APPRECIATIONS

Matilda Boston Mama:

Memories that linger

Matilda Boston Mama was the eldest offspring of Mr and Mrs J F A Fernando and the oldest of the “Fernando girls” of Mary’s Road, Bambalapitiya. She was educated at Good Shepherd Convent, Kotahena and prior to her marriage was a teacher of Holy Family Convent, Bambalapitiya. She was raised in a family of nine children. She was affectionately referred to as Vika.

The dear old home in Mary’s Road was constantly alive with activity - a veritable bees’ hive of comings and goings - as relatives, friends and whoever was a family member’s current admirer, packed the living room in the evenings. The walls vibrated with the sound of laughter and the chatter and banter of young women, who to the admiring eyes of my younger sister and myself, seemed always to be dressed in the very height of fashion. They shared with one another - their joys and sorrows, their clothes and friends - and were not averse to acquiring a brother’s t-shirt and very enterprisingly transforming it into a stylish and eye-catching tie-and-dye creation that made heads turn.

My mother became acquainted with young Matilda Fernando when both girls were in their teens. She remembered walking by the railway tracks that ran from her home in Kinross Avenue, along the beach, to Mary’s road, where she met the oldest Fernando. That first meeting birthed a friendship with “Mattie” that lasted over half a century and remained imperishable, though the tides of time carried the two women to different continents and back again.

My mother’s sisters and brothers became her “annahs” and “akkas” and to all of us cousins, she was Aunty Mattie: our aunty Mattie. She was embraced as a close relative: a member of our clan - and none of us youngsters really knew how or why!

I was looking through some old photographs some months back and a faded colour picture transported me back to a moment that remains imprinted on my mind.

A young, joyful Aunty Mattie standing laughing over her beloved Xaviour who was bending over a cake and blowing out birthday candles, as confetti from a popped balloon floated down on him. There, by her side, was myself, frozen in time as a cropped-haired six-year-old, and my precocious little sister with her dancing mischievous eyes.

Aunty Mattie married Collin, a fine gentleman who loved her dearly. He looked on her family as his own, and fitted into it just as well as the test who had joined the family. Aunty Mattie and Uncle Collin then moved to England and lived a happy life together.

She spent her last years in England. Though a progressive downward spiral in her health plagued her with constant pain and affected her vision and ability to walk, she remained joyful and positive and the throbbing vibrant youthful ring in her voice and her deep faith in her God, never wavered or waned.

One of the nicest gifts that life blessed me with recently, was the night I spent under Aunty Mattie’s roof, two summers ago. My heart felt as if a robotic hand was crushing it when my eyes beheld what the ravages of time and sickness had etched on my darling Aunty Mattie. Her deepest joy was that “now I have met Romesh and the twins.”

The last time I spoke to my aunty Mattie was early in December 2010. She talked longingly about heaven and I knew in my heart, that she was ready to go home. I am a grateful cancer survivor and her words still ring in my ears: “when we meet in heaven, my Nalo” (that’s what she called me) - “I’ll be able to walk and your body will be whole once more!”

Dearest Aunty Mattie, we will meet again one day - we will run and prance, skip and dance together in a beautiful place where the grass is always green and the streams run clear and cool. There will be no pain, sadness or tears there - my body will be whole and you will not need your walker.

We will be young again - and we will rejoice forever in the presence of our Master and Lord.

I love you, darling Aunty Mattie. You will always linger and smile in the sweet secret place of my memories.

Sonali Sinnatamby
Richmond Hill, Canada

Don Gunapala Senadhipathy:

Exemplary engineer

D G Senadhipathy an engineer of great ability, administrator par excellence and a decent human being passed away on July 31, 2009.

He was born on August 23, 1933. Having commenced his education in a rural background at Batagama Sinhala Church School, he later joined De Mazenod College, Kandana, passed his SSC obtaining a first division pass with four distinctions and exemption from London Matriculation Examination at the age of 15. In 1951 he entered the Faculty of Engineering, Ceylon University winning the entrance scholarship in Engineering. At University he represented the Ceylon University against India in Bangalore and in Kandy at the inter university meets in 1952 and 1953. He was in addition the Sports Secretary of the Faculty.

