Bill Ray - Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

Bill Ray, a friend of PP Jimmy Carroll, spoke to RCS about his life time passion, elephants. With the aid of photographs and video clips Bill told us how his life time passion, not shared by his wife, had developed over the years. He has always wanted to be close to the animals, to stroke and bathe them. Whilst searching the internet he came across a web-site for an elephant orphanage in Sri Lanka, the Pinnawala Orphanage. From there his passionate dream become a reality and he decided to visit the orphanage and take his granddaughter with him. The orphanage was founded in 1975 and has developed since; now they take all elephants including the lame, injured and the retired workers. Last year there were 78 being cared for including a 75 year old blinded by ivory hunters and another which lost a leg after treading on a land mine. The centre is supported by charitable payments and a contribution from the government

Bill has been visiting as a volunteer on an annual basis and has “progressed” from his first job as a “shoveller out” of the quarters to helping bathe the elephants in the river, a job he loves. He explained that the herd is divided into two groups and each has a twice daily walk through one of the main streets, preceded by a siren to warn unsuspecting tourists, to the river for bathing and play.

Some of the working elephants have to earn their keep by transporting food and other commodities around and they are the ones that also act as people carriers. They don’t all stay in the orphanage; there is a nearby transit park where some may go as a prelude to going back in the wild where it is not unknown for ex-residents to mate and become parents. The issue are then wild elephants in their own right. Other elephants will go to temples where they are used in ceremonial duties including the eight hour parade in Candy. Here they carry large battery packs and their heads and bodies are lit up by a variety of light bulbs.

President Christine Folley thanked Bill Ray for his interesting talk and presented him with a cheque for his supported charity.