Life Healing Centre setup in Katuwapitiya to support 4/21 victims

The Life Healing Centre at Katuwapitiya, Negombo

Inauguration of the Life Healing Centre at Katuwapitiya, Negombo with Rt. Rev. Dr. J D Anthony Jayakody, Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Colombo, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya – Corporate Executive Vice President and CEO - South Asia Region, Axiata Group Berhad, and Supun Weerasinghe, Group Chief Executive, Dialog Axiata PLC., along with Shayam Majeed, Group Chief Corporate Officer, Dialog Axiata PLC, Rev. Fr. Shrilal Fonseka, Parish Priest of Katuwapitiya, St. Sebastian Church, Pradeep De Almeida, Group Chief Technology Officer, Dialog Axiata PLC, Rev. Fr. Claude Nonis, Director – Archdiocesan Family  Apostolate, Coordinator – National family Apostolate, Rev Fr. Lawrence Ramanayaka, Director, Seth Sarana Caritas Colombo

The ‘Life Healing Centre’, led by a team of certified professionals to provide psychosocial support to those affected by the tragic incidents of 21st April 2019, was setup in Katuwapitiya, Negombo on May 18th by the ‘Rally to Care’ initiative, a charitable trust under the aegis of Dialog Axiata PLC, and ‘Seth Sarana’ the social action arm of the Archdiocese 
of Colombo. 
The fund initiated with Rs. 15 by Dialog, saw generous Dialog customers, individual donors, corporates, enterprises, and overseas donors coming together to raise an amount of Rs. 28.68 million, which was doubled by Dialog in matching funds. Axiata Group came forward to contribute an amount of Rs. 34.6 million towards the Rally to Care fund. The generosity of this community of supporters surmounted a mammoth fund amounting to Rs.106.96 million.
The Life Healing Centre was inaugurated in the presence of Rt. Rev. Dr. J D Anthony Jayakody, Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Colombo, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya – Corporate Executive Vice President and CEO - South Asia Region, Axiata Group Berhad, and Supun Weerasinghe, Group Chief Executive, Dialog 
Axiata PLC. 
The ‘Life Healing Centre’ set up in collaboration with ‘Seth Sarana’, the social action arm of the Archdiocese of Colombo, will provide psychosocial rehabilitation for affected families through its team Catholic certified counsellors, led by Rev. Fr. Claude Nonis, Director – Archdiocesan Family Apostolate, Coordinator – National Family Apostolate. The Life Healing Centre will provide psychosocial rehabilitation for those affected through a range of programmes customised for children, adolescents, young adults and adults, by addressing a range of psychosocial issues including depression, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, and other psychosocial issues resulting from traumatic events. The centre is in close proximity to the affected families and will be open every day from 8.00 a.m. to 8.30 p.m.
During the opening of the Life Healing Centre, complete eye check-ups by Vision Care, and hearing check-ups by the Ratmalana Audiology Centre were also conducted for 
those impacted. 
The Rally to Care initiative together with its partners World Vision Lanka, Sarvodaya, My Doctor, Vision Care and Ratmalana Audiology Centre, will continue its relief disbursement efforts and its mission of providing immediate term out-patient support for victims of physical disability & trauma, long-term educational support for 500+ children, and psychosocial rehabilitation for 250+ families that were affected by the tragic incidents of 21st April 2019. Visit http://dialogfoundation.org/rallytocare for more information and further updates on the Rally to 
Care initiative.