Community News | Brisbane
Celebrating Humanity’s Diversity Superheroes without Capes Five-Year Anniversary
Dosa Hut, Hyderabad Flavours and Swades, traditionally owned family restaurants that have now become household names.
B
Joseph Kolapudi eing ordinary is usually not celebrated today but having a gala event in honour of those who have survived extraordinary odds and overcome was certainly the theme of a recent charity dinner known as Superheroes without Capes - the Gala of Ordinaries. Hosted by Simply Human, a nonprofit organisation founded by Prerna Pahwa, the winner of the Australia Day Achievement Award a few years ago, also celebrated five years since founding her charity, and it was attended by hundreds of supporters and leaders from multicultural communities. As part of the celebrations, the origin story behind the organisation was revealed, starting from simple beginnings of fundraising for cancer patients, to partnering with leading cancer research centers, to highlighting stories of cancer survivors. For Prerna, the community that rallied behind her were the real “superheroes without capes” and remained the reason why her charity gala was meant to be. The event also marks the milestone support of many Indian businesses who were also present at the event, including Download Our App
Additionally, the evening of celebrations brought together many leading voices in the medical, political and social field, including recent 2021 Queensland Australian of the Year, Dr. Dinesh Palipana OAM, one of the highlight speakers of the night. The gala evening also honoured the stories of cancer survivors and current ambassadors for the charity, including Ujwal Poudel, a leukemia survivor, who first inspired Prerna to launch her charity organisation. Above all, the event’s focus shined on ordinary people within the community who were able to take up a cause greater than themselves, to become a superhero in their own right, through extraordinary means.
the years, has encouraged the community to get involved, through bone marrow drives to big fundraising efforts, and had raised the bar for survivors to thrive on their journey to recovery.
Beyond the celebrations, the dinner also helped raise awareness and much-needed funds to continue the fight against cancer, and to highlight the ongoing need for other champions for the cause, who could lead the charge for supporting survivors within the community.
For the rest of the Indian community, it was an open opportunity to play our part in supporting the ordinaries among us, who often are striving to survive, and are still able to contribute back through their abilities to be superheroes.
A special endorsement by the Mayoress of the City of Brisbane, and chair of the Mayor’s Charitable Fund, capped the night off, with a tribute to the work of the organisations that was, in her own words, “truly saving lives”.
Though five years young, the organisation continues to pave the way for other survivors to become ambassadors for their community, and for the wider society, as they empower others to become involved in the cause.
Prerna herself was able to acknowledge that the efforts of her 100% volunteer team, throughout
Being simply human is often something worth celebrating.
OCTOBER I 2021
www.DesiAustralia.com
16
