Santa Claus and snowmen candles and more from Daya Mina Centre students
Christmas is an exciting time for all, and the students of the Daya Mina Centre for the Differently Abled have been eagerly anticipating it since September. The students aged 14-40, attend the Embuldeniyabased Centre in order to obtain vocational training that encourages greater independence in their daily lives. The curriculum includes many practical, handson activities to engage them, and following the August holidays some of these activities take on a Christmas-themed focus.
Working with their teachers and a handful of local and international volunteers, Daya Mina’s students have been painting candles shaped like Santa Claus and snowmen as well as constructing Christmas wreaths, tree ornaments and seasonally-inspired artworks. As October ended and November began, the Christmas spirit starts to seep in as carols are sung in the bi-weekly music classes and preparations for the annual Christmas concert begin.
The final products of the students’ classroom efforts will be on display on November 20 and 21, as Daya Mina joins with two other centres also run by the Sisters of Charity JM (Supem Uyana and Meth Mihira) for their 19th annual “Our World” Exhibition and Sale at the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery in Colombo.
The sale is the culmination of a year’s work for the three centres’ students. Along with the Christmas paraphernalia will be various handmade gift items including needlework, linen, greeting cards, chutneys, wine, carpets, canvas art, candles and more.
(The writer is a volunteer at Daya Mina from The Cardoner Project in Sydney, Australia)