7/23/2019 2015 Coverage in Plano Profile Magazine (December
Issue)
3/546 planoprole.com |December 2015
plano givesprole
P R
A moved from India
to the United States in
August 1974. In order
to support himself, and
pay for his fly-now-pay-later airline ticket,
he immediately took his first job as a
dishwasher at a hospital before climbing
the corporate ladder and becoming theChief Strategy Officer at
Perot Systems
(later acquired by Dell). Raj retired in
December 2010 from corporate life to
pursue what he calls real life.ogether, with his wife Aradhana,
or
Anna, this dynamic duo volunteers with
organizations that focus on hunger,
health, and lifelong learning, as well
as childrens education and safety.
Tey also own Asava Consulting, Inc.,
which offers a wide range of consult-
ing services to businesses as well as
the nonprofits they work for. Annaand I are passionate about
giving back
to the com-
munity, said
Raj, noting
the Childrens
Advocacy
Center of Col-
lin County, theNorth exas
Food Bank,
the exas IndoAmerican
Physicians
Society, the
Indian Ameri-
can FriendshipCouncil, and
the American
Heart Associa-
tion. Children,
education and
health evolved
as the three
pillars we choseto invest our
resources in.
Raj and Anna were surprised tolearn that in an affluent city
like Plano,
there are issues such as hunger, child
neglect and abuse. Both of us toured
the Childrens Advocacy Center of Col-
lin County and were shaken to learn
about the kind of child abuse we are
surrounded with. On the other hand,
we were impressed by the dedication of
the staff and the systemic approach thecenter takes to assist
and represent the
children.
Raj joined the board of directors
shortly after their tour. Children are
our future, and we have to do every-
thing in our power to leave behind a
better world for them.
First Comes Love, ThenComes VolunteeringTe Asavas have been
married for 33
years. It was an arranged marriage,
but very different from what you mightthink, said Raj. Our
families facilitat-
ed the introduction, then each of us had
the freedom to make the final decision.
We believe that open communication as
equals has been our strongest suit.Te mutual support is critical
in their
volunteer work. Even though Raj is
retired from corporate America, he and
Anna provide executive coaching and
consulting services to many organiza-
tions. Anna and I are a team, said Raj.We routinely discuss
where we could
best apply our strengths across various
projects and causes. What we learned in
the corporate world is so beneficial in
the volunteer world: Te methodologies,
recognition of the problemfleshing
out the right option, and developing the
solution to reach the desired end goal.
Reaching the IndianCommunityRaj and Anna also work to spread
the
message of volunteering to the localIndian community. Te Indian
commu-
nity in the United States is very giving,
but not as involved as it could be, said
Raj. When we first started participat-
ing in the American Heart Associations
Heart Walk in the mid-2000s, therewere over 40,000 people
walking with
teams from many of the local organiza-
tions. But we had to look really hard to
find a third Indian there. He added, I
learned that people of Indian origin are
more vulnerable to heart disease thanthe general population, so
we decided to
raise awareness about the serious hearthealth issues faced by
people of Indian
origin.
Te Asavas carefully tailor their
efforts to focus on key issues in the
community. Whether spreading heart-
health messages to the Indian com-
munity or raising funds for the North
exas Food Bank, the couple handleseach challenge with great
focus and in-
credible compassion. Life, as I learned
from a discourse of an Indian pundit,should be comprised of
three stages:
Real Life
with Raj Asava
BY AMY SANDLING CRAWFORD | Photos by Brandon Hurd
7/23/2019 2015 Coverage in Plano Profile Magazine (December
Issue)
4/5
December 2015|planoprofle.com 47
Kudos to Raj
Raj is a born leader, an excellentcommunicator and a hard
workingindividual ready to extend his supportto community causes he
believes in.His energy, commitment and spiritof giving back to the
community iscontagious. Dr. Prasad Thotakura,coordinator
with the Indian American FriendshipCouncilRaj is generous in his
support of theCollin County Childrens AdvocacyCenter and passionate
about thecause. He serves on the communityrelations committee,
offering his busi-ness expertise as we work to increaseawareness of
the center and the pow-erful work we do. He has volunteeredat the
back-to-school fair the past twoyears, helping children with new
shoesand helping them select backpacks. Lynne McLean, CEO,
Collin
County Childrens Advocacy CenterRaj has guided us through
severalmajor fundraising and community ser-vice events. He has
great forethoughtand has helped us to set achievablegoals as well
as given us insight forwhat can be done for the future of
ourorganization. He is a humanitarian anda leader and has been a
great friend[to our organization]. Nabeel Syed,president of
theTexas Indo-American PhysiciansSociety Northeast Chapter
learning, earning and returning, said
Raj. Anna and I believe that we are
now in the third stage of our lives. It
is our time to give back to the society
that shaped us into who we are, and to
transfer resources and knowledge to the
next generation.
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