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With a roof over their heads, they pick up the pieces
The SLFUW in collaboration with the Sama International Trust, hands over the deeds of some of the completed houses under a 100-house
project for tsunami victims

The Sri Lanka Federation of University Women (SLFUW) raised funds to build three permanent, architecturally designed houses in Paiyagala for three families with young children who lost their homes and all their belongings in the tsunami of December 26.

This was a part of the 100 house construction effort by Tsunami Rehabilitation, an arm of the Sama International Trust, an NGO (the brainchild of architect Naveen Gunaratne) which coordinated the entire project, and was responsible for the design of the houses, the identification of the beneficiaries, the plots of land, and the supervision of the construction.

Some 30 of these houses, including the three funded by the SLFUW, were completed recently and the deeds were officially handed over at a simple ceremony held in the small verandah of each house. The Sama International officials and the donors followed a group of Buddhist monks who went on foot from house to house chanting pirith as the keys and deeds were handed to grateful new home owners.

"I have no words to thank the people who built this house for us," said 30-year-old Jayalath Fernando, a cashier at a shop in Kalutara, whose new house was built with funds received from the New Zealand Federation of University Women. His wife, Rupika (25) and his two-year-old daughter Sashini Maheshika escaped with their lives when the 40 foot wave battered their house, completely destroying it and everything they ever owned.

"This house is bigger and better built than the house we lost," said Rupika of her compact, well built house, with its small neat front verandah already lined with a profusion of foliage and flowering plant pots. A self-employed seamstress, she lost her sewing machine in the waves, but now a brand new one sits in her living room, a donation from a well-wisher. Jayalath spoke with great appreciation of the Sama International officials. "They are a dedicated people. They worked tirelessly to make this house possible for us," he said especially mentioning Kapila Fonseka of Sama. He also mentioned Gamini Gunawardene and Brigadier General Kamal Fernando who worked tirelessly to get the project going.

"I was cooking rice that morning, and I had just gone to the garden to pick Kankun when I heard people screaming," says 39-year-old Mangalika, who now lives in the house that was built with contributions sent by the University Women's Federation of Japan. She, with her husband Haris Dayawansha (also 39), a labourer in the Colombo Municipality and their two children used to live on the beach. "My husband was out. I started running with my two children, and I think it was in Matugama that I stopped."

They returned to Paiyagala later that day and found refuge in the temple where they were looked after by the chief monk. They were provided with meals, clothes and everything else they needed, including children's clothes and baby food for her toddler. Haris Dayawansha had worked as a barbender in the Middle East for over six years before he returned to Sri Lanka in 2003. After the tsunami all his possessions were either lost or unusable, along with the house and all the documents that showed any kind of ownership.

owever, while living with relatives in the same area, he contributed to the building of his new house working alongside the two mason baases and paying for tractor loads of soil to fill up the land and for the foundation.

"They are indeed the lucky ones," says Dr Selvie Perera, president of the SLFUW, who headed the small team representing the SLFUW and the federations of university women overseas that sent in contributions.

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