Aruna Mittal
She’s a baby sitter with a golden heart
Turning 21 is a big deal for most people. To start off with, it opens a lot of drinking doors.
But for 21-year-old Aruna Mittal, who doesn’t care for drinking, the notable age was an occasion to try something different and more meaningful.
“Everyone celebrates 21 with a drink. I wanted to show that you can celebrate it by helping others,” said Mittal, a senior at the University of Iowa.
Last year Mittal donated $1,008, or all of her baby-sitting money, to Mata Amritanandamayi Math, an international humanitarian organization she had been following and trusted not to “waste a single penny” of donations.
“I just saved all of it from September to June,” said Mittal, who regretted not having enough time to work for more money.
“Although college students don’t generally have a lot of money, many still spend hundreds of dollars on luxuries,” she said, listing things such as going to bars, movies and shopping.
“That money could be donated to the poor instead,” Mittal said.
The full-time student from Coralville said trips to India, where her family is from, provide first-hand knowledge of poverty.
“When you see other people suffer, you just can’t ignore that,” she said. “This is a sacrifice that I can make.”
Mittal said she hopes her efforts will inspire other young people to help the poor.
“If we have money doing social things, we could have money to spend helping others,” she said.
Also, Mittal said she thinks a person’s good deeds will be reciprocated.
“I’ve had more luck than usual this year,” she said.
— Hieu Pham
