“Kindness is the language the deaf can hear and the blind can see.”
-Mark Twain-
The Electrical Engineering Society speaks the language of kindness every year with their annual charity project, We Are With You. The project focuses on the wellbeing of the Students of School for the Deaf, Ratmalana. For the 20th consecutive time, We Are With You 2019 was held on the 6th of March 2019 at the university premises.
At around 2.00pm the children and their teachers arrived at the Civil Auditorium, escorted by the members of EESoc. The opening ceremony began with the lighting of the oil lamp, followed by the Welcome Speech by the President of EESoc, Prof. J. P. Karunadasa.
A drama by 2017 batch of the Department of Electrical Engineering filled the crowd with silent laughter as their beloved characters, Asterix and Obelix worked out a crisis onstage using the power of the Magic Potion. The quiz conducted by the 2016 batch of the Department of Electrical Engineering was also an interesting item. A young dancer from the school, clad in a vibrant costume performed a dancing item that captured the audience. Head of the Department of Electrical Engineering, Prof. Sisil Kumarawadu, expressed his truest ideas regarding the event. This was followed by a video down the memory lane of We Are With You. Another group of students from the school amazed the audience with their talent of acting as they recreated an ideal Sri Lankan public bus on the stage.
In outdoor events, cricket team and the netball team engaged in friendly matches with the teams from EESoc. The rest of the students engaged in a variety of fun games at the Lagaan. Later, the students were guided to the Old Gym to initiate the evening session, where the art exhibition by the students was held. The competition was conducted under various categories including their age and different topics. The children were amazed to see their talents valued. The lecturers and other guests were awed seeing the talents of the children and how carefully they have merged their aspirations through different colored brushstrokes in the empty canvases. Winners of the art and quiz competitions were given prizes.
The students were donated much needed school equipment by the present and past members of EESoc. Three sets of hearing aids were also donated to the needy students.
The secretary of EESoc, Mr Kavindu Shiwanka delivered the vote of thanks remembering the past EESoc members, the lecturers of the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Moratuwa and the organizers for making the event successful. This was followed by the dance floor with DJ music. The joy in their eyes showed how much they enjoyed dancing blending in with their own sisters and brothers of EESoc. The event ended at about 8.00 pm.
