Page 104 - Defending Prabhupada Words - By Harivlas Das

His timely efforts saved the Berkeley temple from
foreclosure and dissolution and rebuilt the temple and
community to attract new American devotees from
1987 to 1991. In 1991 he moved again to rejuvenate the
Seattle temple. He was invited by temples in Vancouver,
Phoenix and Hawaii to help resolve their financial and
administrative difficulties which he did till 2016.

With a lot of zeal, he organized the first Anandamela
Festival of India 2008 in Redmond WA. It went on
to become the largest festival of Indian culture in the
Pacific Northwest attracting over 20,000 people. The
festival celebrated its 14th anniversary in July 2022.
He has inaugurated many such festivals - Holi Color
Festival March 2018 to 2022; Vegetarian Vegan Raw
Food Festival 2019 to 2022; Jagannath Rathayatra
Festival 2001 to 2022; Namaste India Festival 2019 to
2022; Diwali Lights of India Festival 2016 to 2022.

Wanting to do a bit for the future generation, he
channelized his energies to open a daycare centre for
children in 2009. Same year, he was instrumental in
the opening of a temple in Portland/Hillsdale, Oregon.
Never resting on his achievements, he opened a
fulltime accredited school in Seattle from pre-school
to sixth grade. The school began in 2010. In 2013 the
school moved from the temple to newly purchased
school building in Issaquah, WA. By 2018, thanks to
his efforts, a vibrant community of devotees had come
alive in Seattle with more than 130 initiated devotees
and over five hundred families.

09-02-2023 17:30:20
e.indd 103
Defending Prabhupada Words insid
Defending Prabhupada Words inside.indd 103 09-02-2023 17:30:20