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Capt Elmo Jayawardena
Founder/President
CandleAid Lanka
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| | About CandleAid |
| | Sri Lanka | | | Sri Lanka lies beneath the great mass of India, surrounded by miles of Indian Ocean. It is a country that is embroiled in a civil war that has impacted upon the country in a devastating manner. The great majority of its populace struggles with the daily tedium of living; finding a wholesome meal, having shelter from the elements and coping with illness. What was once a paradise island is now in need of help. | | | Establishment of CandleAid | | | CandleAid Lanka, formerly AFLAC International, was founded by Capt. Elmo Jayawardena, a Sri Lankan pilot employed with Singapore Airlines. He and an executive committee of five directors run CandleAid. A member of the Executive committee heads each CandleAid project. In addition, CandleAid has chief coordinators for every project. A number of coordinators work under the chief co-ordinator. Every beneficiary of CandleAid has been allocated a co-ordinator who acts as the link between CandleAid and the beneficiary. CandleAid is registered under the Ministry of Social Services in Sri Lanka as a Non Governmental Organisation engaged in charitable work. CandleAid was granted the status “Approved Charity” in Sri Lanka in 2000 | | | Ideology behind CandleAid | | | CandleAid was formed in 1995 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in Sri Lanka. It is modeled on the belief that every person can do something to help another, irrespective of class, wealth and status. Founded upon the quote 'It is better by far to light one solitary candle than to curse the darkness' CandleAid believes that everyone has the capacity to light a candle, be it large or small, which will shed some light on someone else's darkness. As such, we function as a link between your act of generosity and someone else's need. | | | CandleAid work | | | CandleAid attempts to attack poverty through five main areas of work; education, health, shelter, food and clothing. It carries out certain miscellaneous projects through an CandleAid general fund. All projects run independently of each other and different people are involved in varying manners. All prospective projects are screened by the executive committee for their viability, authenticity and suitability under the CandleAid programs. An important aspect of CandleAid is that no part of any donation received is reserved for administration costs. All administrative expenses are borne by the executive committee and participants as part of their own contributions to CandleAid. All donations from individuals are channeled directly to recipients without any form of dilution. | | | International representatives | | | There are CandleAid representatives in many countries who function independently, to engender an awareness in people of the needs and difficulties faced by the poor in Sri Lanka. Most times they source sponsors and donors to support CandleAid programs. They are free to use their own initiatives rather than a standardised process to spread the message of CandleAid. There are CandleAid representatives in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Vienna Sweden and Bermuda, London, Eastbourne, Devon and Wales, Toronto, Vancouver and Calgery,Riyadh, Dubai and Qatar. In the Asia-Pacific region, there are CandleAid representatives in Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Hong Kong, Wellington and Singapore. |
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