FAQ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SEWA INTERNATIONAL

BACKGROUND What is Sewa International? SEWA International is a 501(c)(3) Hindu Faithbased nonprofit charity run by dedicated volunteers, from all sections of the community. Where are all your Chapters? 38 Chapters in 20 Metro areas of 22 US States.
STA TE CA CA CA CO FL FL FL GA IL IL IL KY MA MD NC NC NJ NY NY NY CHAPTER Sacramento San Francisco (Bay Area) San Diego Denver Ft. Lauderdale Miami Tampa Atlanta Bloomington Chicago Quad Cities/ Davenport IA Louisville Boston Greenbelt Raleigh Greensboro Trenton Albany Long Island New York City Queens 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 STA TE NY OH OH OH OH OH OR PA PA PA TN TX TX TX TX VA VT WA CHAPTER Rochester Akron Cincinnati Columbus Cleveland Columbus Portland Harrisburg Philadelphi a Pittsburgh Memphis Austin Fort Worth/Dal las Houston San Antonio Tysons Corner Burlington Seattle

When was Sewa International started in the USA? Sewa International was started in India in 1989. Outside of India, the Sewa movement took root in UK in 1991 and ever since has spread over 17 countries. Sewa International in the USA was started in 2003 and is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity since 2004. Where is Sewa Office in the US? As a modern nonprofit, Sewa has developed a unique model of a geographically distributed, volunteer-based management approach. Using the Internet creatively with fluid groups and social networking tools, Sewa leverages Web resources (online conferences/ meetings, Skype, Facebook, Twitter, etc), and manages with only two physical meetings per year. Sewa Executive team is volunteer based. We hire for key positions (accounting, Physical Sewa Offices: Houston, TX: Accounting Office (donor receipts/ reimbursements): Donor Relations Office: Bloomington IL. Grants Development Office: Washington, DC Back Office: Bangalore and Bhagyanagar (Hyderabad), India. FINANCES What is your Administrative overhead? Very nominal - 4% including credit card processing fees and other administrative work fees. What was Sewas Revenue? See Annual Reports.

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Can I see your Annual Report to know how you raise and disburse resources? Annual Reports" are at: http://sewausa.org/annual-reports Or request a copy by e-mailing info@sewausa.org MANAGEMENT Who are your Board of Directors/Trustees? See Annual Report. Are Sewa Board of Directors/Trustees paid? No. They volunteer their time. Who is President/VP/Executive Team? See Annual Report. Are President/VP/Executive Team paid? No. They volunteer their time. This way we keep the overheads low. Are Sewa employees paid for their work? Sewa is a volunteer based, volunteer run organization and hires minimal employees based on specific project need. Even its Executive Team (Board of Directors, President, VP, etc.) is volunteer based. BENEFICIARIES OF SEWA FUNDING/PROJECTS Who are the beneficiaries? Who does Sewa provide funding to? NGOs that have a good track record will be the beneficiaries of the funds collected by Sewa. What percentage of funds raised by Sewa go to US and International projects? Sewa goal for a funding distribution is 30% US to 70% International projects annually.

Disasters by definition are unpredictable. Hence, it is not possible to predict beforehand such distribution since in a particular year disaster relief/rehab forms a significant portion of funds disbursed. How does Sewa choose the projects it supports? Sewa has a wide network of partner charities in the needy areas, to assist causes that have an immediate need for assistance, such as: natural calamities, uprooted/estranged groups of people and/or health/education related issues. Our selection process is based on the values of trust, transparency, partnership and accountability. These standards help our Sewa team choose wisely when investing our efforts towards any cause. How does Sewa evaluate the projects it supports? Sewa has developed standards recently that each project that it supports should confirm to for evaluation. Sewa budgets 3-7% of the Program funds for evaluation. DONATION AND FUNDING Does Sewa receive government funding? As an NGO (non-government organization), Sewa does not receive any direct government funding allowing us to remain independent, making unbiased evaluations of government policies and programs. Our Donors fund all our programs. The government has extended certain tax and duty exemptions, enabling minimize costs. In that case, how does Sewa raise resources? Through two main routes:

