Our Past Events
Speak the Difference 9.0 Competition
For our 2023 Speak the Difference 9.0 we broke all of our previous records! Key2Finesse supported the Abhi Shah Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to improve the lives of children who have been impacted by human trafficking or the foster care system. With a 0% administrative cost, 100% of proceeds go directly to these children. The Abhi Shah Foundation's mission is to bring a smile to every child's face.
600+ different students registered for our speech, essay, art, poetry, and multimedia competitions. With the help of our 50+ volunteers, the Key2Finesse team is excited to announce that we raised $161,305 for the Abhi Shah Foundation. The entire Key2Finesse Team cannot express our gratitude for all the generous donors that made this possible. Thank you!
To learn more about the Abhi Shah Foundation visit: https://www.abhishahfoundation.org/
Key2Finesse x Abhi Shah Garba
On October 13, Key2Finesse had the privilege of volunteering with and enjoying the events of the annual Abhi Shah Foundation Garba event. With hundreds of participants and hours of dance, the Garba was an incredible experience for us all. Making lasting memories and advocating our cause in front of so many people was definitely an experience worthwhile! We look forward to attending in the future as well!
Entrepreneurship Workshop
On September 23, 2023, the Key2Finesse team held an Entrepreneurship workshop featuring the accomplished Mehul Kulkarni, Stanford Graduate and founder of SiteTrace. Mr. Kulkarni shared several valuable insights when it came to how to find one’s passion and develop a company based on those interests, sharing his own personal experiences with our 90+ member audience. Whether it’s discussing how his mistakes led to his eventual success, or how to have passion irrespective of the ultimate results, we are so grateful for all the insightful information he provided us with!
Key2Finesse Club Fair
Key2Finesse hosted our annual Club Fair on September 10th, a large success with over 60 attendees, where we provided a variety of information about various high school clubs, ranging from DECA and HOSA to debate and Science Olympiad. The enthusiasm of both presenters and attendees was amazing! It was a showcase of talent, dedication, and the diverse interests of our Key2Finesse community.
Key2Finesse x Ally Cricket Cup
In July of this year, Key2Finesse had the incredible opportunity to be a part of the Ally Cricket Cup, a cricket tournament graciously hosted by our corporate sponsor, Ally! All proceeds from the food sales at the event were matched by Ally and donated to the Abhi Shah Foundation, supporting their impactful initiatives! Pulling together parents, volunteers, and sponsors, we are so grateful to everyone who came together and joined us in making a difference and helping create unforgettable memories together!
Vista Maria Flower Planting Event
On June 22, 2023, the Key2Finesse team and members of the Abhi Shah Foundation arrived at Vista Maria to beautify foster children’s homes and celebrate their birthdays. We planted flowers to brighten up the landscape, prepared gift bags for the children, and brought cake during a surprise celebration! Knowing that several of the children are victims of human trafficking, being able to bring a smile to their faces was such a meaningful experience; we look forward to planning similar events in the future!
On May 18, 2023, the Key2Finesse team was able to collaborate with Ally to host a successful Arts, Beats, & Eats event exclusively for employees. The festival was a perfect blend of both cultural immersion and education, with several booths arranged to teach employees about various cultures around the world. In particular, the South Asian, Middle Eastern, and East Asian cultures were all highlighted; the event included an array of delicious cuisine and beautiful jewelry to delve deeper into various aspects of each culture. The event was a very informative experience overall, with the proceeds going directly towards supporting our charity of the year: the Abhi Shah Foundation. We are thankful to Ally for the opportunity to contribute towards the festival and look forward to hosting similar events in the future!
Arts, Beats, & Eats x Ally Event
Abhi Shah Foundation Walkathon
Key2Finesse joined hands with the Abhi Shah Foundation along with Ally Financial in the annual ASF Walkathon! On May 21st, Key2Finesse volunteers & board members spent the morning volunteering by welcoming and cheering on participants. From an energetic warm-up to a relaxing cool-down, attendees experienced an eventful and enthusiastic morning. The 5K walkathon took place at the Methodist Children's home society. The team worked together to raise funds for children who have been victims of human trafficking. We are so grateful to have been given the opportunity to support such a wonderful organization. The walkathon was a very fun-filled event enjoyed by all the participants. We are thrilled to be supporting such an amazing organization and are excited to continue doing so over the next year!
