Hi there everyone,
Message received about photos - we will get some posted as soon as poss!
It's great to hear your comments and to know that you are following our adventure. Please keep them coming!
Amali
Thursday, 30 October 2008
Tuesday 28th October - TASKS ASSIGNED!
Another early start, this time to the playgroups we have all been looking forward to working in. For Sharon, Jo and Helen it was a journey to Kalkudah, once again through many roadblocks with the security of armed soldiers.
The playgroup was housed in a simple open brick building and on arrival we were adorned with beautiful, fragrant garlands of flowers which the children placed around our necks. Straight away they were eagerly drawing pictures of their houses as we attempted to learn their names!! ‘Two little dickie birds’ added some fun to this, and everyone started to relax and embrace the morning’s activities. It wasn’t long before the personalities began to shine through.....shy, cheeky and confident. It was a delight to see how, with very little resources, Prema and her helpers had nurtured a safe and happy environment for these 3-5 year olds. They were keen for us to come back tomorrow and finish the story we started....!!
We were then treated to a delicious lunch at the new, post- tsunami home of our translator Victor and his mum Victoria, who lost her husband Trevor in the disaster. Her resilience in the aftermath shone through and her cooking was a tribute to Sri Lankan cuisine. The food was all naturally grown in her garden – water melons, aubergines, beans, okra, mangoes and cashews amongst others!
On return to Batticaloa we had our first 30 minutes of chill out time since arrival. It’s been so busy diaries have been abandoned but not forgotten.
Before sunset ,most of the group took an emotional drive to Dutch Bar, a bay badly hit by the tsunami. We were very moved by the devastation. The contrast between the idyllic beach on one side of the road and only foundations of buildings on the other really struck us. As well as the memorial which bore the names of those lost -the oldest born 1925, the youngest only 26 days old - there was the poignancy of a solitary child’s shoe in amongst the rubble and a motorbike on the second floor of a wrecked house placed there in memory of the owner.
We all needed space with our thoughts on the beach. After this Harshana (one of our drivers – a Buddhist) gently reminded us that life is not permanent.
Our reflective mood lightened as we enjoyed an evening meal – yet another home cooked feast – with our deaf friends at the Kalladay project. It was somehow easier communicating with impromptu sign language than with Tamil and Sinhalese! These people really welcomed us and yet again we were overwhelmed by the gracious nature of Sri Lankan hospitality.
The playgroup was housed in a simple open brick building and on arrival we were adorned with beautiful, fragrant garlands of flowers which the children placed around our necks. Straight away they were eagerly drawing pictures of their houses as we attempted to learn their names!! ‘Two little dickie birds’ added some fun to this, and everyone started to relax and embrace the morning’s activities. It wasn’t long before the personalities began to shine through.....shy, cheeky and confident. It was a delight to see how, with very little resources, Prema and her helpers had nurtured a safe and happy environment for these 3-5 year olds. They were keen for us to come back tomorrow and finish the story we started....!!
We were then treated to a delicious lunch at the new, post- tsunami home of our translator Victor and his mum Victoria, who lost her husband Trevor in the disaster. Her resilience in the aftermath shone through and her cooking was a tribute to Sri Lankan cuisine. The food was all naturally grown in her garden – water melons, aubergines, beans, okra, mangoes and cashews amongst others!
On return to Batticaloa we had our first 30 minutes of chill out time since arrival. It’s been so busy diaries have been abandoned but not forgotten.
Before sunset ,most of the group took an emotional drive to Dutch Bar, a bay badly hit by the tsunami. We were very moved by the devastation. The contrast between the idyllic beach on one side of the road and only foundations of buildings on the other really struck us. As well as the memorial which bore the names of those lost -the oldest born 1925, the youngest only 26 days old - there was the poignancy of a solitary child’s shoe in amongst the rubble and a motorbike on the second floor of a wrecked house placed there in memory of the owner.
We all needed space with our thoughts on the beach. After this Harshana (one of our drivers – a Buddhist) gently reminded us that life is not permanent.
