Sheetal Ayyatan
Saahas for Cause was formed in 2019 with the aim of serving the South Asian society of Southern California. Since its inception, founder and current Executive Director Payal Sawhney has had a clear vision guided by her rich experience in the field of Social Work. The South Asian community is viewed as Model society, which is seen as rich, driven and influential. Due to this Model Minority Myth, there is a huge South Asian population that requires assistance and yet goes unserved. It has been Saahas’ effort to be the voice of these populations and Saahas’ endeavor to shine light on the need for in-language services, resources and outreach to those in need in the South Asian population.
Saahas under the guidance of Sawhney has advocated with community leaders, educational institutions, office bearers in Southern California; the need for better resources for the South Asian underserved community with regard to basic needs such as food, housing, mental health, and gender based violence. She has also worked extensively with South Asian teenagers and young adults to engage and empower them. Saahas has been conducting workshops on teen dating violence, engaging parents through hybrid parenting conversations, conducting workshops with schools on mental health needs of South Asian students and improving cultural competency.
As a testimonial to the stellar work being done by Saahas for Cause under the able leadership of Payal Sawhney, Saahas for Cause has been the recipient of multiple awards this year.
Payal Sawhney was conferred with Woman of the Year for the State of California by 58th District Assemblywoman Christina Garcia. She was also bestowed with the recognition by of Mayor of Cerritos, Chuong Vo.
Other awards include Community Engagement Award for Payal Sawhney & Raji Satish and Diversity Event of the Year APIDA Awareness Week, shared by Saahas’ volunteers Aditi Simlote, Sheetal Ayyatan, Varshini Satish; youth interns- Keya Gupta, Sanchi Kohli and Prisha Desai. Both these awards were facilitated by Cerritos College. Saahas was conferred these awards for its distinguished educational efforts for making the mainstream educational institutions abreast of the challenges faced by different generation of South Asian immigrants. This event was attended by both students and educators.
