Sri Lanka, 06 May 2011 – The Foundation of Goodness (FOG), RYTHM Foundation’s local NGO partner in Sri Lanka, welcomed the QNet-sponsored HKFC ICE Ladies Rugby Team when they visited the center in Seenigama on 6 May 2011, thru RYTHM Foundation’s ‘I’m MAD Campaign’. The 14-member team called ‘Ice’ travelled for two hours from Colombo to Seenigama to visit the foundation, speak with the youth and kids on fitness and sportsmanship, teach them some life skills and play rugby with them.
Upon arrival, the team was warmly welcomed by the officers of the foundation and immediately after, was given a tour of the foundation’s Center of Excellence, the Village Heartbeat Project and the rest of the excellently maintained facilities of the foundation. They then proceeded to the FOG Sports Complex for the sports programme with the kids.
With the young athletes of FOG, the women did a plyometric warm-up followed by a circuit of exercises. The warm-up intended to actively engage muscles through movements like knee-ups and lunges. The exercises within the circuit focused on different integral aspects of athletic ability – balance, agility, speed, reaction time and coordination, upper and lower body strength and core strength. Most importantly, the circuit provided a healthy, competitive edge while keeping the children lighthearted and laughing. Adding to the surprise of the FOG kids, the Men’s Team of the HKFC Rugby Section arrived unannounced and together with the women, taught the kids some basic rugby skills and played with them much to everybody’s enjoyment. At the end of the programme, the teams donated some used clothing to the foundation which will be distributed among the needy during their next outreach project.
The overall relief project comprehensive assessment has undertaken a beneficiary selection process and has identified and helped out 4 village communities in Savannakhet namely, Sepone, Nong, Phine and Xonnabouly, collectively composed of 300 households with 1,500 beneficiaries in total.
Founded by Kushil Gunasekera, The Foundation of Goodness has worked in rural Sri Lanka since 1999. Starting out with the aim of developing a rural community development model to narrow the gap between urban and village life in Sri Lanka, by working with the community of Seenigama, the work quickly changed when the Tsunami waves swept their path of destruction through the village. Today, managing 30 sectors for the benefit of 20,000 people from 25+ villages, the Foundation of Goodness has been hailed by RMIT University, Melbourne, as the best post-Tsunami project they have seen. Providing a holistic approach to tackling poverty through productive activities, the Foundation of Goodness is leading the way in providing essential services of a quality never before seen in a village setting.
‘Ice’ plays for the Hong Kong Football Club as an all-women full-contract rugby team. They play with the other teams from Hong Kong during the regular season and try to tour once-a-year to play with new teams. Many of the team’s members play for select-side or national teams, as well. All the women live regular, busy lives and play rugby on the side. Their Sri Lanka Tour has been sponsored by QNet.
I’m MAD stands for I’m Making A Difference. It is a movement that was recently started by the corporate heartbeat of The QI Group, RYTHM Foundation, to unite millions of IRs, partners and employees of QNet to form a strong and growing MAD force to change the lives of disadvantaged individuals and communities around the world.
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