The 14th Installation Ceremony

Folks… we did it! We held a phenomenal Installation Ceremony to welcome the new committee in style. The date was the 19^th of September and the place was the New Arts Theater, Faculty of Arts, University of Colombo. While the rain was committed to act in opposing forces, RotaractArts was committed to powering through… and so it began! So, let us tell you all about it.

We chose purple as the theme color and while the girls were draped in beautiful sarees, the boys were in tuxedos… it was quite the show! The event was compered by Rtr. Vibhavee Sarathchandra and Rtr. Barani Imalsha, who did a spectacular job leading the event. We started things off right around 6.45 pm by welcoming our most beloved guests, following which we proceeded to light the oil lamp and get on with the Rotaract formalities. The welcome address was given by our lovely project chairs, Rtr. Hasini Perera and Rtr. Mandeera Premarathne. The next event was the presentation of the secretary’s report for the years 2022- 2023, which of course was done by our much-beloved past secretary, Rtr. Tharushika Peelikumbura. Rtr. Gethmi Adikari, our immediate past president, took the stage next for the address by the president of 2022- 2023. We then moved on to the presentation of service letters where we commended the service of our members.

Our co-vice president took up the task of introducing our president Rtr. Jehan De Silva, upon which he was collared. He then took the stage for a few minutes! The task of introducing our board of directors and the executive committee was next, where each of them were introduced and welcomed on stage. Our District Rotaract Representative, Rtr. Sathma Jayasinghe took the stage next, where she shared her words of wisdom with us.

We then made time for a bit of entertainment where our very talented members took the stage with melodies and harmonies that we can only explain as honey to your ears. It was now time to hear from our chief guest for the day, Rtn. Delan Silva following which the guest of honor, Ms. Shehara Gamage took the stage to share her thoughts with us! Tokens of appreciation were then presented following which it was time for felicitations.  It was finally time to wrap up which was the task of our secretary, Rtr. Baagya Piyamudalige which she did with the presentation of the vote of thanks.

At the end of the day, what better news than food! We decided to step away from the ‘norm’ and had a spread of Sri Lankan favorites, hoppers, rotti, and wade with plain tea and jaggery, not only was it original but also rather refreshing and we will count that as a win!

So, on a parting note, we would like to thank everyone involved in making this event a grand success, it would not have been possible had it not been for our dedicated members, parents, friends, and loved ones. We hope to see you next year to welcome a new set of faces!

-Co-Editors