Our Core Team

Dr Lionel Bopage is the convenor of the SaveADream team. He is a retired chartered professional engineer with a long career in the public service and the private sector in Australia and Sri Lanka. Lionel is a social activist, who is passionate about the issues affecting communities, particularly in Sri Lanka and Australia. He has convened several successful collaborative efforts during times of disaster in Victoria and Sri Lanka. Such efforts led to positive outcomes and earned much credibility, as several associations and individuals from Victoria and New South Wales came together to work as a united community representing the pluralist nature of the expatriate community.

Mohan Seneviratne was Vice President of Sri Lanka Association NSW 2020-2021 committee and previously was Vice President of Sinhalese Cultural Forum of NSW 2004- 2005. He played a major role in collecting funds for the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004. He is a Chemical  Engineer and  was before his retirement last worked the International Finance Corporation (IFC) the largest multilateral Development Finance Institution  of the World Bank Group.

Haran Ramachandran is a member of the Rotary Club of The Hills-Kellyville in Rotary District 9685.  He is the club's International and Foundation Chair.  Haran has been a member of the District Rotary Foundation committee since 2019 and currently serves as the District Foundation Grants Chair.
Haran is involved in significant humanitarian projects thru The Rotary Foundation Global Grant projects in Australia, India, and Sri Lanka.  He has received the Avenues of Service Award and Rotary Foundation District Service Award for his active participation in international service thru The Rotary Foundation.
Haran has managed projects in India, Viet Nam and Sri Lanka through Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS) projects as the project manager.

Nisha Berthon-Jones is a Clinical Research Manager, with work spanning academic, investigator-initiated, collaborative, and commercial clinical research. 

Graduating from the University of Technology, Sydney she pursued a Masters in Medical Science, Drug Development at UNSW. Currently working at the Australasian Gastro-Intestinal Trials Group (AGITG), a multidisciplinary, collaborative group focused on investigator-initiated GI cancer clinical trials she is well versed in the art of working with a diverse group of stakeholders.

Her particular academic interests in infectious diseases and pediatric research makes her an invaluable member of the Save A Dream team as she co-ordinates and prioritizes the neonatal needs to be procured by Save A Dream

Dr Damitha de Mel has a Doctorate in Biomedical Research at Deakin University Melbourne. Damitha is also a social activist and a company director. He is the current President of Lankan Fest Inc. in Victoria that organizes the biggest annual Sri Lankan cultural festival in Melbourne since 2015. Damitha plays a leadership role in Victoria in every collective effort launched to assist those in need of help during the times of disaster in Victoria and Sri Lanka. He strongly believes by working together Sri Lankan Australians could become more successful.

Ms Nalika Padmasena is a solicitor and community activist based in Sydney. Nalika is President of the Sri Lanka Australia Women’s Network Inc. (SLAWN) and Director of the Positive Vibes Foundation. During her term as President, the Sri Lanka Association of New South Wales Inc. (SLANSW) joined the collective efforts launched to assist those in need of help during times of disaster in NSW, Victoria and Sri Lanka. She won the NSW Premier’s Harmony Award for her work among culturally diverse women in exposing domestic and family violence.

Mahinda Gunewardena had a diverse career spanning Marine Engineering, Hotel Design & Engineering and Software Development. His career as a senior executive in the last two decades has permitted him to live and work in Asia, Middle East, China and the South Pacific Islands thus bring a diverse range of experiences and abilities to the Save A Dream team. 

Now retired Mahinda spends his time contributing to non-profit organizations in a volunteer capacity with development projects in QLD. His community work has received federal recognition. He also spends his time with projects in Sri Lanka that seek to make a difference to those most in need. For this reason Save a Dream is very near and dear to him.

Ms Sithy Marikar is a leading member of the SaveADream Team. She is a community activist and a trade union leader in Victoria. Sithy represents the United Sri Lankan Muslim Association of Australia Inc (USMAA) as its Trustee and Chair of USMAA Seniors. Sithy has played a leadership role in Victoria in all the collective efforts launched to assist those in need of help during times of disasters in Victoria and Sri Lanka. She is President of Monash Interfaith Gathering and Board and a member of the Jewish Christian Muslim Association (JCMA) and the Victorian Immigration Refugee Women’s Coalition.

Mangala is an Australian qualified Chartered Accountant (CA Australia and New Zealand), who has been working in the Victorian Government for the last 20 years. He has held several senior positions in diverse industries including Banking, Manufacturing, Logistics and Prison Management. 

Mangala was a member of the Rotary Club of Brimbank Central and he has been instrumental in establishing a number of community-based organisations in Australia. He was an active member of Vic Lanka Covid Aid and Sri Lanka Covid Aid Teams.

His strength are Project Management, Administration and Financial Compliance.

Lucky (Lakshman Randeniya) is a researcher in Materials Science and Engineering. He also has expertise is Early Childhood finance and service governance and a joint owner of Being Early Education. 

He has been a very active member in Sydney community, holding several executive committee positions in non-profit organisations. He was the President of the Sinhalese Cultural forum of NSW (2004-2005) and the President of the Peradeniya University Alumni Society (2014-2016). Presently, he is the editor of the Sri Lanka Association of NSW.  He loves music, reading, and exploiting new topics in Physics.

Mr Letchumanan Murugapoopathy, a leading member of the SaveADream Team, a prominent Tamil writer, a journalist and a community worker. He won the Best Citizen Award in 2002 on Australia Day. He is the founder of Ceylon Students Educational Fund Inc., a charity that supports vulnerable students in Sri Lanka. He is also the founder of the Australian Tamil Literary and Arts Society (ATLAS). He has continually contributed to supporting those in need during any disaster. He played a leading role in making a major contribution towards the collective effort, SriLankaCovidAid, for helping frontline healthcare workers during the Covid pandemic.

Mr Ubaidur Rahmaan Mahmood is a leading member of the Save a Dream Team and President and founding member  of Austra Lanka Muslim Association Inc. (ALMA) in New South Wales. He is a Company Director, a Certified practicing Accountant  and a Registered Tax Practitioner. Under his leadership, ALMA has been working in partnership making a major contribution towards the collective through VicLankaCovidAid and SriLankaCovidAid to help those affected in NSW and Sri Lanka during the Covid pandemic.