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Post-tsunami in 2005, as funds flowed in from the group’s overseas partners, the Hemas From here, blossomed ‘AYATI’, a National Centre for Children with Disabilities, in
Tsunami Foundation was set up with a name change to Hemas Outreach Foundation Ragama in 2016, followed by the ‘Eka Se Salakamu’ campaign with regard to children
in 2009, as work continued beyond the tsunami. It was also post-tsunami that ‘Model with Down Syndrome in March 2021.
Preschools’ for 100 children in urban areas and towns were conceived and rose from
the rubble, enriching Piyawara. The intention is pure – to pave the way for little feet to journey into the future, enriched
by Piyawara and to take those very first steps with the conviction that people care.
Innovating and adapting as Piyawara progressed, the Hemas team had realized post-
* ‘Pothe Gura’ is a narrator.
war that remote villages did not have efficient preschools and this kept the children
away from them. Then followed the introduction of the ‘Community Preschool’
concept which has gained much popularity now.

The Hemas Group from the highest levels has given of its all, not only by way of funds
just by writing a cheque but also in kind – “by being there” for all these children and
their families.
At the same time, the support flowing from the most unexpected quarters, both locally
and internationally, has given strength to the Hemas Group that it is headed in the
right direction while bolstering the resolve to go on.

“Piyawara would never be a reality if not for the backing of a strong corporate brand
such as the Hemas Group and its Board of Directors which held steady, giving
donors and stakeholders the confidence to support the project. Good governance,
transparency and accountability were the key to gaining donor confidence,” says
Shiromi on the success and sustainability of Piyawara.
She adds that the partnership with the National ECCD Secretariat of the Ministry
of Women and Child Affairs boosted public confidence and gave the Hemas
Group easy access to an already established government network.

Today, there are 62 Preschools under Piyawara dotting Sri Lanka’s landscape with
more in the pipeline. More than 4,000 children attend these preschools daily and more
than 100,000 have passed through their colourful doors, having been nurtured by over
200 teachers.
Piyawara has also spread its branches to provide a haven to children with disabilities,
the seed being sown when the Hambantota Preschool built post-tsunami in 2006 was
shared with a special school. This was the learning point which revealed the immense
difficulties these children and their families were undergoing.
The joy of play at the Anuradhapura Preschool.

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