Tharaka is a courageous 13 year old boy from northern Sri Lanka. His early years were happy ones, living with his mum, dad and older sister, although their remote village was constantly under threat from the civil war.
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Tragically, when Tharaka was just 3 years old his house was hit by mortar fire. This was the last day Tharaka would see his parents. He was blinded by shrapnel and the blast also left both his parents severely disabled, unable to work regularly to provide for their children.
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Fortunately, Tharaka was enrolled in a School for Blind Children supported by Hope for Children. At the school, children are able to take part in activities that their blindness would have otherwise made impossible.
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Tharaka can now take part in regular swimming lessons and is also able to feed his passion for music: he is fast becoming an incredible guitar player, and even sings as well.
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These simple activities – music and sport – are aspects of his childhood that were so nearly permanently taken away, but that Tharaka can now experience every day thanks to our supporters. In addition, he is also receiving the specialist education support he needs and is studying hard to develop his academic skills.
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He is now in grade 8 and dreams of a having a regular job in the future and supporting his parents.
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