One Gift, One Child and One Warmer
Medium | 28.11.2025 01:41
One Gift, One Child and One Warmer
8 min read
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Just now
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PEHCHAAN THE STREET SCHOOL, AN INTRODUCTION
Once again, it is the most beautiful time of the year with mugs of hot chocolate, intricate ornaments and fairy lights all around. The same is the case with Pehchaan The Street School as the organisation gears up to spread Christmas cheer to its 1600+ students. Pehchaan The Street School was started by Mr. Akash Tandon in the year 2015 with merely five volunteers and ten children under a metro in Delhi NCR. What started of as a quite small group of people has now transformed into a diverse organization involving hundreds of volunteers and interns as well as more than a thousand students which is only the beginning as the NGO is actively dedicating its efforts towards broadening its reach along with increasing the number of students it can take under its wing. Pehchaan The Street School aims to provide education and agency to all children irrespective of their background or economic status. It works towards embedding more than enough knowledge within the students in order to extend towards them the opportunity to become self-sufficient in the future and attain a livelihood that comfortably sustains them. Pehchaan The Street School does not revolve around books and classrooms, it is concerned with lightening up underprivileged children’s worlds, quite literally too, this festival.
CHRISTMAS EVENT AT PEHCHAAN THE STREET SCHOOL
The organisation will be holding a Christmas event this season like it does every time Christmas comes around with performances, a whole lot of smiling faces and collaborations with partners such as Girl Up Ascent, Delhi Himachal Students Association (DHSA), and Delhi Kinnaur Students Association (DKSA), who helped with the Christmas celebrations and blanket drives. The moment a person thinks about Christmas, what is the first thing that crosses their mind? It is safe to say that the answer is gifts because don’t we all love receiving them? I can easily recall my own excitement as a child, watching the clock on the night of Christmas eve wondering when Santa would decide to pay me a visit. However, the festival is not just about unwrapping presents, it celebrates the joy of sharing and giving. There is no amount of hot chocolate that warms up our hearts quite as much as watching a loved one’s face light up after you hand them a present. This festival is quite special to Pehchaan The Street School because the core of the NGO lies in the act of giving itself. This winter, we urge the public to donate as many gifts as they find themselves in a position to provide to the underprivileged children who are not fortunate enough to expect tons of presents under the Christmas tree. We, at Pehchaan The Street School, call on you to join hands with us in making this Christmas a bit more merrier for our students by playing the role of secret Santa. Surely, we are all quite jolly this time of the year but that giddy feeling is hollow if we have no one to share it with so if you are able to donate a present to the children, I encourage you to do so. For those of you who have old toys or clothes sitting needlessly in your store rooms, it might not mean much to part ways with them but if you donate them to an underprivileged child? It can make their entire year. Additionally, it is quite a better venture than simply discarding away these old items you no longer require only for them to end up piled up in landfills degrading the environment and rotting away. By choosing to donate them, you will be hitting two birds with one stone by contributing to the betterment and enjoyment of the children as well as protection of the environment and future generations, at large.
THE CHRISTMAS WARMTH KIT
December marks the beginning of the sweater season with chilly winds waiting to greet us the moment we step out of the house. According to WION news, On Wednesday (November 26), Delhi experienced the coldest morning of the season, with temperatures plunging to 8°C, marking the lowest minimum temperature recorded in November since 2022, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The temperature was 3.3 degrees Celsius below the usual minimum for this time of year. On Tuesday (November 25), the temperature had been recorded at 9°C. Therefore, it is safe to say that this year, particularly, winters will be quite unforgiving. However, fortunately, inside our insulated houses with fuzzy socks on, curled up in a woolen blanket with a warm drink clutched in our hands while wearing a beanie on our heads, we tend to find complete relief from the cold and dark weather outside. The underprivileged children do not have such a liberty due to lack of adequate resources and are forced to encounter the harsh climate which can have adverse effects on their health. In order to protect its students from what is predicted to be the coldest winter in Delhi, NCR, Pehchaan The Street School is currently dedicating its efforts towards collaborating with various organisations and raising funds from the public. To simplify the process of donations they’ve even created the concept of “The Christmas Warmth Kit” where you, the reader, from within the comfort of your own home can help them spread warmth to the children by donating 300INR for one kit which would consist of a pair of winter wear (thermalwear), stationary essentials and eatables and treats! Pehchaan The Street School will be donating these kits to 1600+ underprivileged students across all of its centers. What better time is there to help put a smile on a child’s face than the season of Christmas? Your contribution, however small it may seem to you, truly matters. A single pair of gloves might be an afterthought to you but for the underprivileged children experiencing the biting cold on the streets of Delhi, it can mean the difference between comfort and suffering. A packet of sweets may come across as insignificant yet it could very well turn into a memory that they will forever cherish. Moreover, basic stationary can go a long way in motivating them to go to school more regularly and take pride in their education.
