Sharing the joy of the holiday season with deserving families
In December 2020, we were able to share our joy of the season by delivering 350 hampers to many deserving families. 99x partnered with Leads, a national NGO, to coordinate the distribution while Keells Super provided the hampers at the required locations. The hampers contained dry rations sufficient for 2-3 weeks and each hamper also had a personal greeting from a 99x employee enclosed.
24th December 2020 – 50 families of the estate community in Ratnapura were gifted with hampers.
28th December through 30th December 2020 – 100 families to members of the Sri Lanka Welfare Organization of Visually Impaired Women (SLWOVIW) based in Kurunegala, Kegalle, Gampaha and Puttalam. Given the geographic spread, we sponsored the logistics to enable the hampers to be delivered to the neediest families.
31st December 2020 – Distributed to 100 families from the Kuruwita Divisional Secretariat.
2nd January 2021 - Distributed to 100 families from the Ratnapura Divisional Secretariat area.
Ms. Ushani Dilrukshi, the President of the Association was very appreciative of the hamper. “The pack even had white rice to prepare the traditional milk rice and had sweetmeats which was savoured by the children. This year was a very challenging year for the visually impaired since they are aided not just by a white cane but by someone holding the hand, which is not possible due to the fear of the spread of the virus. Receiving these packs was a silver lining in the dark of the night.” Sumith from Kuliyapitiya, who has been working with the Association since September 2018 mentioned that he has never seen anyone giving such a large dry ration pack. Even in Ratnapura, many were surprised and delighted when they found out they had three bags of goodies to take home!
Some kind words about the project
“I am 70 years old and living with my wife who is sick. My children are married & living on their own but without permanent jobs hence receiving this dry ration pack during this Covid time was of immense benefit. We can use the rations carefully & stretch it for two months. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff of the DS office and all those involved in this initiative and wish them the best!”
"I am the Child Right’s Officer of the Kuruwita DS office. I think this is a unique initiative. The role of the children’s and women’s development unit is to care for orphaned and abandoned children by providing them protection too. Whilst I go to visit families, I meet many such vulnerable families. Those without parents are the most vulnerable. I feel extremely sad when I meet families who cannot afford to provide a nutritional meal and send children to school due to economic reasons. I would like to thank you for the generosity with which the dry ration pack was provided.”
