Students start nonprofit to benefit refugees and immigrants

Sreeram Panicker and Aroon Prabhu, students at Detroit Country Day, have started a nonprofit, Help On The Way, to benefit refugees and immigrants. Sreeram Panicker took part in a volunteer community service opportunity two years ago, which led him to volunteer more, assembling relief baskets for refugees and those in poverty, according to an email from Bindu Panicker. With help from fellow students Jae young Chang and University of Michigan student, Sreehari Panicker, they started the state-certified nonprofit, based in Troy. They recently hosted their first fundraisers, a 5K Run and Walk and basketball tournament at Beverly Park in Beverly Hills, in association with Kerala Club. They raised funds to purchase supplies to create “relief packages”, which contain basic necessities such as soap, toothbrushes and other essentials.