Krishna Vavilala, an Indian-American and long-time Houstonian, has received the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award recognised by US President Joe Biden in honour of his dedication to his community and the nation as a whole. For his lifetime of service, 86-year-old Vavilala received recognition and the title of Change Maker and Global Humanitarian.Mr. Vavilala is a native of Andhra Pradesh, India and is a retired Electrical Engineer. He presently serves as the founder and chairman of the 16-year-old non-profit organisation Foundation for India Studies (FIS), whose flagship project, the Indo-American Oral History Project, won the Mary Fay Barnes Award for Excellence in 2019.
Mr. Vavilala firmly believes in promoting racial harmony and peace. He dressed up as Mahatma Gandhi in several Martin Luther King Jr. parades in an effort to bring together the Indian and Black communities and to advance the nonviolence and peaceful coexistence that both MLK and Mahatma advocated.In addition, Mr. Vavilala has also served as a President of American Society of Indian Engineers, Telugu Cultural Association, Houston and Telugu Literary and Cultural Association.He has received several awards and accolades from various organisations including the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston, the Indo-American Press Club and the Lifetime Achievement Award, from the India Culture Centre.After receiving the award bearing the president’s signatures, Vavilala stated, u201cI am deeply touched by this unexpected honour, which is truly a recognition of the contributions of the Indians in Houston.u201dPeople like Vavilala are true examples of what it means to be truly committed to one’s community, regardless of where they live. Vavilala and others like him who uphold the teachings of Mahatma will always be idealistic and well-respected by society. How may we be motivated by him, in your opinion, and how can we contribute to the society?
