A haven that shapes young lives
The Peter Weerasekera home: An oasis for many children and youth. Pix by Ranjith Perera
The Peter Weerasekera home is a beautiful oasis nestled amongst massive fruit trees and flowering plants in Dambuwa, Buthpitiya, providing shelter and care to around 80 children.
Twenty one miles away from Colombo located in the Gampaha district, the ancestral home of Sinha Weerasekera, the children’s home is named after his father. The house was donated in 1959 to provide a sanctuary to children who lacked care and support ranging from infants to 18-year-olds who have been orphaned, abused, victimised or abandoned.
These children are sent here by the Department of Probation and Childcare services or through court mandates.
The ‘Peter Weerasekera Home’ strives to bring up these children in a way that ensures they are equipped to lead successful lives as adults, when they leave the home.
Over the years, the Peter Weerasekera Home has grown and expanded to provide better care to its young charges. The garden provides ample space for the children to run around and climb trees and is also equipped with a play area that has swings and a slide.
It’s bath time for Bunis
The ‘Australia House’, named after its donors, is also known as the nutrition centre and looks after the littlest ones from newborns to three-year-olds. S
With cots placed right beside one another, the babies crawled around the floor patting each other fondly whilst the older ones waited patiently in turn with their caretaker to receive a toy. In the verandah a few children raced each other back and forth in their colourful tricycles.
After the age of three, the children are moved to the Toddlers’ Home which is attached to the Montessori, where they are with children from the neighbourhood. The dormitory has each bed personalised with a collection of soft toys, evidently much cuddled by the children, from wool dolls wearing pretty hats to bears that were missing an ear. Some recited nursery rhymes in the back of the hall while others played hide-and-seek.
We see the children happily bathing ‘Bunis’ a stray dog they have adopted.
After the age of five, the boys are moved to another home in the area and the girls shift into the girls’ home that is on the opposite side.
Children engrossed in an activity
At present, the girls’ home accommodates 40 children from five to 18 years. There are two dormitories for the juniors and seniors, where the juniors stay in the ‘Norway House’ and the seniors stay in the main home with trained matrons who attend to their needs. These girls all go to schools in the area, with five of them receiving scholarships to attend Yoshida International School in Makola.
The Norway House is decorated with artwork done by the girls themselves. Many have demonstrated a talent for sport, music and dancing, with quite a few awards being proudly showcased at the entrance of the main home.
Also adorning the hall of the main home are portraits of Sinha Weerasekera’s family alongside portraits of various other donors who have shaped the home into what it is now. A beautiful collage thanking Mr. Weerasekera and his wife Mala is on display, made by girls who have been brought up in the home and now lead independent lives.
They do have a limit of how many children they can take in, but they will never turn away a child in need of a home, head caretaker S.A Monika Yasmin Dissanayake told the Sunday Times.
| Help this home with Winds of Change | |
| ‘Winds of Change’ is being organised to help the children of the Peter Weerasekera Home. Taking place on Friday, September 7 at 7 p.m. at the Nelum Pokuna, the concert will have performances by leading entertainers Annesley Malewana, Keerthi Pasquel and bands Mirage and Cosmic Rays offering a fine blend of Sinhala and English Retro music. The home is run on donations made by well-wishers and also receives limited financial support from the Government.The money raised from the ticket sales will be used to provide the children a better education, more facilities, maintenance of the home, utilities, tuition fees and transportation. The organisers have appealed to kind donors to support the home whilst also enjoying an evening of quality entertainment, providing a breakdown of how every contribution and ticket purchased can help:
Tickets for ‘Winds of Change’ are available
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