Sixty Years of Speaking for the Voiceless

OW many of us have whispered secrets to our pets, believing they understand? Or stopped mid-step to watch a puppy chase its own tail? Or felt an unspoken bond with a stray? We think we're the ones taking care of animals, but the truth is, they take care of us too—in ways we don't always realize.

- AASHNA REDDY

In many ways, animal welfare has been a lifelong lesson. Maybe that's why stepping into what looked like an actual school—empty classrooms, a playground, a basketball court—felt oddly fitting. And what's a school without an auditorium? A large standing poster marked the entrance to the Blue Cross Memories & Milestones event, a celebration of sixty years of compassion. But beyond the nostalgia and applause, one question lingered—how much more do we still have to learn?

S Chinny Krishna, chairman of Blue Cross of India, took the stage. "Running any charity for 60 years is difficult. When this charity is in the animal welfare field, it is indeed a Herculean task. This is true even in a country like India—a country which gave the world the concept of Ahimsa, non-violence in thought, word or deed. Rarely does a founder get to celebrate a 60th anniversary, and I consider myself truly blessed to be here."