Our reflective mood lightened as we enjoyed an evening meal – yet another home cooked feast – with our deaf friends at the Kalladay project. It was somehow easier communicating with impromptu sign language than with Tamil and Sinhalese! These people really welcomed us and yet again we were overwhelmed by the gracious nature of Sri Lankan hospitality.
Tuesday, 28 October 2008
Day 1 at the Urani lunch project
So, after a morning which has seen the team divide into 3 working groups, Amali, Bron and Kate sallied forth to the Urani playgroup, fondly known as the "Batti Lunch Project". There we were welcomed by about 35 children, aged between 3-5 and their two teachers. Each child presented us with a beautiful garland, which had clearly taken hours to make. The children were dressed in their best "bib and tucker", a stark contrast to the obvious poverty that they live in and a symbol of their respect for the Ocean Stars visitors.
As the morning began, the children sat silently on their chairs, not quite sure what to make of the three mad English women, who had suddenly appeared in their midst. They greeted us politely with "good morning" and as the morning progressed, they slowly lost all their inhibitions.
The morning was spent introducing new games, songs and craft ideas with varying degrees of success/disaster :) It was clear that these activities were unknown territory to them, as many struggled to draw a face or use a glue stick. Our most successful activities included bean bag games, musical chairs, bubbles, "head shoulders knees and toes", and of course the eternally successful "hokey cokey", which crosses all language barriers.
We saw the children prepare for lunch by washing their hands and saying grace before tucking into a meal of rice, a hard boiled egg and 1 prawn. For these desperately poor children, this is their only meal of the day. Before we were treated to lunch, the children left clutching the shakers that they had all made earlier.
A special mention for the two teachers... We have spent one exhausting and action-packed morning in the heat with very lively children. The teachers do this every day and need to be praised and congratulated for the wonderful job that they do. Bron hopes that her efforts at communicating this message was successful. She has promised to learn Tamil for her next visit!! One of the struggles we had today was the language barrier, but hopefully tomorrow they will have remembered the words "head, shoulders, knees and toes!" We are now looking forward to returning tomorrow and seeing all their smiling faces.
After returning briefly to the hotel to pick up the photocopier, we headed to St. Vincents Girls' School where Ocean Stars sponsors 10 girls. All the girls were there to meet us, along with various members of staff. We had a chance to talk with the girls and they all demonstrated their impressive English speaking skills. We each now have many extra pen-pals! Again, our welcome was overwhelming and they showed much generosity towards us.
Having found an internet cafe, we are looking ahead to a tour of one of the tsunami damaged areas and a meal with the the people of the "deaf and dumb project" and some more of the sponsored children.
Kate's thoughts...
"For me, the experiences I am encountering are life changing. The people are all so friendly and welcoming, despite the hardship that many of them are having to live with. The changes seen in the children from when we first meet them to the way that they behave once they have lost their inhibitions is unique. Their smiling faces and laughter will live with me forever.
I would also like to thank Dilanee for giving me the opportunity to share her experiences, and to get to know her people."
As the morning began, the children sat silently on their chairs, not quite sure what to make of the three mad English women, who had suddenly appeared in their midst. They greeted us politely with "good morning" and as the morning progressed, they slowly lost all their inhibitions.
The morning was spent introducing new games, songs and craft ideas with varying degrees of success/disaster :) It was clear that these activities were unknown territory to them, as many struggled to draw a face or use a glue stick. Our most successful activities included bean bag games, musical chairs, bubbles, "head shoulders knees and toes", and of course the eternally successful "hokey cokey", which crosses all language barriers.
We saw the children prepare for lunch by washing their hands and saying grace before tucking into a meal of rice, a hard boiled egg and 1 prawn. For these desperately poor children, this is their only meal of the day. Before we were treated to lunch, the children left clutching the shakers that they had all made earlier.
A special mention for the two teachers... We have spent one exhausting and action-packed morning in the heat with very lively children. The teachers do this every day and need to be praised and congratulated for the wonderful job that they do. Bron hopes that her efforts at communicating this message was successful. She has promised to learn Tamil for her next visit!! One of the struggles we had today was the language barrier, but hopefully tomorrow they will have remembered the words "head, shoulders, knees and toes!" We are now looking forward to returning tomorrow and seeing all their smiling faces.
