This year the Rotaract Club of University of Sri Jayewardenepura celebrated its 12th milestone on the 1st of September, reminiscing its glorious journey since its initiation 12 years ago.

The Rotaract Club of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura was established on September 1, 2011, and is presently regarded as one of the largest Rotaract clubs in the Rotaract in Rotary International District 3220, and is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Battaramulla. Bearing the themes of Rotary International and Rotaract in RID 3220; “Imagine Rotary” and “Learn, Serve, and Strive” respectively,  RACUSJ is committed to excellence and service. The club works on a wide array of projects throughout the year, from impactful social initiatives to more complex professional initiatives, all of which are geared toward fostering teamwork, leadership, and soft skills among the members and enhancing fellowship with other Rotaractors.

In the RI year 2022-23, the club has specially intended and focused to build future leaders through Rotaract under the theme “Lead to Sustain and Lead to Inspire” exposing the members to various challenges and opportunities to develop themselves as well as the community they live in.

The members of RACUSJ are motivated to act on the global challenges of supporting all living forms on Earth. Their fearlessness, courage, empathy and above all, determination have enabled them to serve the community as one. We are proud of all our past accomplishments, which portrayed true service and volunteerism. And during the past years, RACUSJ has been honoured for stepping up to make a difference both in the local and foreign communities and has earned accolades in recognition of its contribution.

Accordingly, in celebration of the 12th Charter Day, a series of events were organized which happened in two days.

First, a fun and inspiring Instagram challenge was given to all the members to come up with creative definitions for each letter of ‘RACUSJ’ and to repost it as a story on Instagram, nominating three other RACUSJ buddies for the challenge, on the 1st of September. Many Rotaractors participated enthusiastically in completing the challenge. Their thoughts and ideas portrayed the values established under Rotaract as well as by the club.

On the 3rd of September, it was planned to go to four religious places to seek blessings for the club. About 20 members, including the Executive Committee, Board of Directors and the general members, joined this event. Everyone gathered at the university premises at 7 am to begin the journey. The bus journey began, and around 8.30 am, we arrived at Mayurapathi Sri Bathrakali Amman Kovil in Kirulapana. The members spent a few hours engaging in prayers. Later, St. Joseph’s Church in Jambugasmulla was visited at about 11.00 am. Prayers were offered, and a special blessing was done by the parish priest, who blessed everyone with holy water and advised on how important it is to balance academic work and extracurricular activities. Unfortunately, due to unavoidable circumstances, we were unable to visit the mosque.

At around noon, everyone arrived at the university to have lunch and prepare for our next stop. With the collected and packed donations, we reached the Vajira Sri Children’s Rehabilitation Center in Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, at about 2 pm. We seek the blessings in the temple there and handed over the donations to the centre. We were glad that we could spend some time with the children, and it was evident from their faces that they too, loved our company. The day concluded with contented hearts and a gallery full of snaps to contain the memories.  

Indeed, the 12th chapter of the Rotaract Club of University of Sri Jayewardenepura was turned meaningfully, and we believe that we were able to set an example for our members as well as everyone in our journey of serving with utmost care and love. As Nelson Mandela said, “Remember to celebrate milestones as you prepare for the road ahead” it is equally important to establish milestones and celebrate them since they will motivate you to do well and continue what you are doing. During these 12 years, we achieved more as a club and we hope to reach far beyond as one family by making the world a better place for everyone.

Written by: Rtr. Geethma Lelwala

Graphic Design by: Rtr. Supun Tharaka