From bake sales to lemonade stands to half and full marathons, the Purani family has done it all. With her husband and two children on board, Jalpa Purani spent two years as a motivated campaigner for PoP and recently reached her goal of funding a full school build! Because of their hard work and dedication, the funds they raised are going toward the construction of an entire school in Luang Prabang, Laos. (Yes, an entire school!)

When Alap Purani gave the #PoPBook to his wife Jalpa for her birthday, he didn’t know the ripple effect he was about to create. Jalpa read the book and was most inspired by the story of a young boy in India who, when asked what he wanted most in the world, said “a pencil”.

The story of access to quality education in India is close to Jalpa’s heart — this is where she is from. Growing up, her parents always put education first and sacrificed so that Jalpa and her brother could have a promising future — their motto: education will create opportunities!

“While reading the book, it reminded me of a time when my mom worked 2 full-time jobs and would walk 90 minutes, even in snow, from one job to another so she can save the bus ticket fare towards our education.”

Now Jalpa is carrying on the selfless dedication to learning that her parents exhibited. “To me, education is the greatest means of achieving world peace. Education removes ignorance,” Jalpa says.

We’re so inspired by Jalpa, her family and all of the community members who’ve helped fundraise with her, and we’re hoping to get to that next lemonade stand!

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Our PoP family is always growing. We’d love for you to join us.