LW

[by Cheranka Mendis]

They are different; special actually. Their smiles are the most complete, genuine smiles I’ve seen in awhile. Completely stress-free, lie-free, pretend-free… a pocketful of smiles and a campfull of sunshine. That was exactly what was on offer at the ‘Sunshine Camp’ held last month for the ‘gifted people.’ Of course, the smiles were a bit more than a pocketful, I must say! Almost 410 of them flocked around at the Dehiwala YMCA grounds accompanied by their parents and teachers to share two days of pure enjoyment and fun. Open to all gifted people without any age barrier, the event had people from all walks of life from the little Paarami Saduni aged 8 to others as old as 60. They participated in the activities, singing and dancing, clapping with joy. Those who were ostracized by society found a common foothold and shared so much of warmth and love that anyone glancing in their direction would feel it in a minute.

President of the Dehiwala YMCA, Peter Jasinghe explains that this is a result of a 37 year old unbroken legacy. “37 years ago people looked at these unstable people with a scornful eye. The parents would put them in homes and forget that they existed. And the homes in return were of minimal conditions and there were continuous cases of abuse going on.” But things took a turn for the better and now the homes for these gifted people are of better hygienic conditions. “My father, Dr. Raja Jasinghe initiated this then to make society aware of these ‘gifted people’ as we call them and make them accept them for who they are.” And thankfully they have. While giving these gifted people a chance to be themselves without any looks and snickers, the event also aims at providing trauma support to their parents.

Mr. Jasinghe explained that in most cases, these people are brought up by a single parent. “90% of fathers leave the families when they see their kids are like this, a burden for them.” But there are no worries at the Sunshine Camps. The organizers, Dehiwala YMCA and Y’s Men Club with some 50 volunteers hold their hand, dance and sing with them and give them the support and love they crave for. The participants are from all over the island, says Suzanne Paiva, “350 of them are from various homes. There are participants from the Sunera Foundation, Madiwella Boys home, and Preetipura infant home among many. Also there are about 60 individual campers attending with their parents,” she said. The two days are full of surprises for them. From magic shows to mini carnivals and sports meets and the popular dancing/ comedy stars. Something so little is magical in their eyes…. If you would like to help,

contact Suzanne Paiva on 0714012745.

Promoting tourism is our responsibility; and in so many little ways we wouldnt even know, each of us in our own way do promote Sri Lanka. While chattering with our friends about that glorious place you went with your hubby during the weekend, or the must see places you have in mind, we all do promote Sri Lanka in the little ways we know.

But ever thought of mixing creativity with tourism promotion? Looking at it from beyond the angle of land like no other or the short lived small miracle? Thats what ten fashion students from UK and 32 students studying Fashion Designing and Product Development from the University of Moratuwa did within four weeks of research.

LW Magazine, the ever eager participants in all things new, did of course catch hold of Dr. Nirmali De Silva; one of the main organizers of the event to know exactly what went on and why.

“As an international collaborative project for second year students, the British Council co funded this project and brought down ten students from the London College of Fashion of the University of The Arts, London to Sri Lanka,” said Dr. Nirmali. They spent four weeks together blending their ideas, visiting factories etc basically testing the grounds and flip flopping the many views on Sri Lanka, apparel and of course, tourism.

Our main aim was to research the customers and market segments of tourists visiting Sri Lanka from the chosen countries, i.e. China, India, France, Germany and Russia and to develop artifacts and material to promote Sri Lanka tourism, she explains.
The students thus begin their expedition in five teams with one country each to realise the objectives of the project and to present their views. Within the course of four weeks, the students have spent one week for case study, the second visiting factories, the third working at Brandix, MAS, Hidramani, ODEL and Buddhi Bathiks, all well reputed companies world wide and the last week at the University putting all they learnt together.

That was what we saw recently, at the Tourism Promotion Bureau. New thinking, new logos, new tag lines (Tourism Ministers would have been so proud!)all looking at tourism in an unique eye, claiming attention.

