The BTDC benefits from all sorts of volunteers who work quietly, consistently and under the proverbial radar. One such volunteer is Bhavani Ravichandran.

When asked to canvass, she makes herself available. When called on to plant signs – even multiple signs – in her very visible front yard, the answer is always yes. Bhavani grew up in India, moved to Santa Clara, CA when she got married, and then moved to Bernards Township in 1997. She raised one son here in town, who now lives in Brooklyn. She and her husband (both district reps with the BTDC) remain in Basking Ridge where Bhavani works from home as a software engineer.

She fondly remembers growing up with her cousins, in India. “We fought for the newspaper every morning and always knew what was going on,” she says. Political awareness has always been important to her. After becoming a US citizen, Bhavani remained independent, she did not register as a Democrat until she could vote for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 primary. Sadly, she and her husband drove to Clinton’s post-election party at the Javitz Center in NYC the night of the 2016 election, only to turn around and go home in disappointment. “I was quite bummed after that,” she says.

Shortly thereafter, Bhavani was introduced to Nancy D’Andrea, Cat Santaiti and others who were organizing a revitalized BTDC. She learned to canvass…and the rest is history. In addition to pounding the pavement to garner support for democratic candidates, Bhavani has enjoyed volunteerism in other areas, namely her work at the Somerset County Senior Wellness Center in town where she has served meals to seniors.

In her down time, Bhavani remains politically engaged and enjoys sewing, quilting and gardening. She and her husband plan to stay put in Bernards for the foreseeable future and enjoy the warmer months here where they attend Plays in the Park and other summer programming.

– Jen Aaron