Student Research Symposium
On April 16th, 2023, the Key2Finesse team hosted a Research Symposium, a place for students to learn how to find a research subject and niche sub-topic as well as hear from esteemed speakers who are doing research at a high school and college level. Keynote speakers Saaim Khan, Michelle Hua, and Kush Parikh all discussed how to do research in high school and delved deep into the nuances of the subject by providing a variety of different perspectives from varied backgrounds. All of them shared their extensive experience through their journeys in high school from working with professors to presenting at science fairs and academic conferences. This symposium also provided our participants with valuable insights on how to choose a research project, find a mentor, and present/publish their work!
MPower All x Key2Finesse Symposium
In collaboration with MPower All, the Key2Finesse team was able to host a successful Student Symposium on February 25, 2023! Esteemed speakers, including Varsha Penumalee, Nishit Palepu, and Dr. Kabir Mendiratta provided students with insight on how to excel in both school and the college admissions process. The event had over 130 attendees and 200 others listening in via Swara Media; we are so grateful to have had these wonderful speakers provide their invaluable advice and guidance!
On September 15th, we had the pleasure to host Dr. Nagalla as she taught us all about mindfulness and multi-tasking. This event branches out to various age groups from. This event also had a very interactive and attention grabbing slide show and examples that Dr. Nagalla prepared in advance. Many students learning how to be more mindful and focus your attention when completing a task. Overall a very fun and eye-opening event for our community.
Mindfullness vs Multitasking
Student Success Symposium
On August 10th we had the luxury of having Nathan George, Sanjith Sambath, and Monica Pan speak to many aspiring high schoolers about their high school journey and what tips and tricks did they use to be at where they are now. Each guest was interviewed by our team using the serval questions from the audience. We are very happy to help our community and guide high schoolers along their high school career.
Ally Cricket Cup
Our corporate sponsor Ally Financial hosted their annual Ally Cricket Cup in which Ally employees face off in a cricket tournament! The event was very successful with over 150 people participating and 6 teams. A great fun experience for all families that attended with plenty of fun, food, drink, and memories. Being able to connect with our community and our corporate sponsor was truly a great event.
Variety Shine Fashion Show
The SHINE Fashion Show features the children of Variety and friends from FAR Therapeutic Arts & Recreation. The children were accompanied by mentors who walked the runway with them while supported by hundreds in the audience. It was a touching and heartwarming experience and a fantastic presentation of confidence and community!
On July 23rd, we were delighted to have Michelle Duprey teach multiple age groups about how to deal with stress. She first started off with presenting us with multiple types of stress and how to cope with them. Then the audience were able to ask some questions on how they personally should approach stress in certain situations. All in all a great stress-relieving event for all who attended.
Chutney Festival
Stress Management Symposium
Chutney Festival was one of outreach teams best events so far! We not only reached out 100+ people but also raised over $400 in all. In addition, we were able to get some news coverage and just spread the word of our organization to out community so all can have the opportunity to know about our cause. Overall, Chutney Festival was a huge success and we will definitely be doing this event in the future.
Variety Bike Night
The Key2Finesse team is so happy to have had the opportunity to support Variety at their annual bike event where countless children were gifted bikes tailored to their specific needs. This took place on Thursday, June 6th at the Jimmy John’s Field. This event brought joy, confidence, and independence to numerous children and we are so grateful to have been able to take part in such an heartwarming event.
On April 14th, 2024, the Key2Finesse team had the absolute pleasure of hosting Mr. Jason Brooks for an incredibly insightful Creative Writing Workshop and Symposium. As a published author and a 2-time Ringo award nominee, Mr. Brooks was able to draw on his many experiences to teach an audience of over 101 middle and high school students the intricacies of writing in all its many forms. As a school teacher, Mr. Brooks was also able to share amazing insight into the literary demands of the modern school system, and how kids can best prepare for excellence in writing.
