Devulapally-Suri Family
To Bhavana and her family, the continuity of service is important.
“My children always had a service mentality,” says Bhavana. “Honeycomb connects with them on an ongoing basis and drives the understanding of people who need help and the importance of it.”
Bhavana and her husband, Bhavan, are parents to sixth-grader twins, Raina and Milan (age 12). It was 2018 when their family became involved with Honeycomb. “My daughter and son wanted to volunteer,” mom says, “but most organizations didn’t allow for young ones…so I googled online and Honeycomb came up.”
The family’s first project was helping at the Thaddeus Lechowicz nature preserve on the North side. After that, volunteer projects were worked into the family’s busy schedule every other month.
Before Covid, Raina’s favorites included Sew Quilts for Pediatric Patients at Sew Crafty Studios and creating cards for Veterans at the National Veterans Art Museum. Milan enjoyed more food-oriented events, such as Working at a Food Pantry for Ravenswood Community Services and Volunteering at a Free Store in West Humboldt Park.
In addition to volunteering, Bhavana serves on the Honeycomb fundraising committee. “2020 was the first year that I helped with the virtual karaoke event,” she says. “I helped coordinate logistics and also secured a corporate sponsorship through my husband’s company, William Blair.” Bhavana continued to spread the word to her friends for the 2021 fundraiser and seek out additional sponsorships.
The 2021 Holiday Cheer Challenge took place last month and participants completed over 900 missions around downtown Chicago spreading laughter and cheer, while raising over $130,000 to fuel Honeycomb's family volunteer programs.
"Being part of the Honeycomb Holiday Cheer Challenge Committee was such a rewarding experience. It was great to be part of organizing such a fun event and bring more awareness to the organization,” says Bhavana.
As for the next few months, Bhavana and her family are eager to attend more in-person events and look forward to what the new year brings. “Everyone’s had it hard, but there is such a disproportionate impact,” she stresses. “My kids realize how different our experiences and impact Covid has on our family, compared to others. We must always find ways to help others in need.”
“Honeycomb does the heavy lifting and then makes it so easy for our service to be meaningful,” Bhavana adds. “The idea of continuity of service is so important. This is not a one and done for us.”
The Devulapally-Suri Family lives in Bucktown and enjoys traveling together (especially to Kenya) and are all avid readers. Outside of attending Honeycomb Project events, the family keep busy. Bhavana loves all things nature and Bhavan loves to cook for his family and friends. Raina enjoys running and math/technology and Milan is on the swim team and is a huge history buff.