Hello, I’m Navya Banga, a student at the American School of Bombay, and I’m supporting OSCAR Foundation at the 2023 TATA Mumbai Marathon. I will be participating in the Dream Run at the event. I am volunteering with OSCAR Foundation and participating in their educational programs and social media awareness. I was introduced to the OSCAR foundation by my father, Gagan Banga, who is a runner and will be running the full marathon. He has been associated with the OSCAR Foundation since 2015. I’ve been able to see their impact since then, when I would play football with the kids, and I see it now, through learning about the organization and volunteering. I’m a big believer in the importance of education and I’ve been incredibly impressed with how OSCAR has used sports to make a meaningful, lasting impact in the lives of underprivileged children. I am teaming up with my father to run and make a difference in the lives of children from underserved communities. OSCAR is a community based Sports for Development (S4D) organization that uses the power of football to encourage children to stay in school and make them more resilient. Through OSCAR Foundation’s Football, Education, and Young Leader Programme they have empowered 14,000 youth in low income communities since 2010. OSCAR Foundation also promotes gender equity and encourages girls to challenge the traditional roles of women in society. OSCAR Foundation aims to create educated community leaders who will inspire future generations and gain better life opportunities. Currently, we have programs in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Daman and Rajasthan.