APPRECIATIONS
View(s):It’s hard to say farewell to such a mentor and maternal figure
Lilamani Haththotuwegama
Influencing generations of young people in the arts, languages, literature, theatre and humanities at Musaeus College, Devi Balika Vidyalaya, Stafford International School, Colombo International School and others, Lilamani Haththotuwegama, beloved sister of late Dr Gamini Haththtotuwegama (educator, thespian, playwright, director, pioneer of street theatre in Sri Lanka) passed away on August 28 at her residence in Athurugiriya.
Some of our collective memory of Mrs. Haththotuwegama began at Musaeus College during A/Ls in 1999. A group of 10 to 15 of us sat nervously in her English Literature class, not knowing what to expect. We were trying to find the best subject fit after completing our O/L exams the previous year. We eventually became a group of six and an extension of Miss’s life.
We began to affectionately refer to Mrs. Haththotuwegama as Mrs. H. As our little community of arts and theatre students grew from different batches and subject streams, many of her students later went on to refer to her as Mrs. H as well. The first impressions of Mrs. H were unique to each of us but what stood out was that she had high standards for her students, she was regal in her presence in the classroom and expected the best outcomes and commitments as a teacher.
We delivered. Musaeus College won the Inter-school Shakespeare Drama Competition Trophy in 2000 with rave reviews, during its inaugural participation, first in the history of the school, by a crew of girls led by Mrs. H. It was then, that Musaeus firmly established itself as a strong contender in the inter-school drama competition space, which was long crowned by a handful of well-respected Colombo based schools. Musaeus would become the runners up in 2001. Mrs. H saw the hidden potential and coached the students to make the impossible possible, ripple effects of which influenced them later in life as well.
She passionately advocated for a greater space and representation for the Arts and Humanities students in and outside of the school. She also built a creative community for young girls to thrive in, showcase their leadership and creative skills and make lifelong connections with one another. In the same spirit, her students became her girls, her family. She was always proud of all her students past and present and spoke highly of them often, gently encouraging them to stay connected despite their lives taking different pathways.
Under Mrs. H’s mentorship as teacher-in-charge, students would also go on to organize the annual English Day celebrations led by students in the Arts stream in 2000-2001. The event was organized by the Senior Literary, Music and Dance (LMD) Society of Musaeus College made up of students from multi-disciplinary streams. It was a space where drama, music, dance, theatre, creative drawing and so much more, came to life through student-led activities and teamwork. Concurrently, the school’s English newspaper, the Musaeus Miscellany, took on the same conceptual direction, becoming a fantastic creative outlet for students to share their skills outside of their mainstream subject areas.
Mrs. H advocated for greater diversity of student representation with more Arts students leading in these creative spaces. As a direct influence of these initiatives, many of the students would later go on to study and shine in major disciplines at tertiary level and beyond.
For her English students, she instilled a passion for the written word, the ability to know the difference between prose and poetry, how to spell and pronounce colloquial correctly (sadly, we still make mistakes!) and made the Bard’s sonnets less intimidating. She made us fall in love with Mr. Darcy, Sidney Carton and Heathcliff and look up to heroines, rebels and female writers with stars in our eyes. She made us drive hard truths home (inside joke) and made our time on stage an everlasting fun memory. We sang everything from Heal the World to the Blues in her little classroom which thankfully was noise proof for a good reason.
With her, we watched Grusha Vashnadze cross the string bridge in the Sinhala production of the Caucasian Chalk Circle. We sang songs from theatre productions and old films on road trips. We have spent countless hours watching Sinhala and English (local) theatre productions, famous musicals and films. We read books – debating, analysing and discussing our views. She kept us on our toes even many years after we left school. We would deep dive into a fascinating world of literary analyses, ideologies, counter debates and she taught us to look at our world critically but compassionately and humanely. Her intellect was sharp, and she made sure ours was just as sharp.
With her husband beside her, we would discuss Dawkins, Chomsky and ponder on philosophies and ideologies of the great thinkers of the world. It was a world full of knowledge and wonder.
During our giggly moments, we watched boy schools storm our school during the big match season from the classroom windows. She walked in and we froze expecting a scolding. She took it in her stride, giggled with us and steered our attention gently to our lessons. She knew how to manage a group of teenagers.
She taught us how to share the stage respectfully with other schools especially during drama competitions, festivals and rehearsals. As the teacher-in-charge, she made sure her students were taken good care of, fed, always rested and safe. She advocated fiercely and passionately for us. Because of her tenacity and strength, she ensured that the drama students had unwavering support inside and outside of the school wherever we went and made stage performances one of the most anticipated events of the school calendar year.
Through it all, Mrs. H taught us to step outside of our comfort zones! When she set the bar high for us to jump, we were learning how to do the same for ourselves. That was what she established for the school as well.
Her commitments and duties went far beyond her role as the A/L English Language, Literature and Drama teacher of Musaeus College. Her commitment, tenacity, perseverance and undaunted strength in teaching never once wavered even when she faced challenges and vulnerabilities with her own health. Her students were everything to her. Her higher calling as an educator came above all else.
She taught until her final resting moments. The battle was fierce, but she held her head high, her dignity shining through, her strength of mind and heart firm. This was the final lesson she left behind for all of us, her girls, her students and her world.
How do you say farewell to such a mentor and a maternal figure? On behalf of her students at Musaeus College, whose spirits she nurtured, we say, thank you dearest Miss and rest peacefully. Your mission in life is complete and it is time that we let you go gently, with love, as you move on your own journey towards blessed nirvana.