One group focused on our rich and colorful culture to promote tourism, another on Eastern Sri Lanka, while one more looked at tea country and the industry, said Dr. Nirmali.

The group working on Russia focused on entertainment for luxury tourists and they brought in the concept of promoting tree houses instead of luxury hotels. This was just one of the many interesting and out of the box ideas we receive from the students.

Hmmm… holidaying in a tree house sounds good, doesnt it?

life begins for the family from Matale

As the Apollo Fertility Centre celebrates 1 year with 10 babies born and more than 100 successful pregnancies, the Senarathne Family celebrates the birth of their ‘little blessing’…

Miracles do happen” might appear to be cliché term, but to the Senarathne family it is the essence of what has changed their lives today. The couple is proud to be parents of baby Nadini, the first In-Vitro Fertilized baby girl to be born as a result of the highly skilled and specialized services offered at the Apollo Fertility Centre at The Lanka Hospitals Corporation PLC. The Apollo Fertility Centre, which celebrated one year of establishment on September 23rd, has much to be proud of – the centre today celebrates a milestone achievement of a total of 110 successful IVF pregnancies and 10 precious bundles of joy born within their first year itself!

“Our precious baby is a miracle indeed,” stated the gleaming mother Navandani. “We tried for 8 years to have a baby – and there was no form of treatment we didn’t experiment – even to the extent of Ayurvedic treatment to help me conceive. It was only after we had given up hope that we then heard of the Apollo Fertility Centre, and so we decided to give it our last shot. 8 months from then I was pregnant… and 9 months later I’ve given birth to a beautiful baby girl! Makes you wonder why we didn’t give our first shot to the Fertility Centre…we would have had a 7 year old by now,” she added humouredly.

The Apollo Fertility Centre was established in September last year and has since then made themselves the benchmark in the IVF field. The month of May saw the birth of the centre’s first IVF baby boy. Simultaneously, the centre has seen many more such breakthroughs in fertility treatment, ranging from successful IVF pregnancies of women who have endometriosis, distorted tubes, fibroids and other such complications - even to those who have had ectopic pregnancies where both fallopian tubes were removed. Successful treatments have also included cases where the male has lower sperm counts – as low as less than 1 million (average sperm count is usually 20 million per milliliter). Now as the centre progresses towards their second year, every month sees two to three babies being born - following the excitement of the first baby boy, then twins in June and this month the first baby girl Nadini to be born at the hospital.

The centre consists of a team of highly skilled and specialized doctors, gynecologists, embryologists, endocrinologists, urologists and radiologists who conduct comprehensive diagnostics to identify fertility problems and their root causes, with emphasis on non-invasive and minimally invasive procedures. The team, headed by the two gynecologists – Dr. Nishendra Karunaratne and Dr. Sudheera Uduwela, together with in-house medical doctor and embryologist Dr. Madara Ralapanawe – a Sri-Lankan doctor holding a post graduate masters degree in Clinical Embryology, carries out many different procedures, some more advanced than others but all focused on being the least invasive. The doctors, supported by their highly skilled nursing and technical teams, are driven to maintain the international standard of 35-40% for successful IVF and ICSI (Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection) treatments, whilst also working towards the goal of increasing their success rate to a magnitude of 50%, and perform day 5 (blastocyst) transfers in the near future, which only a few places in the world has yet achieved.

“Dr. Madara has been more than a doctor to us throughout this very emotional process. He has been very understanding and accommodative – even to the extent of making the procedure that much more convenient to us as parents. The care and comfort we received from the doctors and the team made us feel at home, even though we were traveling from as far off as Matale,” stated Nayanapriya, the baby’s father.

Walking around the centre, it is very easy to see why many opt to undergo the procedure at the Apollo Fertility Centre. Created on the concept ‘where life begins’ the Fertility Centre embraces a warm, friendly ‘home-like’ atmosphere. A far cry indeed from the cold, clinical approach generally found. The treatment rooms emulate an environment as homely and as comfortable as possible and the treatments themselves are conducted to suit the natural time cycles of a patient.