DONATORS’ EXPERIENCES
I would also like to share the experience of Triman Kaur, a kind and compassionate social worker, who made donations to the children last Christmas. In Triman’s words: “This year, I got to experience that feeling (of kinship) with Pehchaan The Street School. We celebrated the joy of Christmas with the underprivileged children full of excitement and happiness. We donated a thousand blankets across all eight centers of the organisation in Delhi. We also gave them small presents, chips, and burgers as a feast. We truly enjoyed our endeavours. The children also showed their talents and skills by performing different dances, doing public speaking, and learning how to be together. Every center had its own charm and style of celebrating Christmas. Some drew what they thought Santa looked like, some explained what they wished for this Christmas, and some just became mesmerized by helping the volunteers, the force behind the successful event. One of the highlights of the event was the science show by Ashu Ghai, a famous YouTuber who runs the channel Science and Fun. I used to watch his videos during the lockdown and was amazed by his experiments. When he showed up for the children that day and demonstrated his beautiful science experiments in real life, the young minds were in awe. His Instagram caption, “Dil ko ajeeb si khushi mili us din” (My heart got a different sense of joy that day), was a testament of his love and affection for the underprivileged community.” In the same way, even through a minimal contribution, you can become a part of something so beautiful, which is, giving back to society.
WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE
Additionally, what makes this event extremely meaningful is the cultural familiarity it gives to the children. Most of the children have mostly only seen Christmas decorations outside stores but haven’t ever felt included in the celebration, this is where Pehchaan The Street School and you, the public, step in and put an end to it. When the underprivileged students get winterwear or a gift, or even something as small as companionship to celebrate with, it opens their eyes to a world where not every festival has to be exclusionary. They realize that representation matters in every single case, from decorating the tree to singing carols to having performances with their friends. These moments shape how they perceive themselves in society and give them a feeling of belonging which is often denied to economically disadvantaged children. Beyond the Christmas event, what really empowers Pehchaan The Street School is its adamant belief that every child is entitled to dignity not just during the festivals but all year long. The Christmas Warmth Kits are seasonal, but the organization’s bigger vision is focused on the long road of empowerment. Its volunteers work with communities in which children often grow up without secure access to education, nutrition and emotional support. Christmas, therefore, emerges as an entry point that raises awareness on their needs that prevail even after the Christmas trees are packed away. As Pehchaan The Street School prepares for this celebration, it emphasizes that meaningful change is not merely a result of the actions of a few, it comes from a united effort. Every donated kit is the result of someone willingly choosing to care rather than living in ignorant bliss about the grim situation of those who are deprived of basic human necessities. Similarly, every warm sweater represents a promise that no child should suffer due to the conditions they were born into and every smile on a child’s face stands as living breathing proof that small actions, when multiplied by many, can genuinely completely transform lives and bring about a revolution. Hence, Pehchaan The Street School prompts you to be someone’s light, not only during these cold winter nights but throughout the course of the children’s journeys, by inviting you to bring Christmas to Pehchaan The Street School. To further contribute, join Pehchaan The Street School in its mission by donating and signing up as an intern, volunteer or a member, not by obligation but rather by the kindness of your heart. Your presence, generosity and even the smallest gesture can transform into a lifetime of change for someone who has never been on the receiving end of it. Let your actions be the reason a child feels seen, valued and warm. I recommend everyone to become a part of the NGO’s hopeful community and help them ensure that no child is left out of the progress of the economy.
INFORMATIVE LINKS
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s official website- https://pehchaanstreetschool.org/
Link to Triman Kaur’s review-
Pehchaan The Street School’s Email- pehchaanschool@gmail.com
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Facebook-
https://www.facebook.com/PehchaanTheStreetSchoolOfficial/
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Instagram-
https://www.instagram.com/pehchaanstreetschool/?hl=en
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Twitter- https://x.com/Pehchaan_School
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Linkedin-
https://www.linkedin.com/company/pehchaan-the-street-school-trust/
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Youtube-
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXd4gnTazJh3JugKENt5yog
Link to Pehchaan The Street School’s Pinterest-
https://in.pinterest.com/PehchaanTheStreetSchool/
Link to Donate- https://payu.in/web/7A545867B21D1991AD19F90956CD46B3
Link to join us at Pehchaan The Street School- https://pehchaanstreetschool.org/join-us/
