Shiranee Pararajasingham’s colleagues call her the soul and engine of Ashurst’s pro bono legal practice, where she has worked as a Practice Executive for more than 34 years.
Her quest to help extends beyond her job. Shiranee has spent every Saturday of the school term for the past 18 years teaching English at the Sudanese Australian Integrated Learning program and is now a coordinator. She was instrumental in expanding this program to Sri Lankan Tamil refugees and creating a tutoring program for children.
On top of this, Shiranee provides cultural, emotional and practical support for new migrants, who often struggle with culture shock, trauma and financial stress.
As a member of organising committees of the Sydney Tamil Christian Fellowship and Australian Medical Aid Foundation, she’s also involved with fundraising efforts through her church, professional and personal networks for various charities in the North and East of Sri Lanka, and advocates for refugee rights in her personal capacity and as a member of Grandmothers Against Detention.