Appreciations
View(s):Remembering a driving force of Lanka Mahila Samiti
Ranee Herath
One year has passed since that sparkling smile and endearing voice which adorned her magnetic personality were lost to us forever. The enviable personal qualities she possessed radiated such admirable affection, kindness and generosity by which she stood out in society. The members of the Lanka Mahila Samiti (LMS) remember Ranee Herath on her first death anniversary. Large crowds, who visited her residence and the cemetery at Borella to pay their last respects to her, clearly indicated her popularity among friends and relations.
It was to fulfil her desire to be of service to the rural womenfolk of Sri Lanka that she joined the LMS in 1989 and served with dedication for 23 years until her untimely death in August 2012. She was virtually a fixture in the LMS. As President of LMS during two, three year spells, viz. 2001-2003 and 2006-2009, she steered the organisation under very difficult circumstances and managed to keep the Mahila Samiti flag flying. She was the driving force behind many fundraising projects, such as annual sales of handicrafts and locally made sweetmeats and a variety entertainment for the public at Navarangahala.
While serving as President of LMS, Ranee was elected as the AreaPresident for South and Southeast Asia of the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) – LMS being an affiliate of this world organisation. During the three-year period she served in this position, she had the opportunity to visit many projects of the ACWW in different parts of rural India and also the ACWW office in London. On her visits to foreign countries she was able to secure funds from foreign organisations for LMS projects in Sri Lanka. The nursery school at Galagodawatte for the children of tsunami victims was constructed with funds received from Belgium.
It was during Ranee’s tenure as President that the new headquarters at Malabe were constructed.
Recognising the importance of nursery education for the pre-school child, Ranee had a special place in her heart for the development and progress of nursery schools in the LMS setup. It is with a view to producing efficient, well-trained and good-natured future citizens that she set up four nursery schools under the auspices of the LMS at Netholpitiya, Malabe and Galagodawatte, the latest one at Malabe being a model – the building designed by renowned architect Ashley De Vos.
In recognition of her selfless and voluntary services to the country, the Mirigama Jana Saviya Foundation awarded her the ‘Desha Keerthi Samaja Sewa Gaurawa Sammanaya’.
There is no doubt that Ranee was immensely saddened by the death of her dear husband Cyril Herath after a brief illness. As a loving wife, she nursed him during his illness with devotion and care. Within a year of her husband’s death she fell ill and never recovered. She passed away on August 6, 2012. She is sadly missed and fondly remembered firstly by her nearest and dearest – her three sons Arjuna, Sanjaya and Dishan and daughter Priyanthika and the other relatives and friends especially those at the LMS.
Dr. Thelma Gunawardane
Sharing happy memories of a wonderful Amma
Alankarage Anna Hortentia de Zoysa
Alankarage Anna Hortentia de Zoysa nee Silva was the second daughter of the late Alankarage Anselinu Silva and the late Kodikara Aratchchige Louisa Silva of Ratmalana.
On April 13, this year, just 19 days before her 86th birthday, my mother Anna who was affectionately known as “Tansy” passed away peacefully. The day before, I had the privilege of feeding her the soup prepared personally by me. She was fortunate to receive Holy Communion and be the recipient of the Extreme Unction blessing by the parish priest on the penultimate day of her demise.
Amma, you were blessed in many ways. You were blessed with a devoted husband who despite being six years your senior, loved, cared and looked after you very well until the end. You were blessed with three children, two sons and yours truly, the youngest and only daughter, and four grandchildren–three granddaughters and one grandson.
You were lucky to be present at the marriage of two of your granddaughters. You also became a great-grandmother when your eldest granddaughter gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. Although you could not see your great-grandson who was born three days prior to your departure from this world, when informed about his birth you acknowledged his arrival with a smile.
You were also lucky to celebrate your Golden Jubilee wedding anniversary with a holy mass at St. Mary’s Church, Ratmalana, followed by a reception and also your Diamond wedding anniversary with a Holy Mass followed by a reception at my residence. You were very happy to attend your younger sister’s 75th birthday party last year and the last party you attended was the first-ever ‘Silva Family Reunion’ held at my residence in December 2012.
Going down memory lane, I remember the lovely dresses you used to stitch for me sometimes with elaborate machine embroidery. You used to take me for my elocution and piano lessons. All three of us were brought up very strictly with values inculcated in us. You were never a person to ‘spare the rod and spoil the child’ and we remember the umpteen times we had to run to our paternal grandmother for protection.
We were taught to be responsible. I still remember the advice you gave Amma, when I was about to step out of our home as a bride…..“pavulaka amma kelin inna one, ethakota thamai pavulak hedenne” that a family revolves around the mother and the mother has to stand firm and be virtuous, then only will the family flourish and be united. This sound advice still reverberates in my ears and during difficult times it has helped me overcome many obstacles. It is a fact that mothers play a pivotal role in any family.
As a grandmother you did more than your fair share of duties. Actually it was because you and Thatha were around that my brother could go overseas to work and my sister-in-law was able to work until her retirement from the bank. Both my brother and my sister-in-law are ever grateful to you for having looked after their two daughters with so much love and care. I remember the times you used to teach nursery rhymes and play indoor games with my naughty little son. My son was fortunate to have you and Thatha living next door and being a part of his happy childhood. You were also very proud of your son-in-law whom you and Thatha always acknowledged as a “son”.
