{"id":23143,"date":"2026-09-12T02:51:48","date_gmt":"2026-09-12T02:51:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=23143"},"modified":"2026-09-12T02:51:48","modified_gmt":"2026-09-12T02:51:48","slug":"in-2025-connecticut-student-vihaan-kamath-started-selling-homemade-cookies-for-charity-by-august-2026-his-nonprofit-had-raised-66331-and-helped-nearly-1000-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=23143","title":{"rendered":"In 2025, Connecticut student Vihaan Kamath started selling homemade cookies for charity; by August 2026, his nonprofit had raised $66,331 and helped nearly 1,000 children"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-134088386,imgsize-77379,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg\" alt=\"In 2025, Connecticut student Vihaan Kamath started selling homemade cookies for charity; by August 2026, his nonprofit had raised $66,331 and helped nearly 1,000 children\" title=\"Connecticut teen Vihaan Kamath turns homemade cookies into a $66,000 charity mission. (Photo: St.Jude)\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Connecticut teen Vihaan Kamath turns homemade cookies into a $66,000 charity mission. (Photo: St.Jude)\">Connecticut teen Vihaan Kamath turns homemade cookies into a $66,000 charity mission. (Photo: St.Jude)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>A Connecticut teenager has turned his love of baking into a growing nonprofit that has raised more than $66,000 to support children in need.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"1\"\/>Vihaan Kamath, 16, a Greenwich-area high school student preparing to enter his senior year, founded Cookie for a Cause in April 2025. <!-- -->The nonprofit sells homemade cookies and directs its proceeds toward children\u2019s charities, including St.<!-- --> Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital and Yale New Haven Children\u2019s Hospital.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"6\"\/>What began as a small fundraising idea has since grown into an initiative that has helped nearly 1,000 children with medical care, school supplies and everyday necessities.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"8\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Teen\u2019s cookie fundraiser grows into $66,000 nonprofit<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div data-pos=\"0\" class=\"id-r-component iIpbx undefined  &#10;        \">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Vihaan Kamath uses homemade cookies to raise money for children\u2019s charities.\" msid=\"134088501\" imgsize=\"166930\" resizemode=\"4\" width=\"\" title=\"Vihaan Kamath uses homemade cookies to raise money for children\u2019s charities. (Photo: St. Jude)\" placeholdersrc=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/83033472.cms\" offsetvertical=\"0\" placeholdermsid=\"47529300\" type=\"thumb\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-166930,msid-134088501\/vihaan-kamath-uses-homemade-cookies-to-raise-money-for-childrens-charities.jpg\" data-api-prerender=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Vihaan Kamath uses homemade cookies to raise money for children\u2019s charities. (Photo: St. Jude)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"11\"\/>According to St. Jude, Kamath initially began raising money through cookie sales after returning from a summer trip to India, where he had spent time with his grandmother, whom he calls \u201canama.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"15\"\/>During visits to Mumbai, Kamath accompanied his grandmother as she carried out charitable work in schools and hospitals. He remembers helping distribute notebooks and pencils to children and visiting the pediatric cancer ward at Tata Memorial Hospital, where he saw families who had travelled long distances seeking lifesaving treatment for their children.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"17\"\/>\u201cThat stuck with me through the years,\u201d Kamath said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"19\"\/>Those experiences eventually inspired him to find a way to support children in need in both India and the United States.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>From home kitchen to nonprofit<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div data-pos=\"0\" class=\"id-r-component iIpbx undefined  &#10;        \">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Teen baker\u2019s nonprofit has helped nearly 1,000 children since launching in 2025.\" msid=\"134088531\" imgsize=\"186220\" resizemode=\"4\" width=\"\" title=\"Teen baker\u2019s nonprofit has helped nearly 1,000 children since launching in 2025. (Photo: St. Jude)\" placeholdersrc=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/83033472.cms\" offsetvertical=\"0\" placeholdermsid=\"47529300\" type=\"thumb\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-186220,msid-134088531\/teen-bakers-nonprofit-has-helped-nearly-1000-children-since-launching-in-2025.jpg\" data-api-prerender=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Teen baker\u2019s nonprofit has helped nearly 1,000 children since launching in 2025. (Photo: St. Jude)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"25\"\/>Because Kamath already enjoyed baking with his mother and grandmother, he decided cookies could become the foundation of his fundraising efforts.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"27\"\/>Chocolate chip and sugar cookies became his specialties. He initially approached local businesses and corporations, offering his baked goods in exchange for donations to children&#8217;s causes.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"29\"\/>\u201cI just kept reaching out to more people and local businesses and partnered with a few different people,\u201d he said. <!-- -->\u201cPeople really seemed to have an interest in it.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"33\"\/>His parents, Ravish and Vijaya Kamath, helped by providing ingredients including flour, sugar, eggs and chocolate chips.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"35\"\/>\u201cIt is their way of contributing to my cause,\u201d Vihaan said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"37\"\/>In April 2025, he formally established Cookie for a Cause as a nonprofit, with proceeds going to charity. He created a website where customers could place orders and continued baking most of the cookies in his home kitchen.