Yasodha Porchezhian : An agriculture graduate from India, working at the crossroads where technology and business meet in America.Inspired by the academic interest NSF creates in Indian origin American kids, Yasodha entered the NSF scene behind her daughter as an onlooker of the Spelling bee competition of our local chapter at Saint Louis, MO. Then we latched on for years to develop our skills and learn to work to attain preset goals. Our kids in the family learned a lot about hard work and the benefit of perseverance through NSF.The fact that NSF is entirely run by volunteers hit us only when we had a chance to participate in the National competition at Northwestern University, Chicago. The parent sessions held by senior NSF volunteers inspired the parents not only to provide opportunities for our kids but also to extend the same to disadvantaged students in India in addition to the enliving experiences of Volunteering.Inspired bythe NSF concept, we formed a local group of kids who learned from each other from a very young age to where they are now, starting college next year. In addition to actively volunteering in the local chapter for many years, I had the privilege of coaching a group of kids for the Mathcounts competition for a season. These opportunities enriched my life while contributing to Indian kids in both America and India. In our last India trip, we encountered the same spirit of NSF at Ananthagopalapuram, Thanjavur district in Mr.Thirupathy Ponniaya. The schools, teachers, parents and the community benefited immensely from his selfless service in providing educational support opportunities for needy kids. This reminded me of the spirit of NSF and how the synergy of these two known forces can combine and change the world for the better in this smaller part of the world called Thanjavur. Hence I am humbled to initiate that connection.