“We do IVF cycles everyday, therefore we do not manipulate the natural cycles. We have even had requests for auspicious timings for embryo transfers” Dr. Madara added. Even the centre’s color scheme of green and gold is specially chosen to symbolize fertility and prosperity and every effort has been made to make the centre a family-friendly space, where patients are welcome to bring family members or other offspring along. The state-of-the-art facilities offered include an IVF laboratory, freezing/storage facilities for embryos, ultrasound facility, operating suite for egg collection, private sperm collection rooms, private consultation rooms and a counseling room – all as result of an investment of Rs. 30 million which was made for the development of the IVF laboratory. The facility includes all state-of-the-art equipment from Japan, Germany and Australia and has the capacity to perform reproductive techniques everyday and 1000 cycles a year.

The quality of the service at the centre coupled with the cost at which it’s provided has attracted many international couples from the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States of America, Maldives and the Middle East in the hopes of starting a family – which, including local patients adds up to at least 45 – 50 patients a month, stresses Dr. Madara. Affordability, according to him, has been recognized as a critical factor which plays a significant role in the couples’ decision. Therefore with procedures which cover Natural cycle IVF, Intermediate IVF cycle and Controlled Ovarian Hyper- stimulation IVF cycle – the prices range to suit patients according to their clinical condition and the procedure adopted – a strategy which goes in line with The Lanka Hospitals Corporation’s main vision of providing quality healthcare at an affordable price. He further highlights that they understand that patients travel from out of Colombo to receive treatment at the centre. Therefore after initiating the process at the centre, they then contact the patient’s family doctor, providing them with the injections which needed to be administered and information on the particular case - thus enabling the patients to receive the treatment in their hometown – which will also reduce the cost of travel involved in the process.

“While the Apollo Fertility Centre is open everyday we intend taking the process to the outskirts so that patients can stay in surroundings familiar to them and obtain the same services, with no compromise whatsoever on the quality of care that is given to all our patients,” he added.

The Apollo Fertility Centre which is located on the 3rd Floor of the hospital is just the beginning of the medical journey. Once conception has been achieved at the fertility centre, teams of professional highly skilled gynecologists are ready to step in to ensure the welfare of both the mother and child at the birthing centre. The well-equipped neo-natal centre and emergency unit available at the hospital ensures nothing but the best for the mother and her child! That innovation and quality in healthcare combined with quality medical professionals has been the reason behind the centre’s success.

“We want to be advocates for the miracle treatment we have received here at the Apollo Fertility Centre,” concluded new mum Navandani.

Apollo Fertility Centre – Where life begins…

“We want to be advocates for the miracle treatment we have received here at the Apollo Fertility Centre,” concluded new mum Navandani.

For more details please contact the
Apollo Fertility Centre
on 011 543 3063/64 or
email: ivf@apollocolombo.com.

[by Lakmini Wijemanne]
Thirty Seven years ago, Sithara’s mother, Kanthi Fernandopulle stepped over the threshold of this house with her husband late Deva Fernandopulle, as his beautiful, young bride and over the years, made the transition of the house into a home. Today (rather, a year ago !!) Sithara wields her budding talents in the fields of remodeling and interior designing to add yet another facet to that home, to make it into a home that gives an added zest to your body and soul.

To say the very least, she has succeeded, immensely in her endeavour. Well, I’m no architect, but to my very personal taste, I felt happy to be there and the house really had an effect on me! Far away from Colombo, in Negombo, is this beautiful house you see in these photographs. Down a quiet lane of the main road, it was originally a coconut estate belonging to senior Mr. Fernandopulle, who built a house for his son and his bride. The gate opens on to specious green lawns interspersed with huge majestic trees. The lawns are well maintained but uncluttered by various plants. A paved drive-way runs up to the entrance portico which then turns left to lead to the garage. Jutting out from the main house, the portico is a new addition to the house and it rather adds to the total look of the house. Tall pillars surround the area and it provides a beautiful view of the lawns.

