In April 2018, just three days before the scheduled Caesarean delivery for twins, Ashish’s H1B extension was rejected. That was shocking as he had worked in the US for five years at that point. The company, with whom he worked for the past three years, asked him to hire a local attorney and transferred their visa to the B2 (tourist visa) category. They also said that the company will not help/assist in this matter. Either he should go back to India in the next one week to retain his current job transferred to the India office, or they would terminate his work. The termination of his work would also end his insurance coverage immediately. Ashish was under tremendous stress, as he did not know what would happen. He was completely at a loss without guidance from anyone, and he was in dire straits, mentally, legally, and financially. His employers had basically abandoned him.
It was a mere coincidence that one of his friends told him to contact Sewa International. He shared the telephone number of one Sewa volunteer in Texas, who said he would ask someone from the Bay Area to contact him. Ashish was surprised when he received a call in the next ten minutes from a Sewa representative, and in another minute, he had invited five others to an online conference, including members of the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS). One of those on the call was Sewa’s Minal Joshi.
Ashish had least expected that there could be an organization in a foreign land with such selfless dedication to help someone like him. The entire Sewa team, especially Minal Joshi, were like a beacon to him in his dark days. He was not in a state of mind to plan the celebration of the expected arrival of his twins or worry about his visa and employment crisis. He still remembers the words Minal Joshi said to him on call: "Ashish, call me Minal ji, not ma'am. Never think of anything except your wife's health. Think about the upcoming joy you will be getting in the next two days. Leave the rest to us”.
He cannot say enough about the strength those magical words of Minal Joshi offered him. She is for him none less than his family. She would call him a number of times a day to check about his immigration status, any help needed to take care of his pregnant wife, and other matters.
Minal Joshi helped him connect to many people across the US who had a good knowledge of immigration and insurance issues. She also offered him a place to stay as he was out of salary and running out of money. Within the next 24 hours, Minal Joshi connected him to an attorney to get his B1 status (temporary business visitor) filed. She made various people work on his insurance coverage, so he should not run out of it. She knew that his company had claimed an immediate loss of insurance coverage soon after his job termination.
The delivery of the twins went smoothly, and he became the proud father of Aadhya and Aayanash. Minal Joshi's followed up with him till he boarded the flight to India. She helped him get the fastest way to obtain a passport for his twin babies and an India visa.
With his immediate challenges sorted out Ashish was all praise for Sewa International: "For me, Sewa is not just an organization but a temple. I have not seen God, but what the Sewa International team with Minal Joshi did for me was like God's act only. So, with all respect from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank Minal ji, Sewa International, and HSS. You are the best in the world. May God bless you all, and please let me know how I can support Sewa International”.
