Ceylon Society holds postponed AGM with great success

CSA’s Annual General Meeting, postponed since early 2020 by the Covid -19 pandemic, finally took place at the Pennant Hills Community Centre on 28 February. This meeting was under a pall because we had the very sad news that Sunil de Silva, a former President of CSA and current Committee Member, passed away on the morning of the meeting. A minute’s silence was observed as a tribute to Sunil prior to commencement.

              Careful planning by CSA’s President Pauline Gunewardene to ensure all the pandemic restrictions were met, proved most successful. With considerable assistance from the Committee, the meeting with a permissible maximum of 70 members and guests attending, the meeting went on without a hitch.

              The committee members arrived at the venue at 4.00 pm with Social Convenor Amal Wahab making sure with precision that everyone attending was duly sanitised and registered upon entry with proper distancing and health and safety requirements adhered to at all times.

              At 5.30 pm the postponed 2021 AGM was held for members only where the presentation of Accounts and the Election of Office Bearers took place. The office Bearers for 2021 are: Pauline Gunewardene (President), Dr Srilal Fernando (Vice-President), Sunimal Fernando (Secretary), Deepak Pritamdas (Treasurer & Public Officer), Harry de Sayrah (Public Relations), Doug Jones (Editor/Librarian) and Amal Wahab

(Social Convenor).

              A word thanks go to our ladies, including Chrisanthie Fernando, Rosani Wahab, Virasmie Perera, Malini Arumugam, who, with beaming smiles as always, made sure that guests were hosted to short eats, tea and coffee during brief recess prior to the General Meeting.

              The speaker on the night was Mr Prianga de Fonseka who made an engaging presentation which he claimed was his view on how Sri Lankan Architecture and Engineering in building has evolved through history to the present era. On completing his Degree in Architecture at the UTS in 1975, Prianga worked for several companies in the country as Design Architect, Senior Design Architect and Principal Design Architect/Design Director with commissions in designing hotels, high rise apartment developments and the adoptive reuse of historic buildings. (The full text of Prianga’s talk titled History and Development of Architecture in Sri Lanka will be published in the May 2021 issue of The Ceylankan.

               Recording proceedings was Hyacinth Jones behind the camera.

More photos are found on eLanka Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=eLanka.com.au&set=a.4125487284150639