In the Limelight – 1st Quarter Roundup

The first quarter ending from the month of September proved to be a promising start to the term 2016/17, with the club successfully completing over 12 projects across all avenues. Starting from the appointment of our ever so capable President, Rtr. Christeena Hiruni Perera and her Board of Directors, here’s a look at all the projects and achievements the club was able to attain within the short span of just three months.

Awards & Recognition

The 26th Rotaract District Assembly held on the 2nd of July 2016, was indeed one of the proudest days for our club, as we were able to bag over 15 prestigious awards in many different categories including the Most Outstanding Club, President, Secretary and the Gold Award for the Best Blog! This was testament to the achievements and tenacity shown by all the club members during the past Rotaract term of 2015/16. 

We extend our warm wishes and congratulations to all our club members who won awards that evening, especially to the Outgoing Board of Directors led by our very own Rtr. IPP Praveen Fernando, for a job well done and for all that they have done for the club throughout the years.

(Image Source: Official Media Arm of the Rotaract District 3220 & Kasun Mullegamgoda Photography)

...

Avenue Updates

Community Service

Reach Out- Phase 2
Reach Out was a project initiated by our club along with the Rotaract Club of Colombo North, in aid of the victims affected by the calamitous floods and landslides that our country experienced in the month of May. The project was carried out in two phases; first being completed in the last term where we donated dry rations and other essential items to 300 odd families taking refuge at the St. Mary’s Church, Weliwita on the 20th of May and the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Balagala on the 30th of May.  

As the second phase, the two clubs decided on using the cash donations collected, to purchase household items which were required by the victims to settle back to their previous lifestyles. As such, we purchased and donated mats, pillows and mosquito coils for 100 families taking refuge in Our Lady of Good Health Church, Sedawatte on the 12th of June.

Some of the pillows which were donated in the second phase of Reach Out

This worthy project, which was chaired by Rtr. Shenali Fernando, restored our faith in humanity and made us realize that Sri Lankans are some of the most generous people in the world who would come forward to help people in need like their own. Read more

Hero In You
 “Hero in You” was a project organized by our club, mainly focusing on the children’s ward of the National Cancer Institute, Maharagama. This project holds a very special place in our heart as we were able to help children undergoing treatment for cancer find the hidden hero within themselves in order to keep fighting and never give up. We came up with a programme consisting of three phases, which we believe gave strength and hope to the little heroes and their respective caregivers in order to liven up their fading dreams.

(Image Source: Flexus Labs)

...

The first phase of the project was a counseling program conducted by Dr. Kumaranayake, a Child Psychiatrist of the Psychology Life Centre, Kohuwala. This phase was done targeting the parents of terminal cancer patients with the aim of guiding them to cope up with the hardships they are facing and to equip them with some tips to make their child’s life meaningful and better. 

The second phase of the project was a spend-the-day session. Reflecting the main objective of our project, we tried to give those children the opportunity to bond and interact and eventually to bring out the hero that is hidden within them. A special thank you is extended to our special guests Madhawa Wijesinghe, Sachini Nipunsala and Sirasa Super Star singer Janaka Sampath, for helping us make their day even more memorable.

(Image Source: Flexus Labs)

...

The final phase of the project, the “Make a wish program” was a small attempt to fulfill the children’s wishes, where we selected around 65 children and helped them achieve what they desire the most. We collected details as to what those children would like to have or what they wish for, during the first two phases of our project and published them through social media thereby giving the club members, fellow Rotaractors and the general public an opportunity to sponsor the wishes. It was indeed a very special day, not only for them but for us as well, as we were able to put a smile on their little faces by giving exactly what they wished for.

Kudos to the Co-Chairpersons Rtr. Sarala Gunewardena and Rtr. Pulara De Silva, for a job well done on executing this worthy project successfully. Read more

Clothing & Toy Drive 2016
We visited the Haven and Sunshine Home administered by the Salvation Army during the month of August to distribute the clothes, toys and other items collected through the project “Clothing and Toy Drive 2016”, which spanned over two weeks. In order to make the day more memorable, we also organized a fun filled interactive session with the women and children residing in the home. 

This initiative was chaired by Rtr. Udanee Silva and Rtr. Chinthani Lucksharika and a special thank you must be again extended to all the Rotaract Clubs who donated items and gave their immense support to help us put a smile on the faces of these women and children. Read more

RCUOCFMFers who joined the interactive session at the shelter

“Nil Ahase Wasanthaya 2016”- Kite Fest
With the partnership of the Rotary family, Kite Sri Lanka Organization and the Presidential Task Force on Drug Prevention, the National Kite Festival for the year 2016; ‘Nil Ahase Wasanthaya’ was held on the 28th of August, at the Negombo Beach Park. This was the first District event hosted by our club for the term 2016/17.

The event was held under the theme “A Drug Free Country” and thus, the event commenced with a “Drug Awareness Walk” with the participation of many Rotarians, Rotaractors and Interactors. The walk was then followed by the Kite fest where participants had the opportunity to create and fly their own kites and gather unforgettable memories. 

...

Club Service

7th Installation Ceremony of RCUOCFMF 

The biggest highlight of the quarter; the 7th Installation Ceremony of our club was held on the 26th of August, at the DHPL Auditorium. This glamourous event was successfully planned and executed by Co-chairpersons Rtr. Oshani Weerakkody and Rtr. Haresh Wijayanayaka and the occasion was graced by many significant individuals including the Chief Guest for the evening, Rtr. PHF Hussein Fazleabs.

