Is there more to a business than making profit? | Over a Cuppa with The World’s Most Experienced Teamaker – Part 3
With Merrill J. Fernando
About this episode
In this episode of Over a Cuppa on Tea Radio, Tea Grower and Dilmah CEO, Dilhan C. Fernando shares a cuppa and a conversation with his father on the purpose beyond profit of Dilmah Tea; the purpose of changing lives. Merrill J. Fernando affirms that he wants to go down in history as the man who devoted his life to make the world a better place.
You’re listening to Over a Cuppa with The World’s Most Experienced Teamaker – Part 3
Transcript
This transcript was created automatically from the audio and checked for names. Minor errors may remain.
Over the years, Dilmah CEO, Dilhan C. Fernando, has interviewed personalities from various professional backgrounds. However, he had the rare honor of interviewing a very special guest, his father. Here are some of the topics they discussed exclusively on Tea Radio. Great man of God, a couple of months ago, Pastor Dishan Wickramaratne, the son of the amazing Pastor Colton, said the purpose of acquiring wealth must be to give it away. So can it be said of Dilmah in your vision that the tea and Dilmah are not the point, but it is of a higher purpose, a higher purpose being what we are surrounded with today in changing the lives of so many.
I would be and am known as the man who is trying to resurrect cosy-lotty business. That is not how I want to be remembered as a man who devoted his wealth to making our world a better place in every possible way within his resources. So as I walked down streets, there are children who come to me and said, So and so far, my parents and I am able to go to school and say again, so many people around the country say, I am a doctor today because of the help you gave me. The Charitable Foundation has a scheme which provides all the school gear, clothes, books, pencils and scholarships to children of all our employees in the group companies and in our plantations.
And today, tea pickers children, workers children in our factory are doctors, lawyers, judges and other professionals. It is chief magistrate in Jaffna. Where would these people get this opportunity? Every one of them come here to see me and fall at my feet and thank me for giving them an opportunity which they would never have had otherwise. I always tell them, don't fall at my feet. Stand up and thank me but fall at the feet of God Almighty. Who has made it possible to help you? So visiting these centers and seeing the benefits to very helpless people makes me so happy and my children and my families and grandchildren will also, I am confident, follow my example.
There you have it, my father Dilmah founder, Merrill J. Fernando.
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