Moved by what she saw, a returnee from Dubai reaches out with ‘Auxilia’
Giving them a sound start: Some of the children at Auxilia
The Auxilia story begins with a Sri Lankan working in Dubai. While on holiday in December 2004, she saw lives and livelihoods destroyed by the tsunami.
In 2009 she heard about a new housing estate developed in Digana, a place unknown to her and purchased a house online, without seeing it! In 2010, she decided to come back home, and joined an organisation which was involved in ensuring the rights of children.
This involvement took her to rural areas of the Central Province’s plantations. The scale of poverty shocked her. She worked in an orphanage with 65 children, and saw the trauma children, parents and staff faced. She was unsuccessful with a proposal she submitted for ‘quality education’, which she thought was key to breaking the poverty cycle.
The voice within did not leave her – posing the question “What can I do to combat this tragic situation and help marginalised people”. She was a single woman, with only a small amount of savings, and the task seemed too big. She was however determined to start a pre-school for the poorest folk.
With the blessing of the Buddhist priest, the Grama Sevaka, community leaders and Welfare Officer she drove around in the Ambakotte village, meeting people. The newly elected Provincial Councillor assisted by finding an old community hall. It was donated by the Ambakotte Village Society rent-free!
With renovations, installing two bathrooms, water tank and colour washing, the old hall was transformed. Her Dubai contacts, friends and relatives assisted her. The funds to commence building work came from her own savings, and within two months a well equipped pre-school stood there!
The achievement is quite remarkable, considering that Digana captured headlines when violence targeting the Muslim population broke out in February 2018. The new free pre-school, named ‘Auxilia’ opened its doors on May 15, 2018. It has no religious affiliation, no biases – political, ethnic, caste or gender.
Twelve children – aged 3-5 years – first gained admission. Their parents too had been children in July 1983 when anti-Tamil violence forced their families to flee their homes. Now their children were being admitted to a new school located close by!
Providing ‘quality education’ the school aims to increase self-esteem. Each child is given three uniforms, a pair of shoes, three pairs of socks, five underpants, a lunch box and drink bottle. The pack costs Rs 5000. A morning snack inclusive of Milo/Nestomalt is also provided three days of the week.
The medium of education is English. Teacher, Rebecca Perera was discovered by the founder. Having an AMI Diploma, English teaching experience and a love for children, Rebecca was the ‘last piece of the jigsaw’.
In early 2019 since the number of children in the school had doubled to 24, Manori Nanayakkara was added to the staff.
Aylanee Ameresekere, the school’s founder, is assisted by Joe Rayen and Nelum Weerasinghe. They are supported by donors who provide school materials, cash donations, meals, toys, clothes, gift packs etc and others who donate time. Currently the operating cost per child is Rs 3000 per month.
The vision for the project is to “break the poverty cycle”. With expert help from Suki Heringe, in August 2018, the Auxilia Women’s Society was formed comprising unemployed mothers and community women. Volunteers teach the women their responsibilities as mothers and wives.
Two projects were launched through sponsorship to enhance the income of families – making compost and hand-made slippers. More than commercial value is the increased sense of well being gained by participants. A third project tapping into sewing skills is planned.
The long-term goal is to run income -projects employing parents, so they could pay a subsidised school fee. The profits from the ventures will be ploughed back into the school to reduce donor dependency.
The organisation is non-profit earning, and has received a temporary licence from the Early Childhood Development Unit of the Provincial Council. An appeal has been made to the Mahaveli Authority for land since a play area for the children is needed.
This little community and their children now have hope for a brighter future thanks to Auxilia, which means ‘Helping Hand’.