Gifts of Hope is an annual project carried out by the Rotaract Club of Wellawatta to bring hope to the less fortune during the blessed season of Christmas. As the second wave hit Sri Lanka towards October, the government declared curfews in several affected areas to control the spread of virus. This situation has greatly affected daily-wage earners across Sri Lanka, especially those who are from the curfew imposed areas who do not have a stable mode of income to purchase their basic requirements. Hence, the Rotaract Club of Wellawatte decided to donate dry rations to 50 families who are affected due to this situation. We got in touch with the school Principal of Ramakrishna Vidyalayam in Wellawatte. The parents of the children from that school are all daily wage earners mostly working as drivers, house maids, single parents etc. The School Principal with the help of the class teachers was able to do an initial screening to pick the most affected families from each grade.
The following items were donated in total to 50 families: 50Kg of Samba Rice, 50Kg of Mysoor Dhaal, 50Kg of Sugar, 100Kg of Wheat Flour, 50 packets of tea leaves, 50 Cans of Mackerel, 50Kg of Salt, 100 packets of Soya Meat, 50 Packets of Coconut Milk Powder, 25Kg of Onions, 12.5Kg of Sprats, 20Kg of Anchor. We collected donations in both forms of dry rations and monetary funds. Since the per family cost was approximately Rs. 2,000/- most individuals came forward to help out few families by donating the cost per family.
We received the required amount of goods to carry forward with our project.
On the 29th December 2020, few volunteers of our club helped to purchase dry rations and sort them into required quantities. In the evening on the same day, the parcels were distributed at the premises of St. Peters’ Church, Pamankada bringing hope to these 50 families. The Principal of Ramakrishna Vidyalayam was also present there for the distribution of the items. Each family after collecting the rations, signed the name list prepared by the Principal and Teachers as an acknowledgement of the receipt of the goods.
Through this project, the Rotaract Club of Wellawatte was able to focus on the Sustainable Development Goal Number 02 – Zero Hunger by preventing these families from suffering from hunger due to the current pandemic. Hence, we met the immediate food needs of the vulnerable population.