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Raising their voices in a spirit of fellowship
By Randima Attygalle
It's Christmas time once again and all ready to spread some cheer through their beautiful voices is the blind choir of Sri Lanka."For participation in the choir, religion is of no importance. What matters is the spirit of fellowship," says Rienzie Benedict of the Sri Lanka Federation of the Visually Handicapped (SLFVH), stressing that the choir is multi-ethnic and multi-religious. "We respect all religions and poya days are excluded for practices."

In this ninth year of conducting a Christmas programme, Mr. Benedict, who himself is a member of the choir who doubles as the compere, says three new voices have joined the veterans. "We encourage young voices as it is sometimes difficult for older members to make trips to Colombo for practices," points out Mr. Benedict, the Federation's Welfare Officer.

Introduced in 1996, most of the participants in the annual carol programme are experienced singers drawn from among the choir members of the Deaf and Blind Schools in Ratmalana and Ragama and the Vocational Training Centre in Seeduwa, Mr. Benedict says.

The choir – consisting of seven sopranos, three altos, two basses and one on keyboards – is trained by Robert Joseph, an expert in the field. Learning carols from a specially-bound compilation in Braille, they raise their voices in sweet harmony rendering not only evergreens such as 'Silent Night' and 'Once in Royal David's City' but also 'Virgin Mary had a baby boy' which is of West Indian origin, 'Out of the Orient' and Sinhala carols composed by ex-choir members.

The choice will depend on the audience the carols are being sung to and Mr. Benedict says, "Organizations such as the Institute of Bankers, Hayleys Group, hotels like Blue Oceanic, Negombo, Barberyn Reef and Blue Water, Wadduwa seek our services. We always sing at least a few verses of 'Silent Night' in German or Swedish so that the tourists can participate."

So far the choir has given more than 200 performances. Charmaine Ishani de Silva, whose soothing voice one hears greeting callers as the Federation's telephone operator will be making her debut this Christmas with the blind choir. "Although I used to sing in church, this is my maiden appearance with the choir of the Visually Handicapped. So far I have sung at the YWCA and Girls Friendly Society," says Charmaine who mastered Braille during her days at the Ratmalana Deaf and Blind School. "Among my favourite hymns are 'Once in Royal David's City' and Seethalai Seethalai which is composed by one of our ex-members."

For soloist Chithra Gunasekera, a Buddhist, 'Silent Night' is her favourite carol. Chithra who keeps herself busy in the library transcribes reading material into Braille. To her credit are Eda Heladiva and Sinhala Samaja Sanvidhanaya for undergraduates. Meanwhile, the annual Christmas carols and get-together of the Women's Forum of the Federation will be on December 18.

Violet Yakandawala – President of the Women's Forum and the first visually impaired graduate (History Honours) in Sri Lanka -- who is in charge of the event says, "I used to teach history at the Deaf and Blind School in Ratmalana. Now that I am retired, I keep myself happily busy with the Federation's activities. The theme of this year's workshop is 'How to fit into society'."

She and her husband who is also blind are the proud parents of a young man with perfect vision who has gained admission to the engineering faculty of University of Moratuwa. The Federation, established in 1974, is the main national self-help organization for the visually impaired in Sri Lanka. It operates almost entirely on donations by individuals and organizations.

"We operate on a tight budget. Since we help many visually-handicapped people financially for education, employment and at times medical treatment, we appreciate contributions from donors," said Mr. Benedict adding that the Rotary Club of Colombo West holds eye clinics at the Federation every Friday free of charge.

With eight branches across the island, the Federation has around 3,000 members. Among its many projects are the Sarana Home for Elderly Blind at Ambalantota, manufacture of paper bags and envelopes and a scholarship scheme for visually-handicapped students.

As the Federation strives to strengthen the quality of life and ensure equal opportunities for the visually impaired, through its motto 'From darkness to light', kind-hearted people can contribute their mite by booking the choir this season.

For more information please contact Rienzie Benedict at the Sri Lanka Federation of the Visually Handicapped, 74, Church Street, Colombo 2. Phone: 2437768/4720148.

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