After returning briefly to the hotel to pick up the photocopier, we headed to St. Vincents Girls' School where Ocean Stars sponsors 10 girls. All the girls were there to meet us, along with various members of staff. We had a chance to talk with the girls and they all demonstrated their impressive English speaking skills. We each now have many extra pen-pals! Again, our welcome was overwhelming and they showed much generosity towards us.
Having found an internet cafe, we are looking ahead to a tour of one of the tsunami damaged areas and a meal with the the people of the "deaf and dumb project" and some more of the sponsored children.
Kate's thoughts...
"For me, the experiences I am encountering are life changing. The people are all so friendly and welcoming, despite the hardship that many of them are having to live with. The changes seen in the children from when we first meet them to the way that they behave once they have lost their inhibitions is unique. Their smiling faces and laughter will live with me forever.
I would also like to thank Dilanee for giving me the opportunity to share her experiences, and to get to know her people."
Dilanee's thoughts...
I know I’m not allowed to use an ‘A’ word but the experience so far has been an awesome one for me! On my previous visits I’ve always felt that the OST experiences on the ground have been magical ones. To have the opportunity to share these special moments with eight other people has meant a lot to me. I know it’s not the end of the week but I’d like to say thanks to Amali, Bron, Helen, Janaki, Jo, Kate, Maureen and Sharon for their laughter, enthusiasm and boundless energy! Although it has been an intense week so far, the laughter has been endless.
Monday 27th October - From the sublime to the ridiculous...
From now on the ‘A’ word has been banned (Amazing.....sshhh!!!) Apologies if this blog makes little sense as we are all suffering rather from exhaustion after a very long day, so if anyone has any suggestions for an alternative superlative, plea se reply!!!
Whilst 3 of the team continued to snore, the other intrepid members arose early to visit the Golden Temple in Dambulla, (the largest Buddha statue in the world) and climbed the 365 steps to the Dambulla Caves/Temples (yes, Bron counted!!!!) It was a peaceful and spiritual place in the early morning.
Having met up with the rest of the team, we then transferred to a land rover for a rather cosy, bumpy journey with mud splashing through the open windows to an eco forest lodge. We were rather alarmed to hear that we might get stuck in the mud with 10 of us onboard but our fears fortunately proved unfounded!!. We were the guests of some of our Sri Lankan contacts who wanted to thank us for our work. This was a very pleasant interlude in a very busy schedule! Our thanks to Rohan, Yasmin, Dinushka and Shakthi for their generous hospitality, and entertaining stories of elephants eating the roof and stealing the salt over the kitchen wall!!
Our day continued with a long bumpy journey; a journey of contrasts, as we travelled from lush tropical landscape to a barren grassland with many ruined shelled houses, checkpoints, tsunami damage (and vicious speed bumps!) This area seemed much poorer, more rural and still in desperate need of regeneration.
We arrived in Batticaloa in the dark to be warmly welcomed by Joseph, the owner of “The Avonlea Guesthouse” where we will be spending the next four nights. There followed a planning evening to prepare activities for our visits to the Ocean Stars playgroup projects in the area over the next few days. So here we are at 10.45pm during a power cut cutting out paper streamers and Humpty Dumpty shapes, looking forward to spending time with the children and their teachers and hoping not to dream of the Hokey Cokey!!!
Goodnight!!
Sunday, 26 October 2008
Sunday 26th October Blog – Trincomalee
An early start, we were up and about by 5am this morning, just before the sun rose. We took a sack full of hand-knitted teddies for the children of the Trincomalee Velllaimanal playgroup, we were on our way. The journey lasted three hours, passing through the beautiful Eastern landscape, high security check points and the cheeky monkeys, before arriving at the playgroup.
We were greeted by the Ocean Stars’ contacts, Yasmin and Rohan, who were very happy to see us in this isolated area. The children were peeping at us through the bushes, before lining up to present us with hand-made shell garlands. These children are all victims of the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka, but having said this, we were greeted by row upon row of beaming smiles.
