The Foundation of Goodness’s Essential School Supplies programme kicked off last week, 3rd December 2009, in its largest and most ambitious distribution since the scheme started in 1999.

Smiles all round

Every year the number of schools and children benefiting from the school supplies, which includes shoes, socks, school bag, pens, exercise books and all the items needed for the academic year, has grown. This year an astonishing 1255 children from 13 schools will receive the packs. And to make this year even more special, the Foundation of Goodness is able for the first time to work with schools in the Northwest and Northeast, as well as Central District, Hill Country and Southern Province.

Arippu RCTM School hall
- 300 children await their gifts

The Foundation of Goodness team that makes it all happen is led by Ananda Jayawardena, who does a sterling job every year to coordinate this complicated programme with huge help from Colombo office staff Athula, Krishna, Subash and Gurusinghe to pack the bags and assemble all the supplies.

Ananda gives out packs to Gomara pupils

The distribution is always an emotional one, and this year especially so.

The first school to receive supplies was the Lahiru Pre School, in the MCC Centre of Excellence, Seenigama, donated by members of Reconcile & Rebuild.

Mrs Tennyson, Reconcile & Rebuild,
donates packs to Pre School children

Mr. & Mrs. Tennyson Rodrigo, representing members of the Tamil community in the North who unfortunately were unable to make it on the day, gave out 58 packs. They were given to the children in a lovely culmination to their Christmas concert, held at the Aviva Community Centre in the heart of the tsunami housing complex in Seenigama.

Helen and Pre School Teachers give school packs

Foundation of Goodness Founder / Trustee Kushil Gunasekera, accompanied by AnANDA, Fazana, her daughter Amaarah, Podi Sampath, Athula and Quen then headed up north for a massive distribution effort.

The first boy to receive his package holds it closely

First stop was Kekirawa school, Anuradhapura, where 203 children from a tiny school in amongst rich agricultural land gave a warm welcome with singing, dancing and even Santa Clause!

Santa Clause makes an appearance

A parent, in his welcome speech told how, just 3 years ago, only one child was registered in Year 1, but thanks to the efforts of parents, teachers and a new Principal, the school is now doing well, with ten students sitting their O-Levels this year.

They said this was the first time anyone from outside the school had ever helped them.

Little dancer is star of the show

The school was introduced to the Foundation of Goodness by MCC Centre of Excellence IT Head Instructor Saman Kumara, who’s wife’s sister is a teacher there.

Proudly wearing her new bag

Arippu RCTM School, Mannar was the next on the route. Located in the heart of a former LTTE naval base, this school was able to benefit from our Essential School Supplies programme thanks to Sri Lanka Unites, a youth organisation which brings young people together from all communities to build lasting peace.

Sri Lanka Unites help with distribution

300 packs were distributed to the children, who looked smart in their new government- allocated school uniforms, but with shoes gaping at the toe, or socks in place of shoes, or no shoes at all. The children showed great discipline, listening quietly through the speeches, seated on the floor while the mothers sat behind in colourful sarees, on the chairs donated by various NGOs.

Sigiriya children wait patiently

Next to Sigiriya and a return visit to Udawelayagama Junior School, where the 152 children walk many kilometres through dangerous jungle plagued by wild elephants to get to classes each morning. In this area only a handful of people are educated to A-level- even from a young age children have to dedicate themselves to working in the paddy fields to help their families earn enough to survive.

Fazana, FoG Coordinator, helps to give the packs

Our last stop on this trip was to Pankudavely RCTM School, Batticaloa. We were privileged to be introduced to this wonderful school by Weeramantry International Centre for Peace Education & Research (WICPER) President Neshan Gunasekera, and student delegate from the WICPER ‘Training for Trusteeship’ Arvind Nallathamby, who’s father is the school Principal.

Udawelayagama Junior School, Sigirya

This school is located in a very rural area which used to be in LTTE territory. Children orphaned by the conflict are taught at this school, which started out at an IDP camp, which was later destroyed after the 2004 ceasefire broke down.

Pankudavely RCTM School, Batticaloa

The school now ensures attendance of children who are needed on the paddy fields, by providing a meal a day from the World Food Programme. Some children run home with their one plate of food after school to help feed their family.

Local cooks prepare the World Food
Programme School Lunches

On a separate trip, Ananda, Fazana, volunteer Kendal from the UK, Nalika, a PHD Student from Irvine University, USA, Podi Sampath, Krishna, Subash and Athula made the difficult trip to the remotest hilltops around Kandy to distribute 114 packs in three schools- two of which were unreachable by car and involved a trek through the Kandy mountains.

The children of Gomara school with
FoG staff and volunteers

At Galamuduna Junior School- which means ‘top of the mountain’- none of the children had shoes and their community is so isolated that the children find it difficult to communicate with strangers and rarely leave their small village except in a medical emergency. If they want to go down the mountain for any basic needs, they must cross a rushing river on the shoulders of parents. The 37 pupils are taught by one teacher and one Principal, who spend the week at the school because the journey home each day is too dangerous.

None of the children at Galamuduna
Junior School had shoes

At Udagala Debokka Junior School –which means ‘in between the mountains’- only five children could come because of heavy rains. The van got stuck in the floods and the team had to wait for the waters to go down while one of the pupils ran up the mountain to ask the parents to come down and receive the packs. The school was established in the Dutch period and has 30 pupils, all of which will receive their packs when they can make it to the school. Priyankara, a university student from Peradeniya University, Kandy recommended these schools to the Foundation of Goodness after visiting them with other students during their research work.

Priyankara gives packs to Udagala
Debokka Junior School parents

Still to be distributed are 335 packs to schools in the South, including Anula Wijerama Girl’s Home in Balapitiya.

Girls from Batticaloa read the
FoG Goodness Calendar

This programme would not be possible without the generosity of many donors from all over the world. Kushil would like to extend particular thanks to those who have been supporting the scheme for the last ten years, including Shaktha Amaratunga, Sidath Wettimuny and Sriyan Senadhira. Also a great thanks to George Hettiaratchy and all his friends, who hold a collection every year, and every year exceed their previous year’s total, to give such a special gift to so many children.

“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a
single candle, and the life of the candle
will not be shortened.  Happiness
never decreases by being shared”
- Buddha

2009.12.14