18th annual East Coast Cricket Festival Organised by Ananda College Old Boys

The annual East Coast Cricket Festival was held in New Jersey, USA with the participation of old boys' teams representing Ananda, Nalanda, Royal, S. Thomas', Trinity, St Joseph’s, Maris Stella, St. Peter's, Mahanama, and Thurstan colleges.

Mahinda Samarasinghe, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the United States, and the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in New York Ambassador Jayantha Jayasuriya joined several hundred expats for an entertaining day of cricket and much more on a day of gorgeous early summer weather. The Sri Lankan Embassy also provided a booth with a mobile consular service that provided easy access to passport, dual-citizenship and visa applications to the attendees.

The spectators were treated to a day of enthralling cricket, fourteen matches in all. Old boys’ teams from Ananda, Royal, Trinity, and Thurstan emerged as semi-finalists. In the final, the Old Royalists retained the Henry Steel Olcott Challenge Trophy winning a thrilling final against Thurstan by 7 runs.

The East Coast Cricket Festival is much more than a cricket tournament. While the games take place in the middle, a plethora of activities dot the sidelines serving and entertaining expats from all ages and all walks of life. A special kids area kept the young tots entertained all day. Vendors provided authentic Sri Lankan food and groceries, and the local band, Sri Beats provided excellent entertainment to the dancing crowd.

Many local charities and organisations participated in the festival. The cultural group, Kalanikethanaya NJ showcased young local talents with traditional dances and drum beats. A group of local students working on eradicating period poverty in Sri Lanka spoke with hundreds of attendees raising over USD 1000 to support under-resourced Girls’ Schools in Sri Lanka.

In addition, SLMANA, the Sri Lanka Medical Association of North America, has been a regular participant of the festival. This year, their physician volunteered to take various measurements including blood pressure and body mass index measurements and advise community members. Also, in aid of the famed Animal SOS Sri Lanka, a local group of children raised over USD 3000 at a much attended booth.

In an effort to create new branches of communication between professionals within the community, experts and enthusiasts across all STEM disciplines—including medicine, science, engineering, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and finance, got together for a mission to break down silos between disciplines and to promote the exchange of cutting-edge knowledge while opening doors to new job opportunities for Sri Lankan professionals. 

This year marks the 18th time the Ananda College Old Boys, East Coast Association organised (ACOBA-EC) the cricket festival. Old Anandians Lasitha Abeysekara and Kheminda Jayawardena once again led a dedicated group of their schoolmates while Dr. Thushara Diyabalanage, an Old Rajan, served as the tournament referee.

Consular Services:

The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in New York conducted a Consular Mobile Service on the sidelines of the 18th annual Cricket Festival organised by the Ananda College Old Boy’s Association East Coast in the United States on June 28 in New Jersey. During the Consular Mobile Service, the Mission staff served more than 50 Sri Lankan community members residing in the Tri-states of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut by accepting new applications for passports, dual citizenship, birth registrations, citizenship certificates, and visas. The Mission staff also provided information on the consular services extended to the Sri Lankan community in the Tri-State area. 

The Ananda College Old Boys’ Association East Coast in the United States and the USA Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce assisted the Mission in organising the Consular Mobile Service Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka in New York June 30.

Pet Shelter:

This year at the Ananda Cricket Festival, we ran the ninth annual ‘Shelter Helpers’ fundraiser, a cause aimed at supporting non-profit animal shelters in desperate need of funds. This year the beneficiary was the Animal SOS dog shelter in Sri Lanka, one of the largest unhoused dog sanctuaries in Asia. The fundraiser mainly comprised of selling traditional Sri Lankan dosa, a savoury pancake, and falooda, a sweet rose-based milkshake, raising a grand total of USD 3,133, the largest sum we have raised in all nine years of operating. All funds will be donated to Animal SOS Sri Lanka.

Our Promise:

‘Our Promise’ is a youth-led initiative co-founded by Inulya Hettigamage, Gangulel Hettigamage, and Pamithi Samathuwa to help end the barriers that many girls in Sri Lanka face due to a lack of access to menstrual products. The mission is to install pad dispensers and donate menstrual products in under-resourced Sri Lankan Girls’ Sschools and create space for open, stigma-free conversations around menstruation. Through awareness, education, and direct action, the project hopes to ensure that no girl’s education is interrupted simply because of her period. To support the mission, one of the co-founders, Gangulel, published a book called After Dawn and Other Stories, with all proceeds supporting ‘Our Promise’.

On June 28, the incredible opportunity of having an ‘Our Promise’ booth at the East Coast Cricket Festival organised by the Ananda College Old Boys Association, was made a reality. Stories were heard and shared by more than hundreds of attendees, who were blown away by the warmth and encouragement the project received. Thanks to the generosity of the Sri Lankan community, it managed to raise over USD 1,000 in just one day, the most successful fundraiser to date.

SLAMANA:

Services were provided by physician volunteers included Bollo pressure measurements and appropriate discussion and advice of the measurements. A sought after item was measurement of weight and body mass index calculation and advise on the values obtained on those measurements. In addition, volunteer physicians provided first aid services to those who sought such services. ⁠SLMANA physicians were happy to provide this community service this year as well.

STEM Meeting:

The STEM Community Initiative, aimed to build an inclusive and dynamic network across STEM fields, is intended to connect professionals, students, and innovators to foster collaboration and knowledge exchange. Regular events are planned to host, promote cutting-edge ideas and science to nurture innovation and support R&D and startups. The initiative breaks down barriers between disciplines to spark new opportunities and insights. Its diverse audience spans current and retired professionals, students, entrepreneurs, and researchers.