Interior of the house predominantly brings forth a sense of peaceful relaxation atmosphere with lots of cross winds and ample light and airiness. On the left of the entrance is the study/library which has wide windows looking out onto the front garden as well as another set of windows opening to the indoor lily pond. On the right of the entrance is a long hall which has been designed for three sitting areas furnished with three different styles of Sofas and chairs. The Middle section of this long hall opens out to the lily pond on one side and the other opens to an ante-room which in-turn leads to three bedrooms and two bathrooms cleverly hidden away provide privacy for the bedrooms.

A large lily-pond in the interior of the house with long windows and doors opening into it, provides the house with the beauty and the coolness of the water and the fragrance of the pink lotus blossoms blooming so profusely in it. The final area before we step onto the wonderful luscious back garden is the third sitting room between the entrance to another bedroom and the dining/pantry area. Long French windows both in the bedroom as well as the sitting area opens on to the back garden and the pool.

A few steps in-laid with cool granite brings you to the pool which is shimmering with cool clear water glistening in the morning sunlight. The dining area houses the long dining table and the pantry area. The cupboards and the worktops and done in black with steel fittings, which matches the floor, for the floor is unpolished granite squares with a patina of thin varnish finish to sustain the wetness of any water drippings.

The long expanse of the grassy back garden ends with a stone wall along which a row of frangipani trees were in bloom. A flight of cement steps runs towards the retaining wall and these steps are accompanied by potted palms.

The absence of a lot of flowing plants and bushes and pots and groves and whatnot which are usually expected to find in an area this big, was curiously missing and Sithara explained that the absence of all that a garden is expected to have was intentional since she wanted nothing to disturb the feeling of peacefulness that comes of having a vast space, blue sky, green grass and cool water !! Well, she was absolutely right, for one could, I imagine, spend hours there, quite oblivious to the outside world, with only the bird song and the wind as your companions, blissfully relaxed.

The colour themes used throughout the house - brown, white, black and crème - also heightens this feeling, for there was nothing with garish hot colours to disturb the peace within the house.

[By Shehara Rajapakshe]

A few months ago when the four by four adventure club held their adventure trophy in the Puttalam area, Sachithri Kapilaratne was the only lady who contested and emerged first in various categories. It was great to see a lady among all the males vying for not merely a title, but just enjoying a tour drive in a land cruiser in different terrains and camping at the most beautiful locations in our motherland, thus, we discovered this exceptional lady.

Exceptional skills
Sachithri is a past pupil of Ladies College Colombo, married to Thushara Kapilaratne, a pilot attached to the national carrier with two beautiful daughters, Kiyara and Tanuki. Apart from being a qualified Accountant, Teacher, Beautician, Seamstress, Designer, wife, daughter and mother, great driver, she is also following a Diploma in Psychology and currently employed as a Principal in a Nursery School. She truly is a wonder woman of our time and that is the reason LW interviewed this exceptional lady that is most certainly an inspiration to all of us women.

School life
Sachithri was a student that enjoyed school life tremendously, as she participated in all extra curricular activities, whilst achieving good grades in her studies. She was not an athletic type but was extremely active, was in the school choir and band, in every society but a very balanced person. She plays the piano and the box guitar. Even in school, she always wanted to help people. She said, “I was always the one who could lend a shoulder for someone to cry on and help my friends in whatever possible manner.” She has an elder sister and a younger brother, both living abroad. “My sister was very studious and when she completed school and went to work I was still schooling. During the time period after the Ordinary Level exam up to the time the results came in and we were allocated to the chosen stream I started a course on AAT and beauty.