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- Individual and organizational Donations in Cash and / Or Kind. - Some may sponsor the costs of education and/or health inputs to a child or group or family. How does Sewa cover its own costs (overheads) Sewas organizational costs are covered by: - Raising Donations - Majority Workers are Volunteers - Infrastructure, Office Supplies and Other necessities are made available by donations in kind and/or fiscal contributions. We do have an on-going need for your support and contributions for equipment, corpus funds, skills and services. It is support of this nature that enables us to focus on our activities in the field rather than on our own viability. Every contribution in these areas frees resources and enhances our capacities. The need is HUGE! Will my small contribution make a difference? Sure it will. In fact, we estimate that something as small as the purchase of a T-shirt and having donation drives with friends helps various projects including Bhutanese Empowerment, Diwali Food Drive. SEWA FUNDED/INVOLVED PROJECTS What projects is Sewa involved in? What does Sewa do/fund? Sewas projects fall under two categories: US Domestic o Bhutanese Refugee Empowerment (BRE) Project (provide funding/ volunteers) o Disaster Relief (provide volunteers) o Community projects International Projects (provide funding) o Disaster relief/rehab o Development projects in Child Welfare Sewa International FAQ

Education Health (slum/rural/tribal) Women empowerment Tribal Welfare Environment Microenterprise

What are examples of Sewa Projects? See Brochure and Annual Reports. How are resources used? Resources are distributed based on the need of the projects undertaken by Sewa at the time. The level of emergency will dictate where funds are distributed first. Currently resources are being used for: 1. Infrastructure building, equipment, etc. 2. Education Programs Social workers, Supplies and Infrastructure. 3. Awareness Outreach Efforts. 4. General Supplies, Health Drives and Office Costs. How does Sewa work with refugees in the US? What is Bhutanese Refugee Project in the US? Sewa adopted the Bhutanese Refugee Empowerment (BRE) project as its Flagship project in the US in 2008. Under the BRE project, all Sewa Chapters focuses their energies on assisting children and families through education programs such as ESOL classes for adults and State and National Exam preparation for teens (SAT/ACT), College Prep, Financial Aid (FAFSA), Income Tax Returns Assistance, etc. Pesticide free vegetable farming, hand-loom carpet microenterprise, sewing and nutrition clubs are some of the other projects. SEWA is continuously evolving to meet the needs of this growing community. What other projects that Sewa Chapters do?

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Sewa chapters are involved in projects such as Health fairs, Food drives, Adopt-a-highway, Cricket-for Charity, Talent-for-Charity, Habitat for Humanity, Inner City Tuition, SAT prep for the needy, Temple/Synagogue/Church cleaning, and other local projects. For more information see Hinduism Today Jan 2010 article (on Sewa Website in Press Room). HOW CAN I HELP? Financial support In-kind donations (car and van donation, furs, clothes, jewelry, furs, etc.)

Yes you can! To donate in Indian Rupees, please send your contribution to: Sewa International 49, Deendayal Upadhyaya Marg, New Delhi -110002 India Tel: +91 11 23232850 +91 11 23232850 +91 11 23232850 or 23684445 Email: sewainternationaldelhi {at] gmail (dot) com

II. To Donate in Kind

II.A. Used Car, Boat or RV It is simple. All you have to do is contact Donation Line and provide them Sewa USA client code 2066. Donation Line accepts used cars (working or not), RVs, boats or other vehicles. Donation Line Contact Information Donation Line, LLC Toll free phone: (888) 448-3345 Fax: (860) 228-9037 E-Mail: donate@donationline.com II.B. Clothes, Fur, Jewelry, etc These donations are accepted only by Sewa Chapters. Please contact the nearest Sewa Chapter or call (708) USA-SEWA [ (708) 8727392].

I. To Donate Cash
I.A. Single Time Donation Online donations (credit card, PayPal, Google Checkout) http://www.sewausa.org/contribute-sewausa Mail Your Contribution: Donation by personal check, payable to "Sewa International" and mail it to: Sewa International 3908 Westhollow Parkway Houston TX 77082 Tel: (708) USA SEWA (708) 872-7392 I.B. Periodic Withdrawal Donor can now sign up so that the contribution is transferred from your donation from your bank on periodic basis, i.e. every month. Form can be found at http://sewausa.org/contribute-sewa-usa Send completed form to address above or fax to 1-510-405-8654. I.C. Can I donate in Indian Rupees?

III. To Donate Time/Talent

Become a Volunteer. o Contact your local Chapter o Spread the word by referring your friends, family members, co-workers to Sewa International. o Contact temples and local community organizations and inform them about the service activities of Sewa International. o Start a chapter in your region to create awareness and raise funds for the various service projects of Sewa Page 4 of 5

Sewa International FAQ

International in India and other countries. Contact VP Organization Darshan at 574- 432-4238 or email info@sewausa.org on how to start a chapter. Become a volunteer with an existing chapter in your region and participate in meetings and fundraising events.

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