A Dance Performance In Aid Of The Differently Abled Children

A solo dance recital  will be held on  February 21 at 6 pm at the Ladies’ College Hall by Danangi Fernando, a talented 12 year old child inflicted by Down’s Syndrome in aid of commencing a school for differently-abled children, Diri Daru Piyasa. The school is to educate differently-abled children and to provide them with vital vocational training so that they could earn a living, and be independent in the society.

Some of the disciplines that are expected to be taught  in the school are dancing, singing, sewing, cookery, computer copy typing, carpentry and agriculture.

The school is to be a model institute of learning and the services will be free for children of low income parents, who are expected to be 50% of the total children in the school. The other 50% will be provided this education service by charging a fee to fund the recurrent expenditure of the school. The concept of the school is  the brainchild of Miranda Hemalatha, who has been in the field of education for over 50 years. She had trained many talented disabled children to be dancers, teachers and to be involved in other vocations such as tailoring. She would be in charge of running the school on a voluntary basis at the commencement.

The construction of the building for the school has already commenced and it is expected to be completed by April.  The building is a donation from the MJF Foundation of philanthropist Merrill J. Fernando and is located at Katubedda, Moratuwa.

Danangi, conducted a solo dance recital in aid of the school in 2008 and collected  Rs. 500,000 that had been used to develop the agriculture section of this school for educating  differently-abled children in agriculture. The agriculture section is also expected to earn vital income for the school.