the activities. Many ardent volunteers spring from the very places where a SMILE activity has taken place. These people, having benefited from the activity, turn up as volunteers at other activities - and many end up bringing their friends and family along as well. Given the broad reach of its volunteer base, it is not uncommon to hear SMILE being spoken about in a Chennai slum, or in an executive office.

SMILE is also versatile in the range of issues that it takes on. From water-management programs, to temple cleaning activities, to the recent "Auto Drivers Workshop" in which workshops were conducted for more than 10000 city auto drivers, SMILE takes on any issue that is "the need of the hour". As a result of its water-saving program, the city has saved an estimated 100 million liters of water annually. Blood donation camps have succeeded in donating blood to over 3000 people. Clothes donation camps, in which mountains of clothes have been folded, sorted, and packaged, have reached a level of precision. "In two hours we were able to distribute clothes for over 6000 people, with a maximum waiting time of 20 minutes." Till now clothes have been donated to over 100000 people. SMILE's strategy, says Param, is two-pronged: "we focus on meeting the pressing needs of today, and looking after the needs of the future generation."

SMILE's latest endeavor - an educational program for high school children - is aimed at just that. The program, spearheaded by Param and supported by a group of volunteers, will address issues "not typically discussed in schools" such as traffic discipline, the need for energy-saving and basic human values such as respect and tolerance. Indeed, schools have been dogging Param's door to request him to address their students: his charismatic, down-to-earth manner of addressing students has caused his popularity to spread like wildfire amongst the younger generation.

It was only when I accompanied Param to one of these talks that I was able to get a complete sense of just how receptive youngsters were to his discussions. The talk, which was on the relationship between science and Indian mythology, has become hugely popular among parents, teachers and students alike for its emphasis on the knowledge hidden in Indian mythology. Children listened with rapt attention as he discussed the scientific relevance of many 'inventions' that are woven into the Mahabharata and Ramayana. Bristling with ideas by the end of the talk, the youngsters were vying to get their questions answered. In line with the broad-based nature of the discussion, the children fired a range of questions at him. A girl piped, "Sir, I have heard that the world is held up by 4 nagas and one elephant, is that true?", while another requested, "Please explain the scientific significance of the Nataraj." With his characteristic patience and good humor, he fielded the questions easily.

Though I had only accompanied Param, I was tired by the end of the 5-hour session. Yet, with two more meetings to follow, this was just another day for Param. "I miss these kinds of days on freer days. It's tiring, but it's work that I love doing," he chuckled. It's the energy of this humanitarian, visionary and entrepreneur -- along with the tireless efforts of an army of volunteers -- that has succeeded in producing a service mantra that rings well with the times: the first step in beginning to help others, is to help yourself.