A SRI Lankan visitor was in the South West last week thanking local Lions Clubs for their fundraising which helped provide new boats for those whose lives were devastated by the tsunami. Okehampton and District Lions Club provided funds for three new boats for fishermen on the east coast of Sri Lanka to replace those lost when the region was hit by the tsunami 14 months ago. Mark Anthony, president of the 306 C2 Lions Club of Columbo Mid Circle, met members of Okehampton Lions at the White Hart Hotel in Launceston and made a presentation of engraved medallions to thank them for their support. It was through his Lions Clubs that the boats were ordered, with funding raised in Okehampton ? three of the new boats carry the name Okehampton. Mr Anthony said with more than 50 new boats bought with international help, the fishing economy in Sri Lanka was slowly recovering. He said: ?Most of the fisherman had a very big shock after the tsunami. Many of them did not want to go back in their boats. ?After six or seven months, nobody was ready to buy fish either, because they were not sure if it was safe. Slowly people have started selling fish and eating fish again.? The boats were built in Columbo but local teams also faced a perilous challenge in getting the boats to those who needed them, having to take them 350 kilometres by road through Tamil Tiger territory. Mr Anthony said in the aftermath of the Boxing Day tsunami, there were three key aid areas on which the Lions Clubs focused: food and clothing; shelter and employment. Mr Anthony said lots of work was being done to meet education needs. ?Lots of children lost their parents, and they no longer have school books or uniforms, so we are trying to send them back to school.? Alongside this, he said the Lions branch had just been able to build a child care centre with the support of international charity finances. Mr Anthony said the Lions had a long history in Sri Lanka ? 2008 will mark the 50th anniversary of the organisation?s establishment in the country.
