A Right Royal Charity
by Nilma Dole
When you think of any OBA
association having a fun time, it’s all party, games and dancing until
the break of dawn but the Royal College batch of 1972 will mark their
get together in a new twist. In celebration of the Royal College 175th
anniversary, the Royal College batch of 1972 will mark the milestone
event with a cruise ship party aboard the Navy’s Jetliner ship in aid of
charity.
 “It’s not all about just having fun but we’re opening the deck for
all Royalists who are concerned about the community, stricken by war and
poverty in the North,” said Saman De Silva, the President of the Royal
College batch of 1972.
The project will be in aid of helping the community at the Punitha
Nagar village in Vadamarachchi, Jaffna. “We are raising funds at this
OBA night to build a community centre and a medical facility for the
community’s benefit” said De Silva. He further commented, “At the
moment, this village is named as KPMG Village Punithar Nagar and was
developed by the KPMG Foundation with participation by Hatton National
Bank PLC in the form of financing the construction of a community
library and drinking water wells.
This has helped the community over there immensely who are in the
process of resettlement but still more needs to be done”.
By setting the example for others to follow, the Royal College batch
of 1972 has been always keen on doing something beneficial to society.
“Why we decided to go for a community centre was because people seek
refuge and air their views to the community at a common forum. Hence, it
will also be a place where the community can hold weddings, ceremonies
and other events” said De Silva. He also said that the medical facility
will be the foundation of many things to come.
“We are looking at a fully-equipped state-of-the-art medical centre
eventually where we will work with others to build upon” he said. The
Treasurer of the batch Sriyantha Wakwella gave his comments: “We count
the success of plenty of charitable projects because we have been united
in mind and spirit. Our group consists of peers ranging from various
ethnicities and religions who are work very well together.”
 The fact that most of the Old Boys of the 1972 batch are in top
high-flying positions in Sri Lanka and around the world is also a fact
that has to be taken into consideration. The Royal College batch of 1972
also has steered forward the development of the Squash courts at the
Sports complex at the Royal College, have helped with IDP relief and
have done more charitable projects of this nature.
The Chairman of the Organising Committee Azad Mansoor said that at
the moment, most of the tickets have been sold out just by word of mouth
because everyone wants to be a part of this exciting event. He said, “We
always work with the Royal College Union and the school itself to uplift
the standard of society in any way we can and with the Jetliner Cruise
get together we’re having, it’ll definitely be a night to remember!”
Together, the Royal College batch of 1972 will lead the way for
others to follow by lending a helping hand and giving a heart to help
rebuild the lives of those in the North.
Pictures courtesy KPMG
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