Having completed his university education Senadhipathy joined the Department of Government Electrical Undertakings in 1955 as an Assistant Engineer. Being promoted to the positions in-charge of buildings and constructions he was later appointed Area Engineer Negombo and Kandy. Later, he served as the assistant to the Commercial Manager and Commercial Manager covering the entire island. He was appointed Assistant Secretary (power) at the Power Ministry carrying the additional responsibility of Assistant Secretary (Power) in the Public Service Commission. This experience and knowledge made him an automatic choice to be a member of the first Board of Directors of the CEB. This background also helped him to function as the Secretary to the Board of Directors from 1970 to 1975. Following these appointments he was appointed the Chief Administrative Officer, Deputy General Manager (Admin) Additional GM (Planning) Additional GM (Hq) and Additional GM (Projects) before being appointed Deputy Chairman in 1992 and Chairman from 1993 to 1994. He is credited with an invaluable and memorable service to the CEB prior to reaching the pinnacle of his profession step by step.

All the employees of the CEB and those outside know that he was an exemplary engineer who was never accused of any wrong doing. He served as the President of the CEB Welfare Society for over 20 years.

Senadhipathy was an energetic engineer and a humble human being. He was a good hearted man who never sacrificed his principles and a good administrator who reached the top due to his own hard work and abilities.

The construction of the shrine room and the Saman Devala at Moussakele was possible due to his efforts as the Coordinating Officer with the ministry on this project.

These two places of worship could be seen today at the foot of the track leading to Sri Pada creating a grand entrance.

He is remembered in his native village of Dagonna for building a Chaitya at the village temple which was a long felt need of the Buddhist public of the area.

After his retirement from 1995 to 1999 Senadhipathy was Director of the Alternate Energy Division of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

He was a past president of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka, a past president of the Energy Managers Association of Sri Lanka and a past Board Member of the Natural Resources, Energy and Science Authority of Sri Lanka.

May he attain the Supreme Bliss of Nirvana.

Ruban WICKRAMAARACHCHI

Prof Nandadasa Kodagoda:

Man with a big heart

Fourteen years have elapsed since our grandfather passed away,’ yet we have fragrant memories of him. We remember playing Robin Hood till the late hours of the night pretending to be great warriors. We remember his love for animals, our backyard was full of birds, squirrels, dogs, tortoises, rabbits and even a cow a one stage. He used his passion for music to teach us about the world through music and lyrics. We remember how his eyes welled with tears when injections were administered and remember waiting anxiously till he returned from overseas so that he could sneak us a piece of chocolate, to see a smile on our faces.

This is the story of our grandfather, Muththa to us, known to the world as Professor Nandadasa Kodagoda and seen through the eyes of his grandchildren.

Our grandfather was born on October 31, 1929 and bred in the village of Ahangama. He received initial education at a Buddhist temple school in the village, Mahinda College in Galle and later during the war at Nalanda Vidyalaya, Colombo. Throughout his years of schooling, he developed an exemplary command for his mother tongue Sinhala, which to this day lives on through his publications.

He was also a great believer in his religion, Buddhism, where he spread his inherent compassion and solicitude to people around him.

He entered the Medical College and after many years of hard work and commitment, he joined the Faculty of Medicine as a senior lecturer in Forensic Medicine in 1961.

We remember watching him on television, hearing him on the radio and seeing him receiving many awards.

But, we were too young to realize that he was actually busy imprinting his knowledge and spreading his passion for medicine throughout the nation.

Our grandfather was a man with a big heart. We did not know him as the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, or the Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo. We knew him as the man who hugged us when we were sad, the man who taught us about compassion and kindness to animals and people alike. The man who inspired us to do what we loved and taught us to be proud of who we turned out to be today.

Although we were very young when he passed away, we still have the fondest memories of him and that would never fade memories that remind us to be better people and make him proud of our achievements and moreover, the challenges we face. We are good citizens today because of his guidance, discipline, confidence and unconditional love.

To us, Muththa was not just a great man; he was a legend.

Ravikantha Uduwaka, Chavindi Uduwaka and Thilini Kodagoda