Amidst the presence of more than 100 attendees, Rtr. Christeena Hiruni Perera was collared as the President of our club, followed by the induction of her Board of Directors for the year 2016/17. Read more

(Image Source: Xtream Youth)

...

Green Meetings - Inaugural Board Meeting
The first board meeting was held on July 4th, at the Independence Square. As a part of our green life initiative, the meeting was conducted in a very environmental friendly manner under the shade of trees while enjoying the refreshing atmosphere. The meeting was indeed a productive one since we were able to discuss about the year plan for each avenue with the hope of taking the club to even greater heights during this term.

...

   
Joint Meeting and Kitchen Challenge
The very first of the joint meetings was held with the Rotaract Club of Negombo on the 20th of August at the Paradise Beach Hotel giving a great start to this initiative.

Followed by the general meetings of the two clubs, ‘Presidents of the month’ Rtr. Mandree Dissanayake from our club and Rtr. Minolie Fernando from RCN organized an ice breaker session giving the two clubs the opportunity to bond well.

The highlight of the day was the “Kitchen Challenge” organized by RCN. The members were first shown how to make a delicious fried fish dish by the Chefs of the hotel and later the members who were grouped into 3 teams had to make the dish on their own. This initiated friendly competition among the groups and at the end of the competiton, the members of the two clubs were enriched with the new friendships they made. Read more

...

Green Life

Green Steps
‘Green steps’ is an initiative undertaken to create awareness among the undergraduates at the University of Colombo, Faculty of Management & Finance, about the proper use of water facilities, maintaining cleanliness and saving electricity power within the faculty premises.

Under this project, notices were created in all 3 languages (Sinhala, Tamil and English) to deliver effective messages about the most important yet highly neglected habits which should be properly inculcated in the young minds. The ultimate goal of this project was to create awareness and involve the undergraduates in maintaining a standardized code of ethnic hygienic behaviour for a better tomorrow.

This project was chaired by our very own Director of Green Life, Rtr. Mandree Dissanayake. Read more

Team 'Green Steps' at work

Launching of ‘Green Dream’
“Green Dream” is the official Facebook page for the Green Life avenue of our club. We launched the page during the month of August with the main objective of creating awareness among the community to uplift the quality of life and the importance of creating a sustainable environment for the benefit of the generations to come. 

International Services

Festive Giggles
Festive Giggles, is an innovative project chaired by Rtr. Kalani Perera and Co- Director of International Service Rtr. Dewmini Weerasuriya. This project is undertaken in order to enhance people’s knowledge about some of the craziest, messiest and most colorful festivals and events happening around the globe paving the way for people to understand the culture and life of different nationalities in a unique and exciting manner like never before. 

Under this project, we will be posting descriptions of vibrant and unique festivals happening in different countries throughout the year, so head on to our Facebook page and search with the hash tag “#festivegiggles” to enjoy this roller-coaster ride around the globe!

Professional Development 

President of the Month
President of the month, chaired by our Joint PD Directors Rtr. Amaya Karunaratne and Rtr. Haresh Wijayanayaka, is a project which will continue throughout this term where two members of the club will be given the opportunity to conduct general meetings after the official proceedings are over. The appointed presidents would be required to come up with activities such as ice breakers in order to build the bond among the club members and make meetings more exciting and fun. 

This project is expected to help members develop their leadership and people skills along with professionalism in order to mould them into better, more confident undergraduates. 

Finance

Club T- Shirt
As the first financial project of the new term, the club T- Shirt was introduced incorporating the new logo of the club and the theme of the year, which would yet again be “Teamwork makes the dream work”. This project is chaired by the Finance directors; Rtr. Sapuni Senarathne and Rtr. Udanee Silva. 

The new Club T- Shirt 

Public Relations/ IT

Know Your Board
Know your Board was a very interesting initiative, which was chaired by our Public Relations Directors, Rtr. Marky Sandaruwan and Rtr. Lakna Rajapaksha. 

Under this project very unique and fascinating character sketches were published on our Facebook page. The main focus of this project was to introduce the Board of Directors and letting the club members know about those individuals who will be leading our club in the term 2016/17. Each of the character sketch posted was able to portray the unique and interesting individual characteristics and the skills of each board member in a fun filled manner. 

IT Workshop
The much needed IT workshop was conducted by our very own Co-Directors of IT, Rtr. Kemitha Jayamaha and Rtr. Akhila Wijetunga, on the 11th of September, 2016 at the Faculty Premises. It was indeed very useful as the club members were equipped with the basic IT knowledge needed to carry out the day to day technology related activities with much ease and also gave them the opportunity to sort out the their IT dilemmas with the help of our expert IT Directors!

The Blog

Having won the Gold Award for the best blog for the term 2016/17, our blog continued in its ground breaking success in the past quarter as well! We were able to publish almost 40 blog posts the past quarter alone, which brings the total blog posts to a staggering 140 and we also surpassed the 21,000 view count last month. 

During the quarter, 2 new columns were introduced to the blog, namely; “The Prologue”, which covers the Installation Ceremonies of the Rotaract Clubs of the District 3220 as they officially step into the new Rotaract term and “Through the Grapevine”, which covers some of the external club events our members take part in and their experience. 

Finally, a special thank you is extended to all our club members who show remarkable support and enthusiasm towards making our Blog the best there is in the entire Rotaract District 3220!