As the morning progressed, time was spent playing games of musical bumps, singing songs and generally having fun. A highlight for us has to be “The Hokey Cokey”, which was loved by the children. The children also sang a song for us; “I am a mango”, which demonstrated to us the determination of the teachers and the enthusiasm of the children.
The children were treated to chocolate milk and chocolate biscuits, a rarity in this part of the world. To see the children’s appreciation of these simple items was deeply touching, as was their response to the teddy bears; there was no bickering over the colour or style.
After planting a range of exotic trees, including belli, guava and woodapple, we were given an opportunity to purchase sewing products from the mothers of the playgroup children. We were then treated to a feast and by Ayesha, the wife of Janabdeen, our local contact, which tantalised our taste buds and senses to extremes.
Throughout the day, the children could be seen clutching on to their teddies as we toured the village, stopping by at the sponsor families of the team members. The hospitality of these families was overwhelming, the Ocean Stars Team were treated with gifts of king coconuts, henna tattoos and flower garlands.
The money raised by Helen in the Stirling Run is being used to develop a health education programme for pre-natal mothers, regular health checks for the children and general health care. They hope to have this up and running in the next few months.
Thought for the day...
“It was an amazing day, one that will be remembered for a very long time. These people touched my heart. There is still so much more to do”
We were greeted by the Ocean Stars’ contacts, Yasmin and Rohan, who were very happy to see us in this isolated area. The children were peeping at us through the bushes, before lining up to present us with hand-made shell garlands. These children are all victims of the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka, but having said this, we were greeted by row upon row of beaming smiles.
As the morning progressed, time was spent playing games of musical bumps, singing songs and generally having fun. A highlight for us has to be “The Hokey Cokey”, which was loved by the children. The children also sang a song for us; “I am a mango”, which demonstrated to us the determination of the teachers and the enthusiasm of the children.
The children were treated to chocolate milk and chocolate biscuits, a rarity in this part of the world. To see the children’s appreciation of these simple items was deeply touching, as was their response to the teddy bears; there was no bickering over the colour or style.
After planting a range of exotic trees, including belli, guava and woodapple, we were given an opportunity to purchase sewing products from the mothers of the playgroup children. We were then treated to a feast and by Ayesha, the wife of Janabdeen, our local contact, which tantalised our taste buds and senses to extremes.
Throughout the day, the children could be seen clutching on to their teddies as we toured the village, stopping by at the sponsor families of the team members. The hospitality of these families was overwhelming, the Ocean Stars Team were treated with gifts of king coconuts, henna tattoos and flower garlands.
The money raised by Helen in the Stirling Run is being used to develop a health education programme for pre-natal mothers, regular health checks for the children and general health care. They hope to have this up and running in the next few months.
Thought for the day...
“It was an amazing day, one that will be remembered for a very long time. These people touched my heart. There is still so much more to do”
OST Update!
Hello bloggers!
We're having a bit of trouble accessing the internet here, so please bear with us if the entries don't appear daily. Hope your enjoying the blog so far :)
Amali x
We're having a bit of trouble accessing the internet here, so please bear with us if the entries don't appear daily. Hope your enjoying the blog so far :)
Amali x
Saturday, 25th October Grace Children's Home, Vavuniya
Every so often days come along in our lives which cause us to pause, stop even and reconsider... today for me was one of those days.
It began early(!), when Dilanee, Kate and I set off from Anuradhapura and headed north. Our destination was Grace Children’s Home, in Vavuniya , which is ‘home’ to 24 boys aged between 6 and 16, who have become displaced from their families as a result of the war which has troubled Sri Lanka for so many years now.
The Home is very close to my heart as my school, Heatherside Infants, has been working with Dilanee and Ocean Stars to support its work there for the last 4 years. It was truly a privilege to spend the day with Mrs Nadarajah who is ‘Mum’ to the boys and the children. We drew pictures, played team games and cricket, and enjoyed a lovely lunch which had been especially prepared in ‘honour’ of our visit. It was truly a very emotional day – my thoughts whirled constantly. These children have nothin
g of material value, no place of their own to call home. Everything we did with them or said to them they seemed to value. They gave twice as much to me in their own way as I did to them.
