Selfless service is the very essence of devotion [March 29th,1967], the best cure for egotism [January 13th, 1968]. Consider selfless service as the best spiritual discipline. … But do not believe that you can by means of selfless service reform or reshape the world. You may or may not; that does not matter. The real value of selfless service, its most visible result, is that it reforms you, reshapes you. Do selfless service as a spiritual discipline; then you will be humble and happy – Sathya Sai Baba
The teachings of Sathya Sai Baba emphasise that every act of service, small or big, performed with the attitude of serving God residing in those being served, confers immense spiritual benefit upon the aspirant.
The Service wing has structured several activities which are undertaken on a regular basis throughout the year. There are also ad hoc service projects undertaken during the year on special occasions such as the Sathya Sai Global Seva day or during Christmas.
Below is a list of some of the projects run by the service wing at the centre:
Supporting Humanitarian Projects
Foodbank – There is a food collection project that is run by the centre every four months. Members of the Centre contribute food items which are donated to the local foodbank who distribute the items delivered to people in need.
Sandwich collection – Pret a Manger very kindly donate food items such as sandwiches, wraps, salads which are collected by volunteers from the Centre and delivered to a homeless shelter locally. This service is carried out on a monthly basis.
Serving the homeless – Volunteers from the Centre cook and deliver food to a local sanctuary for the homeless people. This service is currently carried out on a monthly basis.
Dementia Care – Volunteers from the Centre attend a local residential care home for the elderly and engage with the residents whether in conversation, playing board games or other heart to heart activity.
Environment Project
Organic farm – Volunteers from the Centre including SSE children, Youth and the adults come together on a monthly basis to help with some farming activities at Organic farm at the Hare Krishna Temple. At the beginning of the year the fields are ploughed and prepared for planting. During the spring months a lot of potting and seeding activity is undertaken. These are then later planted in the fields whilst adding manure to enrich the soil and removing any surrounding weeds.
Other ad hoc projects –
Refugee relief – A number of volunteers participate in the Refugee Relief project based in Wellingborough. The volunteers have helped out in the warehouse as well as packing gift parcels which are then sent off to Eastern European countries and Africa. The volunteers have also helped in loading lorries with household items which are also transported and delivered to local charities in eastern Europe. During Christmas the centre members have collected items for putting in shoe boxes which are all gift wrapped and delivered to Refuge Relief. These are then delivered to underprivileged children in Eastern Europe.
Hospital gardening – The Centre undertook a one off project at the Royal National Orthopaedic hospital to clear and tidy the garden areas between wards to create a more pleasant environment for the patients to enjoy. The gardens were neglected and very overgrown with weeds. Volunteers from the centre removed all the weeds and trimmed all the plants down and cleaned the flower beds out for the hospital to put new plants.
Caring for the elderly – The Centre regularly provides support to Age-Link, a charity whose aim is to bring comfort and joy to those elderly persons who may be lonely. This may be because they are housebound, blind, disabled or just lonely. The volunteers provide transportation service to and from the venue to those that require it. The volunteers provide a fun and exciting afternoon tea party for the elderly and disabled guests from the local community.
The youth of the Centre also participate by providing entertainment, particularly during their Christmas party.
Christmas “Shoeboxes” for Moldova Volunteers prepare approximately 54 shoeboxes laden with Christmas gifts including stationary items, colouring pencils, toys, gloves, hats, toothpaste and brush, comb, etc which is then delivered by a partnering charity, TEECH, to the needy and underprivileged families in Moldova.
For further information please contact us : Service@harrowwestsaicentre.org.uk