Rashi Mehta: A Champion for Children Everywhere
by Corey Black
When Rashi Mehta attended her first Make-A-Wish event in 2024, she left feeling inspired. She knew she wanted to be a part of granting wishes.
“What immediately stood out to me was how deeply personal this mission is,” Rashi says. “It’s about creating these moments of joy and hope during some of the most difficult times in families’ lives.”
The event, Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area’s annual Evening of Wishes gala, celebrated the chapter’s 40th birthday and brought milestone moments to life. The evening concluded with a moving original song performed by wish kid Sophie—her first time performing in front of a live audience.
“When she was up there onstage, it literally touched my heart,” Rashi says. “I felt like, ‘Okay, I was meant to come here and to see this.’”
By the end of the night, after raising her paddle in the live auction, Rashi had made up her mind. “I said to my husband, Tarun, ‘I saw the kids—I know I want to do this. I’ll send them an email tomorrow to see how I can get more involved so that I can be part of the Make-A-Wish family,’” she recalls.
Since that fateful evening, Rashi has become an active donor, joined the chapter’s Board of Directors, and brought her own nonprofit on as a sponsor for the 2026 Evening of Wishes event.
“Rashi’s impact was immediate,” says Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area CEO Betsy Biern. “She’s a champion for our wish kids and families, and for children everywhere. We feel incredibly lucky to have her as part of our wish community.”
Rashi and her husband, Tarun, at Evening of Wishes: Rediscover Wonder in 2025
Long before that first gala, Rashi had already built a career rooted in creating impact. As co-founder of Rahi Systems, she spent over a decade helping to build and scale a global business in data center and IT infrastructure. She also studied executive coaching at UC Berkeley and has coached CEOs, CFOs, and senior leaders across industries. In 2023, she founded Iron Lady Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering women and children, especially girls, through access to education, opportunity, dignity, and essential community resources. One of the foundation’s newest education programs, the Dr. Leela Scholars Program, reflects this commitment by supporting girls and young women with the resources, continuity, and confidence they need to remain in education and shape their own futures.
As she became more involved with Make-A-Wish, Rashi saw a clear alignment between the two missions. Both, she says, are about restoring hope and helping families move forward during difficult moments. “What I do with my own organization is similar,” she says. “I love to help kids. If I can make a little difference in their lives, I feel that my life has succeeded.”
To date, the Iron Lady Foundation has provided more than $175,000 in support of Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area, reflecting Rashi’s deep and ongoing investment in the organization’s mission.
“The support not only fuels our work today but inspires others to join us in creating moments of joy, strength, and resilience for children who need it most,” Betsy says.
During her time as a donor, Board member, and event sponsor, what’s stayed with Rashi the most are the moments with wish kids.
“There are a few moments that I will never forget, where I got to interact one-on-one with wish kids and see them smile,” she says. One of those wish kids was Joshua, whose wish to meet a capybara came true last spring.
Sometimes the smallest moments of joy can create the greatest sense of hope. And that’s what makes this work so meaningful.
Rashi
“The first thing I did was Google what a capybara is,” Rashi says with a laugh. “But I got to meet Joshua before he went, and I learned why he felt deeply connected to this animal. His story brings a smile to my face because it shows how, even for a moment, a wish lets a child simply be a child again.”
For Rashi, it’s these moments of joy and transformation that continue to drive her commitment.
“Sometimes the smallest moments of joy can create the greatest sense of hope,” Rashi says. “And that’s what makes this work so meaningful.”