husband for years while he was
extremely ill. She went deep into debt
trying to keep him alive.
For the past five years, Niro
has gotten by with the help of Sai
Dham, which operates out of a Hindu
temple located in a modest bungalow
nearby. Khanna, 51, and Subhra
Mukherjee, 50, run a team of a few
dozen volunteers who make deliveries
to approximately 265 seniors and
people living with disabilities in the
Greater Toronto Area, who couldn’t
otherwise access food banks.Sai Dham was founded in 2012, after
Khanna and Mukherjee read an article
about the alarming rate of poverty in
Peel Region, the area of southern
Ontario where they each settled after
emigrating from India. (According to a
report from the non-profit United Way,
52 per cent of neighbourhoods in Peel
are low- income.) “For us, food is God,
and hunger is a number-one priority,”
says Mukherjee. “We never thought
about a food bank; we just wanted to
provide a service to humanity.”
In the beginning, they bought
supplies with their own money andfound people in need through word of
mouth. But over the past seven years,
thanks to growing food donations and
volunteer ranks, they have become a
vital support in the area. They’ve
delivered over 4,50,000 kilograms of
food—due in part to a lush vegetable
garden on the temple’s property—and
their services have expanded to include
a breakfast programme for 300 students
a day, as well as supplying local food
banks during times of crisis.
Sai Dham’s work is attracting
attention and awards, but it’s an uphill
battle. The food bank operates out of
basements and minivans, and it still
needs trucks, proper storage, an office
and administrative support. And
though it receives modest donations
from local supermarkets, bigger
sponsorships have yet to materialize.
Back in her apartment filled with
plants, books, paintings and Catholic
iconography, Niro tells Khanna that
she will be done paying off one of her
loans by the winter. She jokes that
she will no longer need to be a client of
the food bank. “I will find a way to
repay you,” she promises, her hands
clasped together.
Khanna points to a picture of Jesus
on Niro’s wall. “Look at his eyes.
They are so merciful,” he says. “That
light is what we need to carry.” He
continues: “Our different faiths are just
a belief and a classroom. We all live in
the same building.”
Niro nods in agreement. “We are all
human beings,” she says.20 september 2019
Reader’s Digest Everyday Heroes
SAI DHAM’S SERVICES
HAVE EXPANDED TO
INCLUDE A BREAKFAST
PROGRAMME FOR 300
STUDENTS A DAY.