As the day went on and they got to know us a little better they relaxed and became more open and even more giving of themselves. There was laughter and in the end there were tears – my tears. To have a home and family is the essence of our security and we take it so much for granted. I’m exhausted now so it’s time for rest. Perhaps ‘Grace will feature in my dreams. I hope so.
It began early(!), when Dilanee, Kate and I set off from Anuradhapura and headed north. Our destination was Grace Children’s Home, in Vavuniya , which is ‘home’ to 24 boys aged between 6 and 16, who have become displaced from their families as a result of the war which has troubled Sri Lanka for so many years now.
The Home is very close to my heart as my school, Heatherside Infants, has been working with Dilanee and Ocean Stars to support its work there for the last 4 years. It was truly a privilege to spend the day with Mrs Nadarajah who is ‘Mum’ to the boys and the children. We drew pictures, played team games and cricket, and enjoyed a lovely lunch which had been especially prepared in ‘honour’ of our visit. It was truly a very emotional day – my thoughts whirled constantly. These children have nothin
g of material value, no place of their own to call home. Everything we did with them or said to them they seemed to value. They gave twice as much to me in their own way as I did to them.As the day went on and they got to know us a little better they relaxed and became more open and even more giving of themselves. There was laughter and in the end there were tears – my tears. To have a home and family is the essence of our security and we take it so much for granted. I’m exhausted now so it’s time for rest. Perhaps ‘Grace will feature in my dreams. I hope so.
Maureen :)
Friday, 24 October 2008
Fitting weather welcomes us!
After a 10 hour flight we arrived at Colombo airport, at 5am, in the midst of a tropical downpour which has lasted all day. We were met by the Revd. Ranchan and our three smiley drivers.
We were fortunate enough to have our 750 pound excess luggage fee waived by an understanding Sri Lankan Airways supervisor. So through customs we went, crammed with teddies, bean bags and a bottle of gin (which was suggested by Jan, agreed by Jo and carried out by Helen!)
We were taken safely to a Negombo beach front hotel. On our way, we encountered our first glimpses of the Sri Lankan culture, including many colourful umbrellas- even protecting those on motorbikes and bicycles, tuc-tucs and the retro lorries/buses.
When we reached our accomodation for the night, the waves were crashing in front of our eyes and the wind was blowing in our faces. The sea was grey, reflecting the sky above, and was atmospheric, representative of our reason for being here.
This didn't dampen our spirits however, as Bron, Kate, Helen and Jan sprinted with childlike zest towards the seafront. Jo also dipped her toes in! For Helen and Janaki, this was the fruition of a 23 year old promise.
We experienced our first curried breakfast with dhal to die for and papaya to salivate over.
After breakfast, Jo and Dilanee departed for Colombo with our regular driver, Ranga. This was to be the beginning of an eventful day for them, as they went in search of a school photocopier, a video camera for the Grace children's home and money exchange etc. However, the money exchange turned into a long ordeal, which included being led through dodgy car parks, up smelly staircases and locals scouring the streets of Colombo for the best exchange rates. This was followed by an eventual successful purchase of a photocopier and video camera, not forgetting the all important cricket bats for the boys at home!
During this time, the rain continued to pound down. Some of the team caught up on some sleep whilst Sharon and Amali ventured into the sea; not to be deterred by a local's concern for the dangerous "electricity" (i.e. current!)
Eventually, after some of the team enjoyed a cheap lunch, the team met up again to unpack the many cases of donations and divide the goodies for the various projects that we are going to be working on over the 10 days.
It was then time to retire and relax for some, whilst Dilanee, Maureen and Kate headed off to Ankapura where they will be spending the day tomorrow with the children of the Grace Children's Home. All quite happy to hit the pillow early - ready for a 6am start!
We're safe, exhausted, but happy!
We were fortunate enough to have our 750 pound excess luggage fee waived by an understanding Sri Lankan Airways supervisor. So through customs we went, crammed with teddies, bean bags and a bottle of gin (which was suggested by Jan, agreed by Jo and carried out by Helen!)
