The AAHOA North Carolina region donated $30,001 to the Hindu Center of Charlotte during Navaratri on October 20, 2023. The donation was made possible thanks to the money raised during the AAHOA North Carolina Region Charity Golf Tournament in Concord, NC, in August. More than 225 hoteliers, including numerous elected officials, were in attendance for two days of golf and charity. This tournament raised nearly $100,000 to support 15 charities, including the Hindu Center of Charlotte. 

AAHOA Lifetime Member Jay (Trini) Patel presented the $30K check to the Hindu Center and shared what makes this donation special to the AAHOA Community living in Charlotte. 

“This Center was the first place that brought our community together,” Patel shared. “There are other temples in Charlotte, but this one has always been the main one that has united our community and kept our traditions alive for many years.”

The Hindu Center has a rich history. During the 1960s and 1970s, many families with ancestral ties in India began to settle in the Charlotte, North Carolina region. By 1981, there were approximately 350 such families in the area. These families felt a need to educate their children about their cultural and religious background. They also felt the need to have an official place of worship. The Center officially opened on July 24, 1982.

AAHOA thanks North Carolina Regional Director Pinkesh Patel, local Ambassadors, and North Carolina leaders Jay Trini Patel, Vinay Patel, and Vimal Hardev for their hard work and outstanding leadership in making the charity golf tournament a success and impacting the community. 

You can read more about AAHOA’s impactful work in Charlotte here and here.