Cricketer extraordinaire and renowned humanitarian, Roshan Mahanama, recently launched the ‘Roshan Mahanama Trust’ – born out of a vision to provide a platform for all stakeholders to join in unison in order to enrich the lives of underprivileged children of our nation. The charitable Trust, registered with the Government of Sri Lanka, was officially introduced to the public on October 4th, 2022 at an event held in Colombo with an inspiring tagline ‘Spreading Humanity Beyond Boundaries’.
The Trust’s fitting central theme ‘We Promise’ is a pledge made by Roshan Mahanama himself, as a firm believer that children affected by poverty should have access to a solid educational foundation, a healthy life and safe environment, and be able to take control and actively shape their own futures.
Commenting on the launch was the Chairman, Roshan Mahanama, “As someone who has been involved in various social welfare and charity initiatives for many decades, I will never hesitate to do my very best for the needy, especially children. The children of today are the citizens of tomorrow and a good education, combined with other facets such as a school career, is imperative to develop good civic-minded citizens. As I embark on this new journey, I want to encourage everyone to join me in giving back and creating a better place for our future generations.”
Based on the values of Honesty, Integrity, Discipline, Loyalty and Friendship, the Roshan Mahanama Trust is dedicated and guided by several key pillars. These include enhancing areas of education through scholarships, educational development initiatives and infrastructure, conducting various educational programs and upskill children and youth promoting wellbeing, assist needy children and create awareness on prevention of critical illnesses, intervene in emergency situations such as man-made or natural disasters providing basic essentials, promote inclusivity to all citizens marginalised due to poverty, disability, race, religion, gender, etc and to address violence against children.
“In his giving to others, Roshan has set a positive example of celebrity humanitarianism as it is the first time a well-known cricketer and sportsman in Sri Lanka is launching his own charitable trust after being of help to the community for many years. I am extremely proud and committed to be a part of this Trust to build hope for lifelong change by investing in our children to unleash their true potential and take the nation forward,” said Shiromi Masakorala, Director Operations – Roshan Mahanama Trust.
To create real impact, the Trust has identified areas of collaboration such as ‘education and growth, health and wellbeing, safe environment’, and aims to engage in partnerships with diverse stakeholders to achieve sustainable change. The Trust will collaborate with like-minded organisations such as Piyawara preschools through Hemas Outreach Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, the Roshan Wijerama Family Trust, Indira Cancer Trust, Suwa Arana, Community Meal Share Trust, AYATI, College of Paediatricians programs – Feed a Child, Lama Piyasa, etc.,
The unveiling of the Trust’s logo also took place at the event. Echoing its unique spirit, the distinctive and cohesive identity is aligned to Roshan Mahanama’s bold ethos and direction of spreading love and enlightening the world making it a better place going beyond cricket boundaries.