We were taken safely to a Negombo beach front hotel. On our way, we encountered our first glimpses of the Sri Lankan culture, including many colourful umbrellas- even protecting those on motorbikes and bicycles, tuc-tucs and the retro lorries/buses.
When we reached our accomodation for the night, the waves were crashing in front of our eyes and the wind was blowing in our faces. The sea was grey, reflecting the sky above, and was atmospheric, representative of our reason for being here.
This didn't dampen our spirits however, as Bron, Kate, Helen and Jan sprinted with childlike zest towards the seafront. Jo also dipped her toes in! For Helen and Janaki, this was the fruition of a 23 year old promise.
We experienced our first curried breakfast with dhal to die for and papaya to salivate over.
After breakfast, Jo and Dilanee departed for Colombo with our regular driver, Ranga. This was to be the beginning of an eventful day for them, as they went in search of a school photocopier, a video camera for the Grace children's home and money exchange etc. However, the money exchange turned into a long ordeal, which included being led through dodgy car parks, up smelly staircases and locals scouring the streets of Colombo for the best exchange rates. This was followed by an eventual successful purchase of a photocopier and video camera, not forgetting the all important cricket bats for the boys at home!
During this time, the rain continued to pound down. Some of the team caught up on some sleep whilst Sharon and Amali ventured into the sea; not to be deterred by a local's concern for the dangerous "electricity" (i.e. current!)
Eventually, after some of the team enjoyed a cheap lunch, the team met up again to unpack the many cases of donations and divide the goodies for the various projects that we are going to be working on over the 10 days.
It was then time to retire and relax for some, whilst Dilanee, Maureen and Kate headed off to Ankapura where they will be spending the day tomorrow with the children of the Grace Children's Home. All quite happy to hit the pillow early - ready for a 6am start!
We're safe, exhausted, but happy!
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Bron's thoughts...
With just 12 hours to go until we leave, I'm getting more and more excited - yet apprehensive. I've been looking forward to this trip for so long, and now, suddenly, we're off! I know it will be unlike anything I have ever done before, travelling so far and meeting people living so very differently to here in Fleet. But I've heard so much about their enthusiasm, generosity and welcome for our visit. The team is great, too, and I'm looking forward to meeting Helen for the first time at Heathrow. I would like to thank Dilanee especially - it must be really hard work to put together a trip for nine people for nearly eleven days, but she seems to have done it effortlessly, and passed on her calmness to the rest of us.
Anyway, I'm still not completely packed so...see you all tomorrow, Team 2008!
Bron :)
Anyway, I'm still not completely packed so...see you all tomorrow, Team 2008!
Bron :)
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Wednesday 22nd October, 1 Night to go...
So, the time has finally arrived. It seems to have approached scarily quickly and I am now wondering what the next 10 days are going to have in store...
We leave tomorrow morning, at a fairly respectable hour for Heathrow, where we will be meeting up with Jan and Helen. The team will then be together for the first time.
The generosity and support behind the team can be witnessed through the 90ish(!) kilos worth of goodies that is to be included in our luggage; over 100 teddy bears, 200 bean bags, toiletries, and stationary to name but a few. The picture below shows the "Fleet Crew" holding some of these items at the last meeting!
So I'll leave it there for now as I still have various things to do before I can say that I am packed! Stay tuned :)
Amali x
We leave tomorrow morning, at a fairly respectable hour for Heathrow, where we will be meeting up with Jan and Helen. The team will then be together for the first time.
The generosity and support behind the team can be witnessed through the 90ish(!) kilos worth of goodies that is to be included in our luggage; over 100 teddy bears, 200 bean bags, toiletries, and stationary to name but a few. The picture below shows the "Fleet Crew" holding some of these items at the last meeting!
So I'll leave it there for now as I still have various things to do before I can say that I am packed! Stay tuned :)Amali x
Jo's thoughts before departure...
