A REWARDING END TO OUR TOUR
OUR tour culminated in a visit to the Gandys Kids Campus in Galle, run by golden-hearted matriarch, Mama Tina. Here, children aged four to 18 receive medical care, educational opportunities and nutritious meals, completely funded by Rob and Paul from the sales of Gandys merchandise.
Despite a language barrier, Paul says they have no trouble communicating with the kids. “You smile and they smile back,” he says. Like meerkats, children pop up from behind a wall to greet us and the campus is filled with giggling.
At dawn, we headed out on auto-rickshaws to nearby Coconut Hill, where palm trees stand in military formation. As a lone fisherman balancing on stilts reels in his haul, the sea – once so devastatingly powerful back in 2004 – now ebbs gently, kissing the shore as if in contrition.
It’s a peaceful, tranquil scene – much like all of beautiful Sri Lanka – but the tragic history of the tsunami can never be forgotten. Rob and Paul’s determination, and new collaborations like this, will ensure positivity continues to bloom.