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Passing of Our Esteemed Colleague, Diana Cunningham
It is with deep sadness that Samutthãna announces the passing away of Diana Cunningham MBE in UK on the 30th of April, after a brief illness. An expert by experience, she has worked with UK Sri Lanka Trauma Group(UK-SLTG) and Samutthãna for over seven years on service user empowerment in Sri Lanka. A pioneer in establishing Recovery Colleges in the UK, she has been working with Samutthãna to establish this in Sri Lanka. She made many visits to Sri Lanka on this project and was working with Samutthãna as recently as February 2024. She was an inspirational speaker and encouraged service users, to fight stigma and become visible and to organise themselves to help themselves and others. Her life story was extraordinary and an inspiration to those living with mental illness. She was passionate and worked tirelessly. She believed wholeheartedly in the power of education, peer support, and community to transform lives and create lasting change. Diana had established a reputation in Sri Lanka, and her workshops at Samutthãna and NIMH were packed to capacity. With the help of UK-SLTG and Samutthãna she formed a small working group to establish a Recovery College in Sri Lanka and we hope this group will take her dream forward and add to her legacy. She will be deeply missed by all who had the privilege of knowing her, and her memory will forever be cherished within our Samutthãna Team. We offer our deepest sympathies to her family and loved ones.
May she rest in peace.
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