Volunteers form an essential part to the work carried out by the Foundation of Goodness (FoG). Each year visitors from different parts of the world visit the village of Seenigama, particularly since the tsunami. Volunteering creates the opportunity to bring much needed skills to areas such as education, health, children’s well-being, women’s enterprise, sport and more, directly benefiting the villagers in the Seenigama region who are disadvantaged by poverty and lack of opportunities.

The year 2008 has attracted many volunteers, some of them being Dr Irma Bilgrarnu, Pedro Sousa, Susanne Matthissen, Jo Dury, Graham Hardman and Gill Lowy. They have all shared their expertise and skills, creating a positive difference in the lives of the village community, who eagerly await the visits of these international volunteers.

There are many areas of work at the MCC Centre of Excellence, from the medical clinic, English teaching, environment projects, women’s enterprise and business skills to that of the Sports Academy.

The medical clinic continues to attract over thousand patients on a monthly basis, thus requiring any form of additional help. Dr Irma (from Australia) has been an assistant to Dr Shirley Silva whilst Pedro (from Portugal) has assisted in the office duties at the clinic which requires careful management with the expansion of its facilities. Pedro has also been involved in assisting with new project ideas, liasing with the relevant local community members.

Women’s enterprise is an additional sector that is constantly busy. Susanne Matthissen (from UK) has been assisting with the promotional and marketing activities of the enterprise such as helping to create brochures. She also dedicated her time to working with the Lahiru Pre-school children, organizing educational activities and games, encouraging interaction amongst these youngsters.

Many qualified professionals have provided insight and support for the staff as the organization moves toward a phase of community focused development. Volunteers leave as a member of the FoG family, most of them keeping in touch and assisting from afar in whatever they can, some often returning to enhance the work of the Foundation and improve the lives of the Sri Lankan people in the rural communities.

Jo Dury (UK)

Volunteering at the FoG has been one of the most amazing experiences of my life.  My husband (Graham Hardman) and I took a career break and decided that we wanted to do some voluntary work to give a little back. Working here exceeded our expectations; it has been hugely rewarding and I will remember it forever. 

I have been lucky enough to be able to get involved in a variety of ways, so there has never been a dull moment! I have been helping with the pre-school and have also been working with the English teacher to introduce new ideas and games into the classroom.  The children are so willing to learn and really enjoy the chance to interact with a native speaker.

I also enjoyed working with the Women's Enterprise along with another volunteer.  Our aim was to help the women of Seenigama generate an income using the sewing and lace-making skills learnt here at the FoG.  We worked with women to introduce modern designs and create a new product range to take to market.

I have also done some office work some fundraising activites.  I worked with another volunteer on a donor leaflet to generate funding to create more Village Heartbeat Centres.

We are sad to move on but I hope to continue to help from the UK and one day we would like to return. I would like to thank Kushil for giving us the opportunity to be part of this amazing organization and Podi for his support in the village.

Graham Hardman (UK)

My wife and I decided we wanted to help people less fortunate than ourselves. The Foundation of Goodness gave us that opportunity. When we arrived we had no idea what we were going to do. Kushil asked me to use my skills as a swimmer to help the children learn better techniques and at this opportunity I jumped.

After nearly 2 months of working with the children it is possible already to see improvement in their technique and observing the children’s attitude to swim training I can foresee that they certainly have potential to be very good swimmers.

I took the older swimmers sea-swim training every morning and I organized the first ever Seenigama Triathlon event. I also taught spoken English to the children in the Heatbeat project and pre-school children which was very rewarding experience.

So if you are thinking of volunteering at the Foundation of Goodness in Seenigama I would certainly recommend it. I have had the most amazing time and I feel that I am very lucky to have met the Sri Lankan people and experienced Sri Lankan culture.

Gill Lowy (UK)

As I stepped off the plane at Colombo airport I wasn’t sure what to expect of my five week stay at the FoG.  I had been to Sri Lanka before, involved with some very practical post-tsunami house building work near Hikkaduwa in 2006. 

This time I have been able to work with so many people and networking contacts But there are so many ideas to follow up that I am going to continue as a “virtual volunteer” for the Foundation when I get home.

It was great fun collecting the stories and the photos for The Village Heartbeat brochure.  I was also able to do some practical work, helping with the children’s English classes at the MCC Centre of Excellence.  I have never seen 160 children queue so excitedly to get into lessons in their own weekend time.  My memory will be of their beaming smiles and their non-stop giggles when I ask them a question and expect an answer in English!

I have loved living and working in Seenigama. The staff at the Foundation have really made me feel very welcome. Children know me by name, people invite me into their homes; I feel much more like a local than a tourist. 

If you are thinking about volunteering then Seenigama is a brilliant place to come to.  It has been a delight to work with the FoG team.

‘Volunteers are not paid; not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless’