A Catholic man, Martin Costa, and his mission for Sri Lanka’s poor kids
Martin Costa, 72, is a former seminarian. Speaking to AsiaNews, Purnodaya's founder and chairman explained how his mission was born. “I was in the United Kingdom on a holiday, passing time in desperation over the charge of vocation, with a life and job like any other, but I would hear a voice inside of me that said, ‘Go back and do something’... It was the voice of Jesus. Therefore, I went back to Sri Lanka and began to meet these people. Today, looking back over the 20 years of this experience, I see how the small gestures of charity at the beginning prepared the fundamental work of this journey, inspired by Jesus.” That was in 1988.
At the start, Martin met these people each Sunday evening. Over time, he established a relationship of trust. He would help the sick, take part in their funerals and, in exchange, the families would welcome him into their shacks for tea. “My family and I felt lucky that we could pay them a visit and share their agony and desperation. We felt lucky as well to have been in their homes for a Christmas meal on Christmas day 1988,” he said.
Scavengers are one of Sri Lanka’s most unfortunate communities. Of Tamil origin, they are often marginalised, living on the edge of society. They do odd jobs, when they find them, and are almost all illiterate.
After two years of contacts with them, Mr Costa obtained some funds from Cafford, a British funding agency, which he invested in building a facility near Jaela, some 20 kilometres north of Colombo.
“With the Lord’s blessing, on 25 May 1991 we opened our centre and on 10 June started our first courses. In 1994, we created a full-blown education programme, from pre-schoolers to teenagers.”
The Purnodaya Centre provides after-school activities in which pupils can develop their aesthetic skills in a number of courses: music, singing, arts, dance, crafts but also general culture, hygiene, home economics, communications and human relations.
After eight years of school, the children are guided with study assistance upto General Certificate of Education Ordinary level examination (O/L). This allows them to apply for various private and public sector jobs.
Four teachers are in charge of the institute’s programmes, including a former student, Chandra, who is an assistent, and Mr Costa himself. Occasionally, local and foreign volunteers help out.
Purnodaya survives thanks to regular and occasional donations. Anyone interested in helping these children can contact Martin Costa by phone (+94 777826388), e-mail (mtcosta@sltnet.lk) or Skype (martin.costa15).
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