I know they are two different subjects and do not go well together, but I wanted to follow them both and I managed to do both very well. Sports wise she did a little bit of running but was very good at chess. “While sitting for my Advanced Level exams I also sat for an aptitude test at Ernest and Young which I passed and was called for an interview. On the last day of the paper I flew to Maldives, I was the only girl with twenty boys as auditors and really learnt many things during the one year contract. I always wanted to become a lawyer I could never sit for hours on end and study. My sister was an Accountant and I helped her with her work and I earned my pocket money. I think her influence played a big role in my choice of career. I got selected for campus but never went because we had a bad experience of akka. Apart from working as an Auditor in Maldives I even sat for the first stage of CIM, then came back and worked as a marketing executive at Lanka Orix Factors and we were the first employees in factoring.

Then I sat for the law entrance exam and got through to Law College and at the same time I just applied to Air Lanka for flying but my father did not like it but my mother was happy and somehow I got permission to fly.”

A people person
“As my father was a Businessman, I grew up with lots of people around me. I remember amma always cooking for more than twenty people all the time as we had lots of relatives and friends growing up with us. This made me who I am today, a people person, always wanting to be around many people. My parents still live with Thushara and I, and that is really a blessing for me. Flying was the most interesting part of my life as I loved to travel. When I used to get into a country and to the hotel, the first thing I used to do is contact the concierge and ask for the interesting locations and travel by myself with my always available back pack.

I always wanted children to be part of my life although they didn’t belong to me, especially when I was flying, as I used to enjoy being the child care stewardess. I love being a mum of two beautiful girls and I would enjoy the company of many more children.”

Meeting Thushara
“I used to see this good looking pilot and we used to greet each other, whenever we did bump into each other but the day when we really spoke was at a function that we met at and both of us really enjoyed being with one another. Our interests were same, as my parents and family were nature lovers and we used to go to Yala, during whatever opportunity we received. I found out that Thushara was into nature as well in a big way as I discovered that he was a nature photographer, a hobby he truly enjoyed. The day he took me to meet his parents were the best I think as that was the day I really discovered Thushara’s lifestyle.

Thushara’s mother was the Directress and Proprietor of the Montessori House of Children and that put me at ease as I knew that this was the type of family that would suit myself, as they too loved children. Thushara is the best thing that happened in my life as he is a very understanding husband and a great father. He supports me in whatever I do and always encourages me to be myself.”

Career change
We asked Sachithri what made her change careers. “one of the reasons I joined flying was because I get to travel, as I said before and as I missed my sister, I would always pay a visit to her whenever possible. After five years I gave up, in fact just a few days before my first child was born. At that time, Thushara wanted me to choose what I wanted to do, and I decided that although I was qualified as a lawyer that doing a full time job would mean sacrificing your family life, as Thushara will be out most of the time, therefore, I opted to stay at home with the kids. One day Thushara had seen an advertisement about sewing classes at the Singer sewing school and he registered me. I enjoyed designing and stitching my own clothes and this became a past time for me as all my friends too wanted me to design their clothes, which I enjoy up to now.

Nature Tours
As Thushara and I both loved to camp, we made our own list of items to be taken on camping. We used to go to Yala for five days and thereafter four days in Wilpattu. Now, we take our kids and go on the trips and they too have got used to them and enjoy the beautiful places available. We have gone and camped even abroad with the 4X4 adventure club, but to my knowledge, our country is the best out of all the places.

We tend to forget how beautiful our paradise isle certainly is, as we are just a few hours away from whatever climate we want. This I believe we tend to overlook, especially when we went with the 4X4 adventure club even recently to the east, we really enjoyed the journey and it was lovely to see the picturesque nation.” concluded Sachithri.

Sachithri is very simple in her ways and would be there for anyone who would request for help. Even in school, she was actively involved in projects that were done to help the deaf and dumb students. Sachithri’s skills are exceptional and she is truly a Lankan woman who is proud of this beautiful paradise isle. While thanking her for all the time she spent with us, we wish her, Thushara, the kids and her family all the best in all their endeavours.