I have known Dilanee since 1991 when we both moved to Fleet and began attending the same toddler group. Our families soon became great friends and our children have all grown up together, as we have grown older together!! Over the years we have shared many a happy family gathering both in Fleet and further afield,including visits to Centre Parcs and various campsites in France!! We have had lots of fun watching our children change from those small people who used to dress up and put on plays for us, to the sophisticated (?!!), independent young people that they are nowadays!!!!
So, when the Tsunami hit,it seemed only natural that I should support Dilanee in any way I could, and have been involved with Ocean Stars from the beginning as a Trustee and Secretary. Many an evening has been spent sitting discussing funding of various projects and I am really looking forward to being able to put faces to names and finally meet everyone in Sri Lanka. I am also so excited about being able to go with Dilanee to visit a place that is very special to her and has become special to me too. I know it will be an amazing time and a real adventure and I can't wait to get there and get to work with the rest of the team!! I'm sure in amongst the work there will be much fun and laughter!!!
Jo x
So, when the Tsunami hit,it seemed only natural that I should support Dilanee in any way I could, and have been involved with Ocean Stars from the beginning as a Trustee and Secretary. Many an evening has been spent sitting discussing funding of various projects and I am really looking forward to being able to put faces to names and finally meet everyone in Sri Lanka. I am also so excited about being able to go with Dilanee to visit a place that is very special to her and has become special to me too. I know it will be an amazing time and a real adventure and I can't wait to get there and get to work with the rest of the team!! I'm sure in amongst the work there will be much fun and laughter!!!
Jo x
Friday, 10 October 2008
Helen's thoughts...
Way back in 1985 I went off to Ohio to work on summercamp. A couple of mornings after my arrival I awoke to meet a new Sri Lankan pal who had arrived in the night .The swimming coach!!!! That was Janaki. After working the summer we travelled some of the States together,staying with family and friends of us both. As well as a lot of fun, including a party on Bourbon St,New Orleans celebrating Janaki's birthday(!), a much treasured friendship was born and it didn't take long until the country and its people became dear to my heart.
After our travels we promised to go together to her homeland......time passed, we both embraced life,got married( not to each other!!!) ,and although there was sometimes chat about the trip becoming a reality for us, our lives took over..but Sri Lanka has always remained close to my heart, maintaining contact with the country through sponsoring Sri Lankan children through Plan. One of those children, Dilshan was lost to the Wave.
When the Tsunami hit Asia and we all felt so helpless,it was with much love and enthusiasm I wanted to give something back. Dilanee, setting up Ocean Stars, has allowed me to become part of a very rewarding cause.
Being offered the opportunity to go with Ocean Stars has given me the chance to experience Sri Lanka not only with my old pal,(I had tears when I heard Janaki had decided she was joining the trip), but in a way that is much more meaningful and important to this World.
I thank all those involved with Ocean Stars for their commitment to this cause,especially Dilanee for making me part of OST in SL 2008.
I look forward to every part of it. I can not wait. Already I know I will be returning.Looking forward to sharing this adventure with you all.
loveHelen x:)
Helen's fundraising efforts can be seen at: http://www.justgiving.com/helenoliver2
After our travels we promised to go together to her homeland......time passed, we both embraced life,got married( not to each other!!!) ,and although there was sometimes chat about the trip becoming a reality for us, our lives took over..but Sri Lanka has always remained close to my heart, maintaining contact with the country through sponsoring Sri Lankan children through Plan. One of those children, Dilshan was lost to the Wave.
When the Tsunami hit Asia and we all felt so helpless,it was with much love and enthusiasm I wanted to give something back. Dilanee, setting up Ocean Stars, has allowed me to become part of a very rewarding cause.
Being offered the opportunity to go with Ocean Stars has given me the chance to experience Sri Lanka not only with my old pal,(I had tears when I heard Janaki had decided she was joining the trip), but in a way that is much more meaningful and important to this World.
I thank all those involved with Ocean Stars for their commitment to this cause,especially Dilanee for making me part of OST in SL 2008.
I look forward to every part of it. I can not wait. Already I know I will be returning.Looking forward to sharing this adventure with you all.
loveHelen x:)
Helen's fundraising efforts can be seen at: http://www.justgiving.com/helenoliver2
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