Story:

A sample of the projects include:

In Sri Lanka:

1) Local partner and women’s NGO Agromart has distributed materials and equipment to 270 people:

• Mrs. Kanthilatha, an Agromart member, is slowly rebuilding her once successful dressmaking business with the help of a replacement sewing machine, cloth, thread and an iron. “Life is returning to normal now,” she says.
• Members, N. Nishantha (a lantern maker), Malika (a tailor), and G. W. Kamalasiri (a coire rope maker) are all working again as a result of the generous support provided by DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary.
• Bimalka Chandiwha, a lace worker, lost her home and her showroom during the tsunami. While she also received replacement equipment, she says, “The counseling I received was perhaps even more valuable.”

2) 360 clients of the Arthcharya Foundation have been given small grants to restart their businesses, train community members on trauma counseling and expand the market for coire rope production.

3) The Gokulam-Bhaktivedanta Children’s Home in Colombo, Sri Lanka has begun construction of an extra building for their 105 children, many who lost both parents during the tsunami.

In Indonesia:

1) Local partner and NGO Saleum is also helping residents restore their livelihoods.

• Usman Ubit, a fisher who was in the water when the earthquake hit and saw the ocean turn dry. “I thought it was that the end of the word,” he says. With a new shrimp net, he can earn a living again.
• Tgk Husen was one of many people given a small grant and a bicycle with baskets to resume work as a trader. “The help I’ve received has given me hope that I can rise to new heights,” he gratefully says.

2) Many women in the Pidie district (a good number of whom are widows) have received the materials they need to start making Melinjo chips which are sold throughout the region.

3) In one small village, Mohammed Ali Hussein lost his only source of income when almost all the fishing boats were destroyed when the tsunami hit. Thanks to Piper Rudnick’s support, 16 boats (for 4 people each) have been repaired and are back in business.

4) ASEPHI, a crafts NGO and another local partner is building a new training center, exhibition hall and café to help displaced women generate income for themselves and their children.