By Lawrence Heyn
Sri Lankans living in Queensland have galvanised their communities into undertaking fundraising ventures to improve the lives of the under-privileged and needy in Sri Lanka and also in Australia.
Since its inception in 2007, the Sri Lanka Sports Association has been in the forefront of ventures to raise funds for the development of junior cricket, support for CCChouse at the cancer institute in Maharagama and aiding in the recovery of the 2004 tsunami-ravaged villages.
The SLSAQ is made up of a dynamic band of hardworking, and dedicated people, headed by president Prasad Kodikara. They have worked tirelessly to step in when help was needed by the local community or to support projects in Sri Lanka. One of the major beneficiaries has been the Foundation of Goodness, based in Seenigama, southern Sri Lanka.
It has not been all work and no play for SLSAQ members. Music lovers, young and old, have been well-entertained, with a string of high-class bands performing at events in the past eight years. Brisbane has played host to some of Sri Lanka’s legendary and talented musos, such as the Spitfires on their reunion tour, Sohan and the X-Periments, Alston Koch, and popular bands Misty and Flame to name but a few. Flame has performed at a dinner
All these lively functions were organised with one purpose in mind – to help improve and support lives of the disadvantaged and those in need.
Former president Jayantha Pathikirikorale said the SLSAQ’s charter was clearly set out.
He said: “In short, the objectives are to enhance and develop junior cricket in Sri Lanka; to promote the general welfare of its members by encouraging and promoting social activities; to assist other charities and worthy causes in Sri Lanka and Australia, and to promote the fair name of Sri Lanka in Australia.
In 2007, more than 600 people turned up to welcome the Sri Lankan cricket team at a dinner-dance at the RNA Showgrounds. Since then, the association has been the prime mover in organising functions whenever the Sri Lankan cricketers have been in Brisbane. One of the most innovative and successful events was taking the team on a cruise on the Brisbane River aboard the paddle steamer the Kookaburra Queen in 2010.
While the dinner-dances have provided enjoyment for the Sri Lankan community, the wider purpose of these events has been fundraising. In this regard, the association has teamed up with the Foundation of Goodness, Sri Lanka Cricket and the CCC Foundation, Queensland branch
Thanks to the generosity of the Brisbane community, money has been raised to benefit various projects in Sri Lanka. In August 2013, the Spitfires night raised $5000 for the Foundation of Goodness and this money was put to good use – 30 concrete practice wickets were constructed in Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya, Killinochchi, Jaffna and Mannar.
Foundation of Goodness founder Kushil Gunasekera was delighted with the SLSAQ’s contribution and said the project would make Sri Lanka grow stronger in the game for which it is renowned. “Your invaluable support made it all happen and as stakeholders you could be very proud of this marvellous gesture to elevate the standards of cricket,’’ Gunasekera said
As a result, schools so long deprived of cricket facilities now have the means to develop the talents of their young cricketers. The Foundation has been helped in other areas too, including the gifting of 90 computers, other equipment and cricket gear for its projects in Seenigama.
One of the big commitments the association and its members have undertaken is to support the CCC Foundation in its annual quest for funding to maintain CCChouse – a transit home linked to the National Cancer Institute in Maharagama.
The 188-bed CCChouse is helping relieve heavy overcrowding at the cancer institute by providing a home away from home. Previously, outpatients and family members who found it difficult to return to their homes after treatment were forced to sleep on the floors of the hospital’s corridors, while some parents slept on the floor by the beds of their children. But all that has changed thanks to the generosity and the dedication of members within the SLSAQ and CCC Foundation, Queensland branch, and benefactors in Sydney and Melbourne.
In 2013, a Valentine’s Day dance featured the energetic Flame, played to a large crowd at the function organised by a team including Pathikirikorale and old Wesleyite Bill Deutrom, head of the CCC Foundation Queensland branch. A total of $10,000 was raised and this along with future fundraising helped CCC raise the $130,000 it needed each year to maintain CCChouse and CCCline – the latter a telephone help line similar to Australia’s Lifeline.
