Latest News

John Lewis Partnership makes a generous donation to Women’s Swimming

The Women’s Swimming Project received a huge fillip in the form of a significant donation from the Charities Committee of the John Lewis Partnership. The Partnership, which includes the Waitrose and John Lewis store chains, is one of Britain’s most successful trading co-operatives. Their Charities Committee shares this success with those less fortunate through supporting projects like ours. These funds will help keep the training operation in Weligama running for many months, allowing more women the chance to learn to swim. We would like to thank the Committee for their generosity and the opportunity they are offering the women of Sri Lanka, and Mr Alistair McKay for his keen support of the project.

Good things seem to have come at a run since Christina Fonfe returned to Palm Forest Plantation and the project continues to go from strength to strength. There are now two home-grown Assistant Swimming Teachers, Inki Abeyratna and Pauline Wijesinthe, and more are expected with the arrival of Sue Brown this week. Sue is a UK Swimming Teachers Association Tutor who has volunteered to come out from England to run a number of poolside specialist courses for the Project which will give the participants recognised qualifications. Sue was born in Sri Lanka but left when she was just 14 years old, so her visit should include a return to old haunts and acquaintances. An update on the course progress will follow shorlty.

Back...