FRIENDSHIPS forged in pain

Ishara Jayawardane

Keep smiling, keep shining
Knowing you can always count on me, for sure
That’s what friends are for
For good times and bad times
I’ll be on your side forever more
That’s what friends are for...........
- Dionne Warwick

Dialog CEO,Hans Wijesuriya addressing the gathering	Managing Director, Hameedia, Fouzul Hameed

Children are the flowers in the garden of God. Their innocence is their fragrance. And we are all called to be gardeners in their little garden. Fouzul Hameed is one such gardener. He is the Managing Director of the Hameedia Group and the founder of the ‘My Friend’ project.

‘My Friend’ is a project that has reached out to underprivileged children by providing education. “The ‘My friend’ project is committed to helping children from all communities of society with a main focus on improving the standard of their education. We encourage and support them to continue their studies even through difficult times and we have witnessed many success stories through the project,” said Hameed.

We live in a world full of danger. Young people are tempted to get into drugs and crime.

Indifference and Neglect sometimes cause more damage than outright hatred. When a young person is neglected or ignored sometimes that is an invitation for evil. However some youth are not victims of crime, they may have lost loved ones to the Tsunami or to the civil conflict. The ‘My Friends’ project has played a crucial role in taking these kids off the roads, giving them a way out of their troubled lives and be at their side when they face obstacles. They encourage the young people to better themselves by getting them involved in sports and other such social activities.

The endeavor recently collaborated with Dialog Axiata to launch a new SMS programme which offers fashion and style tips for subscribers with all proceeds generated being channeled to the My Friend project. You have to dial 7700 and type fhguide.

The funds will be given to My Friend and in return my friend will support these under privileged children. “It is indeed an honour and privilege to be here. It is a distinct honour to have been invited as a chief guest. I am very proud to be a partner to fhguide, and speak on behalf of dialog. I feel very privileged to be a partner of this new venture which will contribute towards the My friend trust, which will be a betterment to many thousands of lives.

I think we in the private sector can do our little bit and together make a great difference in this country. I do not think we need to do huge things it is what is in the heart and what you do with a genuine concern for the people of Sri Lanka. Technology is one of those great vehicles of bringing people on an equal platform. We believe in the eyes of God and in the eyes of technology everyone is equal. We, at Dialog, have tried to take technology to every part of the country and make it affordable to everybody. And make it available in a way that is productive to every citizen in this country,” said Dialog CEO Hans Wijesuriya.
 

	Kids with the school bags.
Kids enjoying the delicacies	Pictures by Sarath Peiris