Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Friday, 21 December 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
There’s something about Christmas that makes you believe in magic – whether you personally celebrate it or not. At HSBC, it’s an annual tradition to share the spirit of Christmas and spread love, joy and happiness among some very special children who are in need of extra love and care.
From late November to early December this year, over 50 volunteers from HSBC came together to spread the love and light of Christmas among more than 450 deserving children at Salvation Army Girls’ School, Paritas Convent (Meth Mihira Special Education Centre), Community Concern and Sri Jinananda Children’s Home.
This is year’s HSBC Christmas project was even more special because the volunteers took some love and laughter to the terminally ill patients at the Shantha Sevana Hospice in Maharagama. The Shantha Sevana Hospice is known island-wide as the pioneering institution dedicated to providing hospice care for those who are terminally ill. Therefore, unlike traditional hospitals the facilities in the home promote patients to address their problems as a community in recognition of the illness that leaves them physically and emotionally handicapped.
Teams of volunteers organised programs and came up with creative and fun filled activities for the children and inmates along with gifts and lots of yummy goodies. There were magic shows, face painting and fun games like musical chairs and pillow passing. As always, the children were delighted to see the Santa Claus, and there was much merriment as the HSBC staff members joined the children to sing carols and take part in merry games. All enjoyed the Christmas merriment and were in high spirits by the end of the program.
The best gift of the season was the magic of happiness reflected on the faces of both young and old alike, as beautiful smiles lit up their faces brighter than the lights on any Christmas tree.
