Omaha nonprofit holds fundraiser for California wildfire victims

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - On Sunday at Omaha’s Hindu Temple Community Hall, there were dozens of volunteers from the India Association of Nebraska with their hands full.

They were cooking and serving up traditional Indian cuisine for a good cause.

“In January, we saw devastating wildfires in California,” Sridher Swaminathan, president of IAN, said. “We as a community wanted to do something for the low-income families and do a fundraising campaign and a part of it we decided to conduct an Indian food festival.”

The deadly Southern California wildfires destroyed or damaged 18,000 thousand buildings and forced tens of thousands from their homes.

Swaminathan and his team’s fundraiser started last week with a music festival. Their goal is to raise $25,000 dollars and so far they’ve raised $20,000.

“Few hundred volunteers work behind to conduct this event,” Swaminathan said. “The event has been extremely successful and we exceeded our goals since last week. We thank the community for coming out in large numbers to support it.”

However, lending a helping hand isn’t something new for the nonprofit.

In the past, they’ve partnered with organizations like the Red Cross and just a year ago they helped tornado victims rebuild in the metro.

“Volunteering means you’re giving three things, your treasure, talents, and time for doing something good for the community,” Alekha Dash, volunteer, said."

Alekha Dash has been volunteering with the organization for more than 30 years.

“This is our need, our call, and our community to come together to help our friends who are in need,” Dash said.

While Dash and Swaminathan are miles away from the wildfire destruction, they hope their support will travel a long way.

“We as a community can do something and together we can make a change,” Swaminathan said.

If you’d like to help out the California wildfire victims, the nonprofit has a set up an online donate page. The link to the page will be available for another week.