Backpacks for needy children

Two Sri Lankan sisters Kiara and Siara Gunawardhana, daughters of Nalaka and Ayoma Gunawardhana of Irvine, California domiciled in the USA in California Orange County gather backpacks from children around the area and donate it to needy Sri Lankan children. They have continued this project from 2009.

Most of the backpacks were donated by school friends and some by neighboring families. Kiara and Siara distributed flyers in the neighborhood and also walked door-to- door to collect these backpacks from neighbours.

With the help of LOC Lions Foundation, in Orange County, California, they sent the backpacks to Sri Lanka. In 2011, Kiara distributed backpacks and lunch bags to the children in a school in Mannar.

Kiara handing over backpacks

Kiara's parents also donated a new DVD player to the school and her grand-mother and parents donated an additional Rs. 10,000. The school with 410 pupils received pencils and erasers for all the children given by their grandmother, Mrs. Nanda Gunawardana.

For the second consecutive year Kiara and Siara jointly conducted the projectand this time collected 236 backpacks and lunch bags. This year, their mother Ayoma distributed the backpacks to an underprivileged school in a remote Sri Lankan village, Kg / Dehi / Kirikohuthenna Junior School. The school principal, Withanage Wijewadana said there were 128 pupils from year one toyear 12,. Many of them suffer from malnutrition, some children don't even come to school due to the 3-5mile distance that they have to walk just to get to school.

Meanwhile, the two sisters have taken it upon themselves to continue the project annually.