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"40\"\/>For larger orders, he has occasionally used a local pastry shop, whose owner and employees have supported his efforts and offered advice on improving his recipes.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>$20,000 raised in the first year<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div data-pos=\"0\" class=\"id-r-component iIpbx undefined  &#10;        \">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"From his kitchen to a growing nonprofit, Vihaan Kamath is baking for a cause.\" msid=\"134088555\" imgsize=\"234015\" resizemode=\"4\" width=\"\" title=\"From his kitchen to a growing nonprofit, Vihaan Kamath is baking for a cause. (Photo: St. Jude)\" placeholdersrc=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/83033472.cms\" offsetvertical=\"0\" placeholdermsid=\"47529300\" type=\"thumb\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-234015,msid-134088555\/from-his-kitchen-to-a-growing-nonprofit-vihaan-kamath-is-baking-for-a-cause.jpg\" data-api-prerender=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>From his kitchen to a growing nonprofit, Vihaan Kamath is baking for a cause. (Photo: St. Jude)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"45\"\/>The fundraiser quickly exceeded Kamath\u2019s expectations.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"47\"\/>Between April and December 2025, Cookie for a Cause raised approximately $20,000.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"49\"\/>\u201cFrom April 2025 to December 2025, we raised $20,000, which is phenomenal. I didn&#8217;t even think we were going to get that far,\u201d Kamath said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"52\"\/>The nonprofit has since continued to grow. Kamath has now raised $66,331 and has set an ambitious target of $100,000 by the end of 2026.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"54\"\/>His father initially thought the project might eventually fade as his son balanced schoolwork and sports, but he soon realized that Kamath was committed to making it a long-term effort.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"56\"\/>\u201cI didn\u2019t know how far he would go with this,\u201d Ravish Kamath said. \u201cIt was surprising, but he started to get on social media channels for this and then started to reach out to local businesses. <!-- -->It is now something considerable that he has done.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"60\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>St. Jude becomes a key part of his mission<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p>Kamath eventually expanded his fundraising to support children in the United States and connected with St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"63\"\/>\u201cI found St. Jude to be one of the best places to partner with and help out,\u201d he said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"65\"\/>He was later accepted into the St. Jude Leadership Society, a program that gives high school students an opportunity to develop leadership skills while raising funds and awareness for children treated by St. <!-- -->Jude.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"69\"\/>His connection with St. Jude also has roots in his experiences in India. Tata Memorial Hospital is part of the St. Jude Global Alliance, which brings together institutions around the world to improve care for children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"72\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Teen plans to keep nonprofit going after college<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p>Kamath has no plans to stop baking once he graduates from high school.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"75\"\/>He wants to study business in college and has already begun building a student team that can continue Cookie for a Cause after he leaves for university.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"78\"\/>\u201cI created a student board with sophomores and freshmen from my school who will continue this after I move,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll continue it when I go to college.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"80\"\/>His goal is to create an organization that can continue growing even when he is no longer running its day-to-day operations.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"82\"\/>\u201cI don\u2019t want to stop,\u201d Kamath said, adding that he hopes younger students can eventually take over different aspects of the nonprofit \u201cso that this keeps growing.\u201d<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/world\/us\/in-2025-connecticut-student-vihaan-kamath-started-selling-homemade-cookies-for-charity-by-august-2026-his-nonprofit-had-raised-66331-and-helped-nearly-1000-children\/articleshow\/134088314.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Connecticut teen Vihaan Kamath turns homemade cookies into a $66,000 charity mission. (Photo: St.Jude) A Connecticut teenager has turned his love of baking into a growing nonprofit that has raised more than $66,000 to support children in need.Vihaan Kamath, 16, a Greenwich-area high school student preparing to enter his senior year, founded Cookie for a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23144,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Connecticut teen Vihaan Kamath turns homemade cookies into a $66,000 charity mission. (Photo: St.Jude) A Connecticut teenager has turned his love of baking into a growing nonprofit that has raised more than $66,000 to support children in need.Vihaan Kamath, 16, a Greenwich-area high school student preparing to enter his senior year, founded Cookie for a [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":1,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":5,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg",400,225,false],"medium":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg",300,169,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/connecticut-teen-vihaan-kamath-turns-homemade-cookies-into-a-66000-charity-mission.jpg",150,84,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/author\/admin"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"<a href=\"#\" class=\"category-link category-link-31\">\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23143\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}