නිල් අහසේ වසන්තය: Kite Festival 2016
As told by Rtr. Paveen Perera,
The Rotary family in Sri Lanka i.e. Rotary, Rotaract & Interact together with the Presidential Task Force on Drug Prevention and Kite Sri Lanka organization along with the support of the Police Department in Negambo organized the ‘නිල් අහසේ වසන්තය’ (Nil Ahase Wasanthaya), National Kite Festival which was concluded successfully on 28th of August 2016.
“The most important outcome out of all is the message which was conveyed to the society on drug prevention and bad consequences of drugs. Apart from that, the quality interactions and connections were built among the fellow Rotaractors. Making teenagers realize there are many more means of entertainment in life which are not connected to drugs is of utmost importance.”
We at Rotaract Club of University of Moratuwa took part in this national initiative and contributed our level best by an active participation of over 20 members. Despite the fact that it being a Sunday, all participants who chose to use the transport arranged by the District were present by 5.45 a.m. near the Royal Skills Centre, Colombo and it was a pleasure to witness the amount of dedication and effort our Rotaractors had put in to maintain the punctuality.
We had a pleasant journey to Negambo and soon after, we reached the starting point in Negambo town for our utmost surprise breakfast arranged for each and every one . The festival commenced with a Kite Parade under the theme of “Drug Prevention” which marched around Negombo town and reached the Negombo Beach Park. By then the other Rotaractors who live close to negambo also had joined the team and final count from Rotaract Mora remained at 23.
Then the kites which were carried in the parade were directed to the sky and it was an amazing scene to witness. Apart from the kites which were made in line with the PR campaign, the sponsors for the event distributed ready-made kites. Therefore, the event provided everyone a chance to reach their childhood memories, for most of the participants it was the first time to fly a kite after they became teenagers.
The PR campaign was designed by the District and the Rotaract clubs were given specific instructions to execute. Accordingly, an online poster which appeared on Facebook was shared in the official page of the club and members were encouraged to maximize its visibility. In addition, kites were built carrying captions on drug prevention and Rotaract branded kites were also made.
The main objective of this project is to raise awareness about the bad consequences of drugs and setting up examples for the youth that there are enough opportunities and means to enjoy life without using any form of drugs.
The most important outcome out of all is the message which was conveyed to the society on drug prevention and bad consequences of drugs. Apart from that, the quality interactions and connections were built among the fellow Rotaractors. Making teenagers realize there are many more means of entertainment in life which are not connected to drugs is of utmost importance.
This project being a district project provided the club with the opportunity to get along and closely interact with all branches of the Rotary family. Additionally, involving in this gave the opportunity to work along with a public sector organization which provided a new experience.