The Courage Compassion Commitment (CCC) Foundation, launched in 2003, has been helping the cancer institute implement best practice in oncology and radiation therapy and is providing the infrastructure for the treatment and comfort of patients and carers. One of the foundation’s major projects, CCChouse, provides facilities in the nature of a transit home for patients who come from all parts of Sri Lanka.
Outpatients and family members who found it difficult to return to their homes after treatment had been forced to sleep on the floors in the corridors of the institute or some parents were even sleeping on the floor by the beds of their children. CCChouse, is helping relieve heavy overcrowding at the cancer institute by providing a home away from home.
Founder and chairman of CCC Foundation (Australia) Jetha Devapura said: “Life becomes very difficult for both patient and carer when diagnosed with cancer. But just imagine how it would be to endure the pain without having the basic comforts of a bed.’’
Devapura attributed the project’s success to the vision, resilience and confidence of the voluntary committees that formed the CCC Foundation in two countries. “We have had tremendous support from the people in Sri Lanka and Australia who have donated funds as well as goods in kind,” Jetha said. “This is a people’s project, and they have responded with compassion.”
When the tsunami hit Sri Lanka on that fateful Boxing Day in 2004, wiping out communities and claiming more than 40,000 lives, it generated a wave of support from all quarters of the globe including Brisbane. The community reacted quickly and Sri Lanka has been a beneficiary of many fundraising ventures carried out by organisations such as the Sri Lanka Disaster Relief Fund of Queensland, SLSAQ and the Sri Lanka Society of Qld.
One of the big ventures undertaken was the collection and despatch of a 40-foot container of emergency aid in 2005. This was followed by the delivery of 60 computers to schools in stricken areas. The SLDRFQ was formed to help the countless victims of the tsunami. All communities united in this project to help rebuild villages along the southeast and northeast coast of Sri Lanka.
In January 2013, my family and I were fortunate to be taken around and shown the work the Foundation of Goodness had carried to rebuild Seenigama and other villages, devastated by the tidal wave that swept over them. We were amazed by the work that had been carried, and by what the people of Seenigama were doing to help themselves.
The Foundation of Goodness was established in 1999 by businessman and philanthropist Kushil Gunasekera to provide essential services to his ancestral village of Seenigama. The property was in his family for generations. Kushil built and donated a villa and the area, including the preschool, was dedicated as the village heartbeat. Then the tsunami struck and water tore through the villa.
Kushil told me then: “Luckily the villa did not collapse but withstood the onslaught which only washed away all of the movable items “It took around four to six weeks to get it all cleaned up and have it in operation as the village coordinating secretariat, serving more than 25 tsunami-affected villages in the region, rebuilding their lives speedily including the delivery of 1000 houses.”
The FOG precinct is spread over 6.7 hectares (15 acres) where all projects are implemented, including the MCC Centre of Excellence, Sports Academy, housing complexes and sectors providing education and training in a range of industries. The Marylebone Cricket Club is a major sponsor of the foundation which also has strong support from international cricketers spearheaded by Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, and generous donations from Australia, among other countries.
Brisbane too benefited from the fundraising efforts of local groups who combined under the banner of the Sri Lanka Community Premier’s Flood Relief Appeal to raise $20,000 to gift to the Queensland Government following the widespread floods across the city in 2011.
Jayantha Pathikirikorale said: “We will never forget the assistance given by all Queenslanders after the tsunami that devastated Sri Lanka, and it was our turn to reciprocate this assistance and support.”
A few years earlier, Queensland had gifted $2 million to Sri Lanka for the rehabilitation of people in the worst tsunami affected areas in the east and southwest.
Over the years, a long list of assistance has been tallied thanks to the dedication of selfless organisations such as the SLSAQ and the CCC Foundation that will continue to hold fundraising events in the genuine belief they will be supported by the Sri Lankan community.
Their success depends on it.
>> To learn about the work of the Foundation of Goodness go to www.unconditionalcompassion.org
