Always about people finding freedom: Reshmi's story

Most children write a Christmas wish list, hoping to see Santa come good on Christmas morning. But not Reshmi Niriella. Two years ago her wish list looked a little different. Instead of wanting presents for herself, this 12-year-old asked her family and friends for gifts she could give to orphans in Sri Lanka.

Supporting her request, on Christmas Day in 2012 Reshmi’s family and friends wrapped presents for her to give to orphans. The following Christmas, Reshmi and her family flew thousands of kilometres from Sydney to personally hand out gifts to children at The Salvation Army’s Haven and Sunshine Home in Sri Lanka.

“Just seeing the smiles on the children’s faces,” says Reshmi. “I didn’t get Christmas presents but that didn’t really matter after seeing their faces.

“And just a little thing such as a teddy bear just brought so much joy to them.”

Reshmi’s spirit of giving stems from her family’s long history with The Salvation Army. Starting with her great-grandfather, Colonel James Wickramage, who devoted his life to serving others as a Salvation Army officer in Sri Lanka, both her parents followed in his footsteps, holding health clinics at the Sri Lankan Haven and Sunshine Home over 13 years ago.

“My grandparents and my mum and dad and uncles and aunties [have] always [been] very encouraging about giving to people who don’t have much,” Reshmi explains. “They [Reshmi’s parents] were telling us the story one day [about the orphanage]. I just thought, ‘Wow. These kids have so little and we have so much’.”

From one selfless act, Reshmi’s giving spirit has spread like wildfire. Her principal at Pacific Hills Christian School in Sydney heard about her generosity towards Sri Lankan orphans and put a plan into action.

Seven students from the school, including Reshmi and her two siblings, Dilara, 16, and Enosh, 7, spent two weeks on a mission trip to Sri Lanka last month, along with two Pacific Hills school teachers and Reshmi’s mum, Sharmila.

“We really feel that it’s a great privilege that The Salvation Army [allowed] us to come and serve with them,” says mission team leader and biblical studies teacher Juliana Harmeling.

“Our school really strongly believes in mission ... to help and serve others is something we want to instil in our students.”

Pacific Hills Christian School in Dural, north- west of Sydney, collected more than $1200 to help finance the mission work. With the funds raised, this team was able to purchase bedding and cots for the Sri Lanka Haven and Sunshine Home. They also repainted the nursery at the orphanage and ran programs for the preschool children and the mothers.

The team also purchased sporting equipment for a Salvation Army boys home in Sri Lanka. Along with these gifts, the mission team ran a sporting program for the boys.

The Salvation Army elder’s home was another stop for the team, where they gave out presents including toiletries. This home was the same place Reshmi’s great-grandfather had lived at before he passed away last year.

Lastly, the team visited a non-Salvation Army run school to paint a classroom.

Through all activities, the team aimed to show Christ’s love in every action, says Juliana. For Reshmi, the mission trip was an opportunity to gain a worldview perspective and make a difference in the lives of others, she says.

“We have such good schools, good education and we have amazing parents who provide this all for us. Some people just don’t and that’s really sad.

“But even by just doing this little bit we can make their day or that’s something they will remember for the rest of their lives. That’s an easy way we can make an impact in this world.”

Sharmila says she is proud of what her children have done. After establishing medical clinics while living in Sri Lanka many years ago, alongside her husband who’s a doctor, Sharmila says she is eager to pass her spirit of generosity on to her children.

“We often talk about the less fortunate we came into contact [with] when living in Sri Lanka,” says Sharmila. “That is basically what made my kids start thinking.”

Each student personally invested into the trip by paying for their expenses with the help of their parents. All funds raised through school fundraisers went towards helping Sri Lankans.

Reshmi and her family attend Blacktown Corps in western Sydney.

This article appeared in the December 2014 edition of Pipeline.

By Esther Pinn

Photo
Caption: Christmas wishes can come true – just ask young Reshmi, whose generous spirit has led to her school supporting a Sri Lankan children’s home.
Credit: Photo by Shairon Paterson.