Celebrated tennis player and former British No. 1 Tim Henman was in Sri Lanka in late December 2017 not only to enjoy the delights the country had to offer during the holiday season, but to also get in touch with his philanthropic side with a visit to The Foundation of Goodness at its project headquarters- the MCC Centre of Excellence and Sports Academy in Seenigama, Hikkaduwa.
In his home country, Henman has established the Tim Henman Foundation which delivers programmes to better the lives of vulnerable young people, focusing on education and health. They have also partnered with other organization to introduce scholarship, hospice and other outreach programmes.
The beautiful coastal setting in Seenigama is home to an incredible story of resilience in the face of adversity- the Foundation of Goodness’ ‘A Village in the Wake of a Tsunami Wave’ holistic development model which showcases a village that counteracted the devastation of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami with determination to rebuild stronger and better, creating a unique development programme recognized by RMIT University in Australia as the best post-tsunami model of all those studied. Since then, the Foundation of Goodness (FoG) has expanded its activities across the island, establishing 9 miniature versions named Village Heartbeat Empowerment Centres in the South, East and North. Today FoG empowers over 15,000 beneficiaries from 200+ villages across the island every month via its 30 empowerment activity sectors.
During his visit to the Foundation of Goodness, Tim Henman also brought along friends and family including his kids and spent time visiting the various classes and programmes in operation at the MCC Centre of Excellence such as the IT Centre, Women’s Enterprise and Empowerment Programmes and Medical, Dental & Psycho-social Units and also learnt about the Business and Knowledge Process Outsourcing Centres operated by empowered rural ladies. He even had the opportunity to see the traditional dance classes in session while the students practiced (the students from the dancing classes form the Goodness Rhythm Dance Troupe who have even had the opportunity to perform at the Lords Cricket Grounds in London during a Sri Lanka vs. England test match).
At the Sports Academy, Henman had the chance to see rural kids training free of charge at the outstanding facilities which include cricket grounds, netball and volleyball courts, the Bryan Adams Foundation Swimming Pool Complex (funded by the great Canadian musician himself) and gym. When he came across the table tennis players practicing against a TT Robot, Henman took the opportunity to jump in and enjoy a game with them, while his kids had some fun at the netball courts. Not surprisingly Henman played an impressive game of Table Tennis and with a keen eye, was able to identify impressive potential among some of the up and coming players.
Henman is one of many international sporting legends to visit this exceptional project uplifting rural beneficiaries, following in the footsteps of others like cricketing greats Sir Ian Botham (who has walked from the North to the South of Sri Lanka to raise funds for FoG) Michael Clarke, Greg Chapel, Shane Warne and Steve Waugh, British Olympian Rower Sir Steve Redgrave, US Olympian Swimmer Missy Franklin and former South African Rugby Captain Morne du Plessis. The Foundation is also proud to have national cricketing greats Muthiah Muralidaran, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardena and Russel Arnold on its Board of Trustees along with entrepreneurs Ashan Malalasekera and Pradeep Karunagaran.
Established in 1999 by Kushil Gunasekera at his ancestral home in Seenigama, the Foundation of Goodness (FoG) sought to bridge the gap between the urban and rural communities. Since 2011 the Foundation of Goodness also extended its services to the post-war North and today, has established 9 Village Heartbeat Empowerment Centres across the island including the North and East, which are helping to harness the talent of rural kids, youth and women to make better progress, which is what the Foundation of Goodness is aiming for right across the island.
