Leading figures in the British Sri Lankan community were recognised for their hard work at the annual BRISLA Awards earlier this month. The annual celebration, in its third year was sponsored by Specsavers and Sri Lankan Airlines and held at the historical Lord’s Cricket Ground. We had a great night proudly celebrating the achievements of British Sri Lankans in fields ranging from business through to healthcare.
The Awards
The BRISLA Awards were conceived to celebrate the positive contributions British Sri Lankans make to communities and to raise general awareness of the importance of social integration. It’s an annual celebration where we can reflect on some amazing achievements, in addition to raising funds for Equality-based Community Support And Training (ECSAT).
Nominees are strong each year, but this time around we had some particularly notable entries and the winners have made tangible contributions to their communities.
We saw some outstanding examples this year, that have really captured the hearts and minds of the general public.
Guests of Honour
Illustrious guests in attendance on the night included H.R.H. Princess Katarina, Ms. Mei Sim Lim OBE DL, Representative Deputy Lieutenant for London Borough of Brent, H.E. Ms. Amari Wijewardene, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the UK. Professor Karol Sikora, Dean of the Medical Faculty – University of Buckingham, Lady Eliana Houstoun-Boswall, Founder of Hampton Court House, Raymond Whitaker and Editor of Asian Affairs and former England cricketer Geoff Miller OBE.
Proceedings were led by Master of Ceremonies, Mark Jones.
The Winners
Last year’s entries and winners were all exceptional, and displayed the excellent work of some of the best people and companies from both the UK and Sri Lanka.
This year was no exception and we would like to thank all of our entrants and congratulate our winners. As per previous years, there were six award categories to enter. Here are our 2017 BRISLA Award winners.
- Mr. Ratheesan Yoganathan – Entrepreneur of the Year
- Professor Mudiyanse Dissanayake – Outstanding Achievement in the Arts
- Professor Hilali Noordeen – Outstanding Achievement in Healthcare
- Mr. Arunasalam Thirukeetheeswaran – Local Community Hero of the Year
- Venerable Bogoda Seelawimala – Outstanding Contribution to Interfaith
- Mr. Chandra Monerawela – Lifetime Achievement Award category
Again, congratulations to our winners – all very well deserved. Thank you to all of the entrants and our guests who attended. Now the work begins all over again for next year!
A special thank you to Prasad Fernando for providing the photographs used in this post.