The few months you and Thatha spent in Australia with my second brother and his family must have been a great experience for you as you used to reminisce about it very often. Although you were anxious to see your Podi Putha before you bid adieu, God had other plans; for at that precise time he was on a plane heading for Sri Lanka. He was inconsolable upon arrival to hear that you had passed away, Amma. Even Loku Aiya was inconsolable upon hearing of your demise. When I told him that we dressed you in one of the sarees he had gifted, he was so touched. At least you had spoken to him twice in his dreams, telling him to take care of Thatha.
Every month, Thatha’s first duty when he gets his pension is to offer Holy Mass for you on the 13th. In remembrance of the third month of your demise an alms-giving was held at the elders’ home run by the Sisters of the Poor at Maradana.
I am writing this appreciation today, since it is Thatha’s 92nd birthday. He was your devoted husband and soul-mate for 63 years. He prays for you daily and misses you dearly.
Swarnamalie Fernando nee de Zoysa
She was a legend in the field of maternal and health care
Dr. Sybil Wijesinghe
Life and death are indivisible and the moment of death is uncertain for each of us. Even so, all of us who knew Sybil and associated with her were filled with a great sense of loss when we heard that she had passed away after a brief illness. She had a vibrant personality which she retained even in her retirement, after leaving the Family Health Bureau of the Ministry of Health where she had been a Consultant for many years. All those who worked with her knew that she always upheld the highest standards of technical competence. This made her a legend in the field of maternal and health care.
All our lives are given special meaning by the unseen threads of relationships whether in our work, families or friendships. Sybil was both a working colleague and friend to me. We bonded from the moment we first met in the 1980s when I was working for UNICEF to improve the health and nutritional status of children and women. The programmes in which we worked together included maternal health, immunisation, infant and young child feeding including the promotion of breast feeding and growth monitoring. It was one of the most challenging of work environments for all of us with an intense conflict situation in the north and east as well as the south. But this did not deter us in our maternal and child mission. We all felt that we should never be deterred by these circumstances. In fact, Sri Lanka achieved universal child immunization in 1989, ahead of many countries which were in peaceful situations.
I believe that Sybil was one of those rare souls who had been born with three eyes! Insight, foresight and hindsight, all of which she used in abundance. No technical detail ever escaped her eagle eye whether in planning programmes, training health staff, monitoring or implementing activities in the field. Identifying problems and addressing issues to maintain quality assurance was Sybil’s main priority. She applied these principles particularly during our field visits. Our primary consideration was making sure that the right services were delivered to our main constituents, children and pregnant women, the most vulnerable in our population.
Sybil demanded the highest of professional standards in work performance from all the health staff we met in the field. These ranged from medical officers to public health midwives and public health nurses. Labour rooms were particularly well scrutinised as any deficiency could impact on the quality of care for both the mother and her newborn baby. She had no qualms to reduce a public health midwife or nurse to tears if she had not weighed a baby or pregnant mother accurately, filled a growth chart the right way or maintained sterile standards in a labour
Sybil’s special interest was field work as that was where the real action took place. I travelled extensively with Sybil on many visits and what we learnt was so much more important than what we read in a report or heard in a discussion in Colombo. We visited numerous MOH offices, hospitals and clinics and were able to see for ourselves the problems and issues which had to be resolved. Some we did at local level following discussions with the Regional Directors of Health and the Medical Officers of Maternal and Child Health and others we took up with the many Secretaries of Health and Directors General of Health Services with whom we worked. Because we could report experiences first hand and not from some other source, our recommendations were always received well and action was taken much to our delight and satisfaction.
Sybil always exuded a cheerfulness which radiated to all who knew her. Spending time with her was never dull or boring, with a constant chit chat along the journey. We went all over the island particularly areas affected by the conflict as we knew that children suffered most in such situations and services were often disrupted because of violence. Besides, the health staff were particularly happy to see us as not many people visited them in case they were caught in a crossfire.
I did wonder many times how Sybil would cope in retirement after leading an active working life. But, the transition to retirement was very smooth indeed. She developed closer ties with her neighbours, helping them in numerous ways, particularly related to solving their health issues. She became more spiritual, and was a regular visitor to St. Luke’s Church in Borella. She provided free services at a weekly medical clinic. She also kept close contact with her medical colleagues. All of us who received regular telephone calls from Sybil could look forward to a stimulating and delightful dialogue as she had so many opinions and whether we agreed with her or not did not really matter. The main topics were generally politics and the Health Ministry.
Sybil had another important aspect to her life. She provided loving care to her three nephews, Karvan, Ananda and Saliya as they lost their mother Surangani, Sybil’s sister when they were young, and later their father too. Surangani had specifically wanted Sybil to look after her children. Without any doubt she knew her sister’s quality and was confident that Sybil would do her very best for them until they could lead independent lives as adults.
Sybil was also a devoted daughter. Her mother lived with her until her death at the age of 104 years. Her longevity was in no small measure due to Sybil’s devotion and care. Sybil used to regularly visit her sister Rani in England but in the recent past it was Rani who came to Sri Lanka to see her. She lived with her cousin Ira which was pleasant for both of them. She had a wide circle of friends young and old, whose company she enjoyed. They in turn were always happy to meet and chat with Sybil. There is little doubt that she was a role model to all of us.
Dr. Hiranthi Wijemanne
Oh for yesteryear with you!
SYBIL ELVINA DE CHICKERA
A thousand times we missed you
A thousand times we cried,
If love could have kept you Mum
You never would have died
Things we feel most deeply
Are the hardest things to say
Dearest Ma we loved you
In our very special way
If we could have a lifetime wish
One dream that God would grant
We’d pray to Him with all our hearts
For yesteryear with you
-Lucky
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