Abhi Shah Foundation Walkathon
Creative Writing Workshop
Key2Finesse joined hands with the Abhi Shah Foundation in the annual ASF Walkathon! On May 19th, Key2Finesse volunteers & board members spent the morning volunteering by welcoming and cheering on participants. From an energetic warm-up to a relaxing cool-down, attendees experienced an eventful and enthusiastic morning. The 5K walkathon took place at the Methodist Children's home society. The team worked together to raise funds for children who have been victims of human trafficking. We are so grateful to have been given the opportunity to support such a wonderful organization. The walkathon was a very fun-filled event enjoyed by all the participants. We are thrilled to be supporting such an amazing organization and are excited to continue doing so over the next year!
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2023
Speak the Difference 8.0 Competition
In 2022 for Speak the Difference 8.0, Key2Finesse supported NAMI Metro, Metro Detroit's chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. NAMI Metro works to increase advocacy for mental health in the Metro-Detroit area, providing support to youth and adults. They are a 100% volunteer organization with a mere 4% administrative cost. Through its educational programs and 24x7 helplines, NAMI steps in to serve as a liason between individuals and professional supports in a world with increasing mental health struggles. NAMI Metro's mission is to increase education and awareness regarding mental health.
Returning in person for our event after two years, 400 different students registered for our speech, sales pitch, essay, art, poetry, multimedia, and coding competitions. With the help of our 60+ volunteers, the Key2Finesse team is excited to announce that we raised $111,873 for NAMI Metro. We could not be more grateful to the entire community for your support and to the generous donors that made this possible.
To learn more about NAMI Metro visit: https://namimetro.org/
In April of this year, Key2Finesse once again joined hands with the Michigan Indian Community Service to give back to our community with like-minded students amongst various cities in Michigan to donate cans to local homeless shelters/organizations in need and make a bigger impact. With a team of over seven organizations — Abhi Shah Foundation, Vallabh Youth Organization, Pure Youth Group, HSS, Purna Vidya, and BSNA Michigan, our network of volunteers made a goal to collect over 3,000 cans over the thirty day period. So, through the course of several weeks, board members and volunteers from the Key2Finesse team worked to collect cans from friends and family. Through much hard work, we successfully donated over 350 cans!
MICS x Key2Finesse 2022 Can Drive
On April 16th, the Key2Finesse team hosted a Leadership Workshop, a place for students to learn more about the core essentials of effective leadership! Keynote speakers Aarvi Shah, Esha Ghosalkar, and Swarith Reddy all presented to our participants their perspectives on effective leadership, how to lead a team, innovatively come up with solutions to problems, and so much more! All of them shared their extensive experience through their journeys in college classes, internships, competitive events, and so much more!
Leadership Workshop | Key2Finesse Virtual Event
2022
Speak the Difference 7.0- Angels of Hope | Virtual Event
In 2021 for Speak the Difference 7.0, Key2Finesse supported Angels of Hope, a local registered nonprofit providing critical support to Michigan families directly impacted by cancer. They are a 100% volunteer organization with just a 1.5% admin cost that focuses on children with cancer or cancer patients who have a minor in the home. In just 2020, Angels of Hope provided grants covering over 400 months of mortgage payments, 399 weeks of groceries, 350 months of home payments, 149 months of water payments, 107 months of vehicle payments, and 11 funerals. Angels of Hope’s mission is to alleviate some of the major stresses associated with cancer. Although it almost always goes unnoticed, families are oftentimes forced to make the difficult decision between paying the bills and receiving the right treatment. After several months of hard work, the Key2Finesse Team is so excited to announce that we raised over 116,000 dollars for Angels of Hope. We could not be more grateful to the entire community for the outpouring of support we have received and to the generous donors that allowed this to become a possibility.
To learn more about Angels of Hope visit: https://www.angelsofhope.org/
Key to Youth Wellness | Key2Finesse Virtual Event
Student Success Symposium | Key2Finesse X MICS | Virtual Event
On June 12th, 2021, we hosted the Key to Youth Wellness Event virtually in which we invited two professionals in their field to educate our audience regarding mental health and sleep deprivation.
