Project Peds: Sri Lanka Tsunami Relief

March 22, 2007: GROUND BROKEN FOR WORLD CHILDREN’S INITIATIVE’S PEDIATRIC FACILITY AT MATARA

$ 400,000 Donation From Bush Clinton Tsunami Fund Facilitates Progress For WCI’s Project Peds

On January 16, 2007, the then Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Mangala Samaraweera, formally initiated ground breaking at the site where Project Peds’ 100-bed Matara Pediatric Facility (MPF) will soon stand. Hundreds of Matara residents thronged to the ceremony to see where their children and grandchildren will receive high quality medical attention for generations to come.

Mr. Chaminda Wijetilleke attended the groundbreaking ceremony on behalf of World Children’s Initiative, the organization spearhading a coalition called “Project Peds” that seeks to revitalize pediatric healthcare in Sri Lanka. “When you walk on the land [where our pediatric hospital will be] and you see hundreds of people in attendance for the ceremony and then see the granite foundation with “World Children’s Initiative” on it, it’s a pretty incredible feeling to see our project becoming tangible,” Mr. Wijetilleke remarked. “We would not have been able to get this far without support from the dozens of donors – big and small – and dedicated volunteers who have sacrificed so much to advance our project. I keep thinking about the support we’ve received from President Bush and President Clinton’s Tsunami Foundation; their huge donation has given us the capital and credibility to play a prominent role in revitalizing pediatric healthcare in Sri Lanka” Mr. Wijetilleke added. Read More

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera (foreground) delivers a speech at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Korea-Sri Lanka Friendship Hospital, Matara Sri Lanka

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PRESIDENTS BUSH AND CLINTON GIVE MAJOR BOOST TO PROJECT PEDS WITH A $400,000 DONATION

The Sri Lanka Project Peds Team pauses for a group photo with Former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton during a working session in New Orleans.

March 2006 (Washington, DC): Presidents George H.W. Bush and William J. Clinton have accelerated Project Peds’ efforts to resurrect Matara General Hospital’s (MGH’s) pediatrics ward, which is located in a tsunami-affected area of Sri Lanka, by donating $ 400,000 from the Bush-Clinton Houston Tsunami Fund. The donation, which is the largest single donation to Project Peds to date, will be used to construct and fully equip the General Pediatrics Floor of the ward. The donation is also a strong endorsement from two distinguished presidents who have learned how to identify successful development NGOs both through their work in the White House and through their year of hands-on tsunami fundraising at the request of President George W. Bush.

Former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton film a public service announcement encouraging the American people to make cash donations to the tsunami relief effort on January 5, 2005 (www.whitehouse.gov).

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ABOUT PROJECT PEDS

About Project Peds: Project Peds: Sri Lanka Tsunami Relief is a partnership created for the purpose of improving pediatric healthcare in Sri Lanka. As its primary focus, Project Peds seeks to rehabilitate the pediatrics ward of Matara General Hospital (MGH), a critical healthcare facility on Sri Lanka’s southern coast. Born from the vision of a few dedicated professionals who traveled to Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the Tsunami, Project Peds has since garnered the invaluable support of two leading American pediatric institutions, Children’s National Medical Center (CNMC) in Washington, D.C. and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh (CHP). CNMC and CHP have joined forces with World Children’s Initiative (WCI) to ensure that a revamped pediatric healthcare-delivery system in tsunami-ravaged Sri Lanka becomes a reality.

In early 2006, Project Peds received a major boost from Presidents Bush and Clinton when the two former presidents donated $400,000 in private funds to Project Peds from the Bush Clinton Houston Tsunami Fund. Project Peds has also secured funding and support from a variety of corporations, non- profits, foundations and generous individuals. Project Peds is now well on its way to rehabilitate the Pediatric Ward of MGH.

Who we are: Project Peds is the brainchild of Dr. Kanishka Ratnayaka, Dr. Sanjay Daluvoy, and Mr. Gulasekaram, three close friends from college who traveled to Sri Lanka in February 2005 to assist tsunami victims. For Dr. Ratnayaka, who is an ethnic Sinhalese, and Mr. Gulasekaram, an ethnic Tamil, the service mission was a deeply personal matter undertaken to aid friends,and family. The two men reached across the frontlines of a bloody, decades-long civil war to collaborate in the relief effort. The group of friends visited relief camps and orphanages to provide medical assistance at makeshift treatment centers. In addition, they brought school supplies and clothes to orphanages on the hard-hit eastern shore of the island.

While providing immediate relief, the group also surveyed potential long-term projects for improvement of pediatric healthcare. Based on this assessment, the team decided to rehabilitate the pediatric ward at Matara General Hospital (MGH) in southern Sri Lanka.

Upon return to the U.S., Mr. Gulasekaram along with Drs. Daluvoy and Ratnayaka created a non-profit organization, World Children’s Initiative (WCI), for the purpose of rebuilding medical and educational infrastructure for children in developing areas across the globe. WCI’s maiden project is the rehabilitation of MGH’s pediatric ward. WCI immediately recruited Mr. Chaminda Wijetilleke, an America Online Executive with significant experience in marketing and fundraising, and began to procure effective partners for the effort to rebuild the MGH pediatrics ward. WCI quickly partnered with two elite U.S. pediatric institutions – Children’s National Medical Center (CNMC) and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh (CHP) – both of which have endorsed Project Peds with human and financial capital. Together, CHP and CNMC stand poised to dedicate medical expertise, fundraising experience, and prospects for a continued academic and clinical relationship with the new Matara pediatric ward. WCI manages the project in coordination with all major and minor partners.

Project Peds is currently directed by a Steering Committee, composed of individuals from WCI, CNMC, and CHP. To learn more about the Steering Committee members, Project Peds staff, and a list of young professionals who have donated their time and expertise, please select the Project Peds Team link.

What we have done: Project Peds team members have now collectively made several trips to Sri Lanka to confer with government officials, healthcare experts, and the staff physicians at MGH.

Project Peds formally got underway when CNMC established a tax-exempt account for the Project through its charitable arm, Children’s Hospital Foundation, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Sri Lankan Government. Currently, both CNMC and CHP hold funds earmarked for the rehabilitation of MGH.

In addition, in recent months, Project Peds has secured significant funding from the Clinton Bush Houston Tsunami Fund, Kaiser Permanante and a host of private individuals. They are now in a position to construct and fully equip the general pediatrics ward and Public Health Training Center, which will play an essential role in reproducing Project Peds’ efforts throughout Sri Lanka. Despite these accomplishments, Project Peds still needs additional funding. Please donate.

Click here for more information on the progress of Project Peds and the Project Timeline.