Saturday, May 31, 2014

Unity Camp



It gives me immense pleasure to pen this article as a proud participant of Unity Camp. My first experience as a participant on Unity Camp was in December 2010. Thirty students from Uduvil Girls’ College went for a three day unity camp in Colombo organized by the Unity Mission. It was an exciting experience for all the girls and teachers who accompanied us. As soon as we reached Colombo we were welcomed by a team from Unity Mission and were taken to Bishop’s College. After the breakfast we were taken to Wesley College where we were briefed on the programme and introduced to participants from all over Sri Lanka.

On the first day the campers were taken on a tour of the city of Colombo. On the second day we were divided into groups and each group was assigned a specific task such as poster making and jewellery making to name a few. Our team was tasked with jewellery making and we made lovely chains and bracelets using beads and stones provided by the Unity Mission. After we finished, all of our hand made products were exhibited beautifully. That evening we were taken to Ladies’ College, Colombo, where each school performed a short programme. We sang Michael Jackson’s famous song ‘Heal the World’, which was very well received by our audience who gave us loud applause and enjoyed in the song. We had a lovely time that evening witnessing the performances of other participants as well.

On the final day we were taken to Zoo and then to ‘Snow World’. It was a really fantastic experience for us to dance amidst the snow and we had so much fun. When the time came to say good bye to our new friends we were very sad. The Unity Camp was truly a wonderful experience filled with laughter fun and joy.
Again in 2012 clouds lifted for us to travel to Kandy for another wonderful Unity Camp. We started our journey on Monday, 26th October, and travelled in a bus with students from several other schools. As always the journey was a lot of fun. We reached Trinity College at about 6 pm, by which time the programme had already begun. After many speeches by the dignitaries, we were divided into groups comprising children from different ethnicities, cultures and religions. I was appointed the group leader of Group No. 14 and was sad to see that none of my friends were in my group. I introduced myself to my group members and then we listened to the instructions given by the Organizing Committee.

After all the formalities the girls were taken to Mowbrey College. Each group was assigned a room, but none of us stayed in the assigned rooms as we all wanted to be with our friends who were in different groups. The next morning we were taken to Trinity College. We sat with our groups and listened to speeches delivered by several guest speakers. After lunch there was a fun filled sports session. We took part in the Tug – O – War and our team made it to the Semi Finals. In the evening the premises of Trinity College were filled with music. After the end of the day’s programme we were taken back to Mowbrey College.

On the third day we got into our groups and headed off to Trinity College once again. It was on this day that all the competitions were held. I took part in the English Oratory Competition and was selected for the finals where I was placed 2nd Runner Up. Poster making competitions and Logo competitions also took place and we made ‘love spoons’ using paper and string. All these groups had to come up with plays related to the theme ‘The Power of One’. Our group acted and sang Michael Jackson’s ‘Heal the World’. We were thrilled when we were selected for the finals! It was amazing to witness the talents of all the students from different schools. When the results were finally announced, our team was placed forth overall and we were given books and certificates.

 The programme ended at around midnight and we were taken back to Mowbrey College to sleep, although my friend stayed up taking photographs for quite some time!

The next day was our last day at the Unity Camp. Unity Mission team thanked all the participants and we took lots of photographs and bade our new friends goodbye.

Meeting students from all over Sri Lanka and witnessing all of their different talents and abilities was wonderful, and getting to share it with my school friends and teachers made it all the more special. The unity Camp experience was truly amazing and it is one that I will cherish for a long time to come.

© Saambavi Sivaji