Our first speaker was Mrs. Jennifer Thayer from Easterseals of Michigan. Mrs. Thayer is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) and Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor. She serves as a Program Manager in our Family Services Division at Easterseals of Michigan. In her presentation, Mrs. Thayer elaborated on combating anxiety in youth and teens, ways that you can identify and seek out help, and different methods to work on mental health.
Our second panelist was Dr. Dalal, who is currently the Associate Professor at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, the Associate Program Director of Pulmonary Critical Care Fellowship at Beaumont Hill in Royal Oak and Farmington, and is a sleep medicine physician at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak. Dr. Dalal discussed the effects of sleep deprivation and the importance of getting enough sleep through an interactive presentation.
We are so grateful to both of these amazing experts and cannot thank them enough for their time and dedication!
On March 7th, 2021, after conducting several successful Career Exploration Symposiums ourselves, Key2Finesse hosted a virtual Student Success Symposium in collaboration with the Michigan Indian-American Community Services (MICS). With our experience, we were able to assist MICS in hosting their very first virtual symposium, while also inspiring us to work with similar organizations in the future. This event was an amazing opportunity for students to gain valuable insight from the comfort of their own home. With over 100 attendees, 4 amazing panelists (Kush Parikh, Timothy Mathew, Garima Sawhney, and Anish Kothapalli), and our keynote speaker, Dr. Kabir Mendiratta, high school viewers learned about extracurriculars, coursework, and so much more! Additionally, Dr. Mendiratta discussed the importance of standardized testing, how to prepare for the SAT/ACT, and changes in the college admissions process.
Link to view 2021 Student Success Symposium: www.facebook.com/MICService2020/videos/2852883364979349/?vh=e&d=n
To learn more about MICS, visit: https://www.micsgroup.org/
2021
Speak the Difference 6.0- Gift of Life Foundation | Virtual Event
Despite the pandemic hindering our ability to conduct in-person events, Key2Finesse decided that helping the community during these trying times was necessary. So, we shifted our 6th Speak the Difference Fundraiser to a virtual format. Through our team of over 50 volunteers and the support of businesses and donors all across the globe, we gathered over 600 registrations in our art, poetry, writing, coding, multimedia, and public speaking competitions. Ultimately, we were able to sign up 107 new Michigan organ donors and raise $75,198 for The Gift of Life Foundation! Gift of Life was incorporated in 1971 by Michigan transplant surgeons to provide a network for sharing kidneys. Today, Gift of Life recovers more than 900 organs every year for transplantation from 300 or more donors, saving hundreds of lives. The entire Key2Finesse Team cannot express our gratitude for Gift of Life’s constant support.
To learn more about Gift of Life Michigan, visit: https://www.giftoflifemichigan.org/
To learn more about the Gift of Life Foundation, visit: https://www.giftoflifemichigan.org/about-us/gift-life-foundation-financial-contributions
Key2Finesse Tutoring Service | Virtual Event
Key2Finesse College Symposium | Virtual Event
The transition from in-seat to virtual learning was one of the hardest obstacles school districts had to overcome. Teachers grappled with converting their lesson plans to an online-friendly format, and students struggled to ask for help from their teachers. As a result, Key2Finesse began a virtual summer tutoring service to bridge learning gaps. In the program, board members met with students weekly to cover a variety of topics, such as Spanish, Math, English, Science, and more.
With an overflow of courses, clubs, and opportunities, high school can be a challenging time for many students, especially during a worldwide pandemic. Thus, on August 2nd, 2020, Key2Finesse hosted its 4th Annual Career Exploration Symposium. This was an extremely successful event with over 200 attendees from all over the world. Viewers got the wonderful opportunity to ask questions and hear valuable advice from our incredible student speakers (Sejal Patil, Abigail Kendal, Amogh Gowda, Matthew Dong, and Pratham Soni). Additionally, attendees were able to listen to our keynote speaker, Mr. Arun Ponnusamy. Mr. Ponnusamy is a college counselor and the Chief Academic Officer of Collegewise, America’s largest educational consulting company. He has evaluated over 20,000 college essays and has served on the admissions committee for various colleges. During the symposium, Mr. Ponnusamy provided wonderful insight into the world of college admissions and how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected it.
