The Sunshine Charity - Sri Lanka

05/05/2026

Celebrating Sinhala and Tamil New Year
Organizing special events for children is always a joy and so it was for the children at the Sunshine Preschool, when the staff and parents organized festive activities to celebrate the Sinhala and Tamil New Year.
Held at the school premises, parents and children shared the excitement and entertainment with the children in the community-led event to mark the most significant cultural festival celebrated in Sri Lanka.

04/04/2026

English for Every Child
We thank the Inner Wheel Club of Colombo District 322 for their continuous support to the organizations English Language Programme. As in the previous year, the 2026 classes are possible due to the generous funding made available by the Club. The classes are divided into two groups with the younger ones in one group and the older ones in a second group allowing focus-oriented sessions. Conducted by a qualified language teacher the programme targets the fifty disadvantage, rural children attending the Sunshine Preschool, giving them equal opportunity with urban children. Becoming fluent in a global language is one of the most valuable learning tools the Sunshine Charity can offer our children. We are thankful to the Inner Wheel Club of Colombo District 322 for the opportunity given to our children to learn and speak in English.

19/03/2026

Team Talk Time
Over the years, we have been able to resolve numerous challenges faced with the organizations primary project, the Sunshine Preschool – Taking Care of Vulnerable Children, in Trincomalee by listening and adhering to the advice given. We are grateful to all officials of the Eastern Province Pre-school Education Bureau, under the guidance of its Chairman, Mr. M. A. Ameerdeen, for the suggestions. As mentioned, “Fulfilling the necessary physical and human resources to pre-schools for ensuring a pleasant environment, capacitating the teachers on teaching quality ECD activities and promoting the nutritional practices in pre-schools through a transparent and accountable manner with balanced approach,” we have complied to help our children achieve remarkable progress. Thank You!

16/03/2026

11/03/2026

Market Place for Kids
Education for kids need not necessarily be learning from a book. Activities in a classroom can be interesting and fun and still be educational when children are encouraged to stretch their imagination in different ways. A good example is at the Market Place for Kids – an annual hands-on initiative at the Sunshine Preschool, which helps children to explore sales and marketing though innovative thinking. By interacting with others from the community, besides their own family, the children were proud to be a shop-keeper even if it was only for a day!

11/03/2026

Admissions Day at the Sunshine Preschool is waited anxiously with a mixture of eagerness, and some nervousness, by both children and parents. After the garlanding of the new entrees by those who have stayed on, and the traditional lighting of the oil lamp, the excitement and the celebration begin. Welcoming the children and parents the staff makes sure everyone is at ease.
Registered under the Eastern Province Preschool Bureau, the school follows the government stipulated pre-school syllabus. We thank all our donors for their generosity, which has helped the Sunshine Preschool to provide fifty vulnerable children for over twenty years, with additional opportunities like the nutritious morning meal, school uniforms and shoes, educational tools, a play-ground on the compound, creative workshops, security and the much-appreciated English language classes.

11/03/2026

The Unstoppable Journey of a Woman – by Sharadha de Saram
International Women’s Day is celebrated each year on March 8. This year’s theme, “Give to Gain,” highlights the value of generosity. Whether we interpret it as giving in cash or kind, volunteering time, or sharing one’s skills, each act of generosity creates a positive impact on individuals, communities, and organizations. When we gain, we are inspired to give again, setting in motion a cycle of empowerment and growth.
For Sasikumar Padmini, as for many women disadvantaged by gender, gender bias was something she accepted as both a cultural and social norm. Growing up as a young girl in the hill country, she often heard others dismiss her as useless simply because she was a girl. The turning point came when she married. On receiving his very first salary, her husband placed it in her hands and said, “Take my salary and do the best for our family” - a gesture of empowerment that Padmini had not previously experienced. That simple act strengthened Padmini’s self-belief. From that moment on, there was no turning back. When women are entrusted with responsibility, they thrive–and their communities rise with them.
Padmini was first introduced to the trustees of The Sunshine Charity in 2013, when she was selected as one of four women to participate in an Organizational Development Grant programme aimed at strengthening systems, structures, and policies within the Human Resource segment. She showed remarkable commitment and enthusiasm at every workshop she attended. At the end of the two-year programme, she secured employment as a child-carer at a small-town day care facility in the Central Province.

As the Sunshine Day Care expanded and enrolment grew, the trustees interviewed Padmini for the position of Assistant Teacher. What followed was a steady progression: teacher training workshops, a course in pre-school education at the Open University in the Eastern Province, and eventually a Diploma in Early Childhood Development and Preschool Education awarded by the Centre for External Degrees of the Eastern University. Her journey became unstoppable. When the Sunshine Day Care formally registered as a pre-school, Padmini was appointed Head Teacher.

Padmini’s is an exemplary journey and a remarkable story worthy of celebration on International Women’s Day.

15/01/2026

Providing School Uniforms
The official ceremony to hand over school uniform fabric for 2026, donated by well-wishers and friends of The Sunshine Charity was held at the Sunshine Preschool, Trincomalee. Two sets of uniforms are provided for each child. As in previous years, the head teacher visits the fabric shop to purchase the fabric which in turn is given to the parents who sew the uniforms accordingly to their children’s requirements. Without school uniforms, many girls simply stop attending school altogether due to shame, fear of ridicule, or lack of motivation. Having uniforms provided is a huge financial support for the parents and The Sunshine Charity thank all donors who helped in this initiative.

25/11/2025

End of Year Celebrations
By the end of a school year, the staff and students alike are usually ready to say goodbye to another great year. So, it was at the Sunshine Preschool for the children leaving and children staying-on when they celebrated the end of another year, coming together to meet and greet, to show-case and honor their dancing talents, to enjoy plenty of ice-cream and cake and to receive their End of Year gifts. Celebrating with the children were parents, staff, friends, visitors from the community and guest of honour - former District Secretary & Government Agent Mrs. J. J. Muraleetharan.

25/11/2025

We Graduated!
Twenty-three children, eleven girls and twelve boys graduated from the Sunshine Preschool this year. Children who attend the Sunshine Preschool have a head-start when they transfer to the local primary schools, so we are told. A ceremony to celebrate this momentous occasion was held at the school premises. Parents, friends and local government officials participated in the ceremony and End of Year Celebrations. A proud achievement for a preschool which twenty years ago began under a mango tree for tsunami affected children!