A GIFT OF LIGHT

Clutching his son's hand the father pleaded, with tears in his eyes for lights in his home so that his son would no longer have to study by kerosene lamp. He is just one of the many people who for four months continuously made their way to the Foundation to beg, plead, cry, and shout in anger to get electricity to their homes. Some of these people already had connections down their road but no way to get these connections extended to their homes, others could not afford the accessories necessary to get connections, yet others were parts of communities where electricity was completely unattainable. Many of us take for granted the ability to flip a switch and have all the light we want, use numerous appliances to make our daily tasks easier, enjoy television, radio and other forms of electronic entertainment not to mention the computer and all its accessories which has become a permanent feature in many homes.

The amount of donations, both monetary and otherwise, that have flooded in since the tsunami is absolutely tremendous. Thanks to these donation the Foundation of Goodness has been able not only to rebuild the lives of the Seenigama villagers but has been able to rebuild and assist several other surrounding villages, providing facilities and services that were non existent prior to the tsunami. The uplifting of the rural community has extended to villages all around Seenigama, whose tsunami affected people have found in the Foundation the strength, hope, support and opportunity that has enabled them to move on from this tragedy. The unstinted generosity, kindness and compassion that donors through out the world have shown have crossed all boundaries to help these people who were caught up in one of the most devastating natural disasters in recent history.

Yet this disaster in itself created a boundary which has become very hard to cross. Hundreds of people live in abject poverty, in clay thatched houses, etching a meager living to keep body and soul together. Not being victims of a tragedy, whether natural or man made, very little attention is paid to championing their cause. Whatever assistance that does come their way though gratefully received is often too small to make lasting changes. For these poor people the ability to switch on a light bulb is a dream let alone the many other luxuries we enjoy today thanks to electricity. Unfortunately in many instances, over the last two years, one of the few things preventing this dream becoming a reality has been the dreaded question “Were you caught in the tsunami?” for in many cases this question, separating people as tsunami victims or non victims, has determined whether a person is to be helped or not.

Seeing this condition one of our generous donors, who wishes to remain anonymous, took it upon himself to provide 60 families who were not affected by the tsunami with electricity supplies. These people prior to receiving this fantastic gift, lived in extreme hardship. Any work that required considerable light, whether it be cooking, washing, cleaning and the many other daily tasks we all engage in had to be completed before dusk. Their evening meals cooked outside on open fires were eaten by the meager light of kerosene lamps. Children did their homework and studies by the poor light shed by these same lamps. If they woke in the night there was no easy light switch to reach for but instead they had to make their way in the dark to the dying embers of the hearth or have a box of matches handy at all times. For families with small children there was the constant fear of being burned or the lamps being knocked over setting fire to the very few worldly goods they possessed.

This generous donor changed the lives of these people forever. Their gratitude to him knows no bounds as their evenings and nights are no longer shrouded in darkness and they have the assurance that their lives and the lives of their children have become at least that much better.

While the foundation has been able to, thanks to the the outstanding generosity of donors through the world, help thousands of tsunami affected people we are also striving to help those who though they have not faced the tsunami are still living in sustained poverty. To provide these people with better opportunities, living conditions and access to services is merely a stepping stone in helping them to lay the foundations for better and brighter futures for generations to come and this generous donor has helped the Foundation of Goodness to move ahead in this endeavour.

Electricity Supply and Accessories