Who do you look at in the real world and say, “That’s a hero”?
The people who devote themselves to serving humanity at the cost of being less comfortable and less protected than the rest of us. They are policemen, firemen and those who bring to the world’s attention things that are critical to the world’s health and well-being.
Chandra was the chief executive officer of Ranweli Holiday Village. He also worked for many years for the Child Protection Society of Sri Lanka. His sudden passing away will be felt deeply by all who knew him well. He touched the lives of many, some unknown to us. It is only now that they talk about how kind and helpful Chandra was.
Born and bred in the southern town of Ambalangoda, Chandra was proud of his Sinhala Buddhist heritage. After completing his secondary schooling in Sri Lanka, he proceeded to the University of Benares, in India. On returning to Sri Lanka, he joined the Department of Inland Revenue, where his colleagues continue to speak glowingly of his impeccable integrity, his hallmark quality. We were blessed to know such a man, when our families were joined together with the marriage of his daughter Shayanika to our younger son, Shanil. Chandra’s happiness was complete when the couple was blessed with baby Saranya a few months ago.
The “wind beneath his wings” was his devoted wife, Shirlene. He would not have attained such heights – in his career and in eco-tourism – without her strength, understanding and courageous support.
We carry with us our friends even after they have gone away. That is their immortality. Not a day passes that my husband Cyril and I do not think of Chandra, and the many things he said to us, sometimes in jest, sometimes in all seriousness. We still reflect on what he said regarding deeper issues. In today’s world, people think lightly of valued ideals in their desire to establish their own concept of life, which is not actuated by the highest motives. They are thinking of short-term gain, not of long-term benefits – for themselves and their country.
Chandra was a man with deep motivation, a purpose in life, a clear direction and an overpowering conviction that there would be a reward at the end of his life. His work at Ranweli Holiday Village, his contribution to eco-tourism, and his 42 years of devoted service to the Child Protection Society of Sri Lanka, shows how passionate he was to see world conditions improve.
May he rest in peace.
Marie Alles Fernando
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