To learn more about Collegewise, visit:
2020
2019
Speak the Difference 4.0- Easterseals
For this event, we have partnered with Easterseals Michigan, a wonderful organization that addresses an issue that's more relevant than ever: Mental Health. Easterseals Michigan works to change the way the world defines and views mental disabilities by making a profound positive difference in people’s lives every day. They work to go above and beyond, and to ensure that each child gets the specialized treatment they need. We raised a large amount of around $34,000.
For more information on Easterseals, visit: http://www.easterseals.com/michigan/
High school & Beyond - Career Exploration Symposium
After the tremendous success of our first Career Exploration Symposium last year, Key2Finesse was excited to hold another CES on May 19, 2018. At this event we introduced our new board of Nick Lazrado, Vibha Moorthy, Dhruv Muralidhar, Varad Mulay, Shreya Salwi, and Aarvi Shah. We had countless amazing speakers in all categories, and the event was a huge success with massive turnout and feedback
Speak the Difference 5.0- Gleaners
For our 5th Speak the Difference Fundraiser, we made it the best one yet! With the help of businesses, donors, and registrations we were able to donate $48,468 to Gleaners Community Food Bank! This year we added 3 new competitions and we had a great turnout! We would like to thank all our sponsors and donors for supporting us this year! We supported Gleaners this year because they raised awareness that so many students are hungry in Southeast Michigan. Headquartered in Detroit, Gleaners operates five distribution centers in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Monroe counties and provides food to 528 partner soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, and other agencies throughout southeast Michigan. Gleaners is a vital link between available food and those who need it most. Local and national producers have surplus food that may otherwise go to waste for lack of a way to safely and efficiently bring it to market.
For more information on Gleaners visit: https://www.gcfb.org/
Crossroads Donation Drive-2019
Crossroads is a social service outreach agency with two locations in Detroit. Founded in 1971, Crossroads exists to support the community at large by providing emergency assistance, advocacy, and counseling to anyone in need.
Acting in partnership with many other agencies, parishes, hospitals, companies and organizations in the metro area, Crossroads offers assistance in the form of a hand-up. They work with clients to meet their immediate needs and help them assess their situations to lessen the likelihood of future problems. Their efforts are funded by foundations, individuals, and friends who are committed to bringing hope to those living on the edge of despair.
Key2Finesse decided to hold a drive and were able to gather numerous donations!
For more information on Crossroads visit: https://crossroadsofmichigan.org/
2018
2017
2016
For our fourth event, we had massive growth, moving from a 5 person team to a team of 5 board members and 16 volunteers. With a team this big, we held an impromptu speech competition, a prepared speech competition, and a essay writing competition. Everything went smoothly, and after months of fundraising, we were able to donate an astounding $37,500 to Blessings in a Backpack. This amount was enough to help support meals over the weekend for 375 underprivileged kids for a year.
For more information on Blessings in a Backpack,
Speak the Difference, Write to Give - Blessings in a Backpack
High school & Beyond - Career Exploration Symposium
For our third event, we decided to do something a little different. Instead of having a speech competition and donating the funds raised to a charity, we decided to help promote success in high school and beyond for students in our community. We enlisted in the help of a new board member, Dhruv Muralidhar to plan and execute this event. In our career exploration symposium, we had many successful high school students, as well as two professional speakers speak about their experiences, the choices they had to make, and the advice they had for students. We were joined by a very special guest, Mr, Ken Massey, Mayor of Farmington Hills. The event was a huge success with massive turnout, and lots of amazing feedback. At this event, we also introduced a new board member, Alejandro Ramirez.
Speech Competition - PALAV
Impromptu Speech Competition - THAW
For our second event, we brought on a third member to our team, Ethan Lazrado. This speech competition was even more successful than the first, raising a whopping $8185 for PALAV, and organization that helps reduce infant mortality in third world countries.
For more information on PALAV visit http://www.palav.org/
Our very first event was an impromptu speech competition, was run by the 2-man founding team of Chintan Maheshwari and Esha Ghosalkar.
Held on January 9th, 2016, They were able to raise a shocking $2793.67 for The Heat and Warmth Fund (THAW).
For more information on THAW, visit https://thawfund.org/