Our People | Sponsor a Child | Tripura Foundation

Dr. Baskaran Pillai, Founder

Dr. Baskaran Pillai is an international teacher, humanitarian and scholar from Southern India. Through his educational and humanitarian initiatives, Dr. Pillai’s mission is to alleviate human pain and suffering in all forms. Dr. Pillai has been a speaker for the United Nations Conference of World Religions and the World Knowledge Forum, and has hosted forums on Religion and Science. His scholarly background includes Masters degrees in English Literature and Comparative Literature from Madurai University and a PhD in Religious Studies from the University of Pittsburgh where he was both a teaching fellow in the Department of Religious Studies and Coordinator of the Indian Studies program for the Department of International Studies.

Board of Directors

Elaine Kueper, Global Director

Elaine Kueper has been the Global Director of Tripura Foundation USA since 1992. She has also served as a Director of Tripura Foundation India since 2000. Ms. Kueper was fortunate to develop and oversee Tripura’a broad offering of charitable programs in southern India. Elaine has been studying mindfulness techniques for the past 16 years and has been teaching mindfulness techniques in seminars around the world since that time. Ms. Kueper studied communication disorders at the Masters level while at the University of Minnesota, and has a B.A. from the University of Iowa.

Sonja Benkovich, Director

Ms. Benkovich has been involved with Tripura Foundation since 2000, and joined the Board of Directors in 2006. She is a Director of the American International Academy India

Ms. Benkovich has been involved with Tripura Foundation since 2000, and joined the Board of Directors in 2006. She is a Director of the American International Academy India (www.aiai.co.in). Prior to Astroved, Ms. Benkovich provided financial and technical services to the New York brokerage and manufacturing industries for nearly a decade. She has also worked the corporate and emerging market bond desks at Bear Stearns, providing key decision-making analysis. Ms.Benkovich also worked in tandem with Coopers & Lybrand and KPMG consultants in building and delivering enterprise resource planning systems for Fortune 100 companies. She has a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from University of Virginia.

Stacey Lawson, Director

Stacey Lawson is co-founder of the Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology (CET) at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Visiting Foreign Faculty of TRP School of Business, SRM University in Chennai, India. Previously, Ms. Lawson held roles as a technology executive and entrepreneur. She was Division General Manager for Siebel Systems and Senior Vice President of Marketing for Parametric Technology Corporation. Prior to PTC, Ms. Lawson was founder and President of InPart Software, a venture-backed start-up acquired by PTC in 1998. Ms. Lawson is also a speaker and thought-leader in the area of conscious business & leadership. She leads executive workshops, retreats, and mindfulness techniques courses which incorporate 15 years of study and practice in eastern & western wisdom traditions. She holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Washington and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.

Meena Mulloy, Director

Meena Mulloy gained a view of how things run at the top quite early in life when she moved to California after college and temped for top executives of Fortune 500 companies. In 1991, she moved to NYC and went into computer programming on mainframes just prior to becoming an expert in the new Microsoft software, ultimately leading her to run one of the largest departments for Credit Suisse, Corporate Communications on Park Avenue. While at Credit Suisse, Meena met Dr. Pillai and took a trip to India. Her life was never the same. When a Tsunami hit, she went on the mission with Mohini to find people who were hardest hit with no help from government or other charities. Every turn and exposure to the inner workings of Tripura Foundation impressed her until, in 2011, Meena oversaw a daily feeding program for the homeless. In addition to being a Board Member for Tripura Foundation, Meena Ann Marie Mulloy is now Director of Corporate Communications for AstroVed.com.

Program Managers

B. Yadeesh, India Trustee and Program Manager, India Programs

B. Yadeesh is a trustee of Tripura India and is responsible for overseeing Tripura programs, including ensuring all our Hope Learning Centers run smoothly.

B. Yadeesh is a trustee of Tripura India and responsible for overseeing Tripura programs throughout the region. He, staff and volunteers make sure that all Hope Learning Centers are running smoothly.

It is our wish that the maximum amount of all donations go to the people that need it the most. In order to achieve this Tripura is nearly 100% volunteer based. While we have few full-time staff, our volunteer corps include highly dedicated individuals who offer their time and resources in service to their fellow men and women in need.