Sri Lanka: Lastri’s Family is Grateful to be "90% Back to Normal"

When a representative of Sarvodaya, JDC’s local partner organization in Sri Lanka, was assessing the damage in Lastri’s neighborhood in the Galle District, she felt the first glimmer of hope she had experienced since the deadly tidal waves devastated Southeast Asia in December 2004. A 34-year-old mother of two, Lastri and the children were supported by her husband’s income as a mason. Already battling cancer, the young father was further challenged when he lost everything to the tsunami, including his tools and bicycle — his only means of transport to and from jobs. Lastri, too, lost everything she had — all of her household supplies, furniture and clothes were ruined.

Still, the couple knows that they are among the lucky ones; they were able to save themselves and their small children from the ferocious waters that swallowed whole parts of their village. The infamous train that was derailed and destroyed in the tsunami, taking with it many lives, runs a mere 20 feet from Lastri’s home. The house still shakes when the train rumbles through.

Through JDC’s home refurbishment program in partnership with Sarvodaya, Lastri’s tidy yet damaged house, painted in warm pastel colors, is being furnished and restored to a more livable state. The family is one of 100 lower-middle class families in villages of this southern district receiving such assistance. The objective is to restore housing to families with adults who fill key roles as medical professionals, school administrators , bank clerks, teachers and police officers so that they can resume their important functions within their communities.

Assistance being provided to Lastri and her husband is enabling them to focus their energies on the wider community. "Our lives are about 90% back to normal," says Lastri. "This help has kept my family going in these difficult times." The primary challenge that still remains for Lastri and her husband is the complex process of recovering documents washed away in the tsunami. "But I think we are more fortunate than many," she reflects. "And we are grateful."

November 2005