Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club donates wheel chairs to differently abled children

15 wheel chairs were donated to SLAF Seva Vanitha Unit by Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club of Melbourne, in Australia.

The Ex- Royal Ceylon Air Force Club based in Melbourne Australia donateed 15 wheel chairs to the SLAF Seva Vanitha Unit at the Air For Headquarters in Colombo  on Wednesday.

The donation of the wheel chairs was in support of its efforts in fulfilling the needs of the Ex Air Force Servicemen who’s children are differently abled. 

Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club Inc, is a non-profitable organisation constituted by the Ex. Royal Ceylon and Sri Lanka Air Force veterans permanently residing in Victoria, Australia  which was their home away from home. The club had been formed 25 years ago and since then, it has provided comradeship and support to all Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force and Sri Lanka Air Force veterans and their families.  

As a club they have organised charity fund-raising events in support of the needy and vulnerable groups with special focus on the needs of their members in Sri Lanka. One of the main goals for the year 2020, was to help 15 selected disable children from the families of Sri Lanka Air Force members who had sacrificed their lives for the country. Similarly, during the year 2019, the club selected a much deserving child victim of Easter Sunday attack in Katuwapitiya and arranged a scholarship programme to support her well-being and educational funding.  
This  handing over ceremony of the wheel chairs was graced by  Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Sumangala Dias,  Chairperson of the the Seva Vanitha Unit- Mrs. Mayuri Prabhavi Dias,  Chief of Staff- Air Vice Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana, members of the Air Force Board of Management, and the Ex Air Force personnel to whom the said chairs were handed over. Group Captain (Retd) Kumar Kirinde and Wing Commander (Retd) Nalin Jayathilake participated as the Symbolic Representatives of the Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club in Melbourne, Australia. In a brief interview with the media  President of the Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club in Melbourne, Group Captain (Retd) Ajith De Silva said ‘’We, as one of the prominent Ex-Armed forces clubs overseas with an exclusive Sri Lankan Air Force identity, look forward to move beyond what we have done here, supporting our original roots with a great deal of pride and look forward to organising and contributing to more meaningful charity activities in the future for the well-being of our Ex Sri Lanka Air Force members and their families living in Sri Lanka’’.  

The two  representatives thereafter, officially handed over the wheel chairs to the Chairperson of the Seva Vanitha Unit. The Commander of the Air Force, presented five wheel chairs to the Ex Air Force Servicemen who’s children  were differently able.  

The Commander of the Air Force also presented a special Letter of Appreciation to Wing Commander Nalin Jayathilake which is to be sent to the Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club in Melbourne, Australia. The two representatives of the Ex Royal Ceylon Air Force Club in Melbourne, Australia, Group Captain (Retd) Kumar Kirinde and Wing Commander (Retd) Nalin Jayathilake were also presented with tokens of appreciation for their effort towards the success of such projects by the Air Force Commander.