10 years on, this Trust Fund is still a heartfelt need for many
Humble paddy and vegetable farmer, S.P. Sirisena (65), from the village of Nedungamuwa, around 7km from Welimada town is back at home tending his fields.
Several months ago, though, it was when he was in the fields that he got an excruciating chest pain and hospital visits and tests found that vessels supplying blood to his heart were blocked.
It was essential for him to undergo stenting – a procedure to insert stents to keep open the blocked blood vessels. There were long waiting lists at state hospitals and in the private sector his desperate family would have to fork out the huge sum of Rs. 1.4 million, which they did not have.
Fast forward to Saturday, November 30, with a heavy drizzle coming down and an ominous overcast sky.
Suddenly, like a ray of sunshine bringing hope and new life, there is a splash of yellow umbrellas as a line of monks in their saffron robes, 25 in all, make their way serenely into the charmingly decorated entrance hall of the Nurses’ Training School nestling within the manicured premises of the Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital (SJGH). Joining the monks were a Christian priest and two nuns.
It was the 10th anniversary alms-giving and pinkama, organized by the Heart-to Heart Trust Fund.
This Trust Fund was launched by unassuming but bright and benevolent Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. Rajitha Y. De Silva and eminent Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Ruvan Ekanayaka, a decade ago with the motto: ‘No one in our country should die or suffer from heart disease due to lack of finances’.
(Above): Dr. Aruna Kapuruge (far left), Dr. Rajitha De Silva (centre) and Dr. Ruvan Ekanayaka (far right) at the almsgiving. Pix by M. A. Pushpa Kumara
So far around Rs. 95 million has been channelled by the Trust Fund for 675 cardiac surgeries at the semi-private SJGH, with the scalpels being wielded by Dr. De Silva and his colleague and Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. Aruna Kapuruge. Stenting is also performed to save lives with the support of Consultant Cardiologists.
The alms-giving and pinkama of the Trust Fund organized with the support of its numerous volunteers coordinated by Shanti Fernando and hospital staff are unique as they are not only a celebration of saving lives but offering alms to those who have been given a fresh lease of life, while also fostering unity among all religions and cultures. For, the monks and Christian clergy sit at the same table to partake of the offering.
Back to work, tending his vegetable plot: S.P. Sirisena
Even though Sirisena and many others from across the country who are alive due to the Trust Fund had not been able to brave the inclement weather and join the celebration, numerous others had done just that. They included, in addition to the monks and Christian clergy, K.D. Kumari Perera (60) from Ragama; T.M. Haroon (67) from Wellampitiya; and H. Francis Fernando (73) from Ekala, Ja-ela, to name a few.
Sirisena’s tale is similar to many that the Trust Fund has supported with both heart surgery and stenting.
His family begged and borrowed from kith and kin and raised Rs. 300,000 of which Rs. 100,000 was billed by the private hospital. In a last-ditch effort to cough up the funds for private surgery, they put their precious livelihood – their paddy land up for sale. They had ‘wee pelak’ (one-fourth of an acre, around 40 perches).
Fortune, however, smiled on them in a different manner, when they were linked up with the SJGH. While Dr. De Silva is a pioneer, taking heart surgery to the next level with keyhole as well as hybrid procedures, for Sirisena, it was a fresh lease of life through the Trust Fund.
Cautioning the family not to sell their paddy land as that would bring about penury, Dr. De Silva had assured them that the stenting would be done to save Sirisena’s life. His advice was: Apply to the President’s Fund for support and give whatever they could comfortably afford towards the procedrue. The balance would be met by the Trust Fund.
In July, Sirisena entered hospital, underwent the procedure and left, paying only the Rs. 200,000 the family had with them.
On November 30, as the soothing chant of Buddan Saranam Gachchami and Namotassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa reverberated through the hall, in many homes around Sri Lanka, men and women would have been bestowing blessings at their simple shrines on those who have made the Trust Fund a reality.
The Sunday Times exclusively reported the launching of the Trust Fund in the latter part of 2014, in a piece headlined ‘Giving heart to poor patients’ on January 18, 2015, encouraging people to send in their mite and also become volunteers for this worthy cause.
| Give a thought this season | |
| As the season of sharing and caring descends, please extend a helping hand including volunteering for administrative operations with the Trust Fund. Check out: www.heart2hearttrust.org For more information, please contact: Mobiles – 0777344410, 0718244645 or 0718244601; or Email: heart2hearttrustfund@gmail.com
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