In the words of Mark Twain,
“Warm summer sun, shine kindly here,
Warm southern wind, blow softly here,
Green sod above, lie light, lie light.
Good night, dear heart,
Good night, good night”
We respectfully invite all those who knew Mrs. Lilamani Haththotuwegama, Dr Gamini Haththotuwegama, and their nearest and dearest to celebrate their memory, legacy and contribution to local arts and theatre with fondness, happiness and compassion.
- The Arts, Drama and English students of
Musaeus College, batch of 2001
A man of many talents, brilliant batchmate and friend
DR. REX CLEMENTS
Sept. 8, 2023 was a very sad day for the 1964-68 batch of the Faculty of Agriculture of the then University of Ceylon, Peradeniya, as that was the day on which Dr. Rex Clements, our batchmate and friend passed away in Australia owing to a lung infection he was suffering from, for some time.
Rex was born on April 2, 1945 at Moray Group, Maskeliya to Victor and Stella Clements, and had his entire primary and secondary education at Christian College, Kotte. He entered the then University of Ceylon, Peradeniya to pursue a degree in Agriculture and was one of the 23 of the batch of 1964-68 to join the Faculty of Science, for the General Science Qualifying (GSQ) course, in order to continue onward to the Faculty of Agriculture the following year, for the undergraduate course in agriculture.
I thought of penning this appreciation in memory of Rex on behalf of our batch, with whom he was regularly in touch via whatsapp and email. He also attended a few of our get-togethers when he was around. Rex was a very friendly, jovial, carefree and down to earth character, who was a thorough gentleman.
He loved music and sports very much and at the same time was academically brilliant, which is a rare combination. As the brightest spark among our group, he topped the batch scoring a record 13 distinctions (out of 14) and ended up with a first class, then a very rare feat in the Faculty of Agriculture.
Soon after the results were out in late 1968, Rex was appointed as an Assistant Lecturer in Crop Science in the Faculty Agriculture (along with our batch-mate Noble Jayasuriya, who got a second upper).
In 1970 Rex proceeded to the United Kingdom to read for his Ph.D at the University of Reading, Berkshire, in his chosen field of Agronomy and Crop Science with emphasis on Crop Physiology. (Noble too joined him there and read for his Ph.D in Animal Physiology).
Rex returned in 1974 and continued as a Senior Lecturer in Crop Science to both undergraduate and postgraduate students at the Faculty of Agriculture till 1982 and in the intervening period, in 1980, he joined the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Los Banos, Philippines, as a Post Doctoral Research Fellow and continued his cherished research activities in rice-based cropping systems. It was understood that this in fact was in preference to a postdoctoral offer he received from Lincoln College, New Zealand.
After his return in March 1982, from this research stint at IRRI, which Rex loved very much, he was appointed as the Head of the Department of Crop Science of the Faculty of Agriculture where he continued till 1986. He was a brilliant teacher who was always very friendly with the students and liked very much for his exemplary teaching style. Rex had a unique way of using the blackboard and students admired his way of teaching and his pleasing manner.
The adventurous and travel crazy man that he was, after serving the Faculty of Agriculture for 18 long years, Rex said goodbye and joined the University of South Pacific, Alafua Campus, Western Samoa in 1986, as Head of the Department of Crop Science. He continued there till 1989, by which time his focus changed to Australia, where in 1989, he found a fresh billet as a Senior Lecturer at the Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture of the Glenormiston Campus, which was taken over by the University of Melbourne in 1991. Rex continued working there till about 2012.
From 2014 onward, he, started working as a Consultant/Independent Contractor for South West TAFE, one of the largest regional training providers in Victoria, Australia, ideally located in Warrnambool, where Rex had made his “home sweet home” and resided with his everloving family. He continued his work there, till illness got the better of him.
As an undergrad at Peradeniya, Rex was an accomplished musician, the vocalist and guitarist of the batch and a key figure in the three-man band (from our batch) named the ‘Agricolas’ along with Noble and Piya/Piyadasa. They were often invited to the Halls of Residence for their annual socials. The organizers provided a sumptuous dinner and the band played popular English and Sinhala songs, especially local oldies, keeping the crowds happy.
Rex was also a talented badminton player who played for the Peradeniya University in 1967 and 1968, obtaining University colours.
All of us from the batch of 64-68 sorely miss Rex. We could not physically attend the funeral service of our dear friend which was held on September 18, 2023, at Warrnamboo.
Rex is survived by his beloved wife Jenny, son Jeremy, daughter Romina and two adorable grand kids, plus his siblings who live in South India.
May the soul of our dear Rex rest with God Almighty.
Bedgar Perera on behalf of the Peradeniya University Agriculture batch of 1964-68
Aiya, you were my rock and best friend
Damian Kulatunga
It is three months since my beloved brother Damian passed away and it brings back wonderful memories of my childhood with our brothers and sisters in our ancestral home in Talangama. It was a ‘must’ that we say our night prayers together and then sit at the table for dinner where we have a good discussion with fun and laughter.
My brother Damian was very protective of me since I was the youngest and mischievous one in the family. I always sit and reminisce about the beautiful times we spent together- he was everything to me, my rock and my best friend. Dear Aiya, I will never forget how you used to come to Police Park and wait patiently till I finished my sports practices to take me home. The first pair of spikes I had was a gift from him on my birthday.
He was fond of dancing and very often took me along with him. My father used to call him ‘the Midnight Man’ as he used to go out dancing and return late and my poor mother had to bear the brunt of it. We enjoyed every bit of our family life inspite of my father being very strict with us.
When I took part in the Veterans Athletic Meet in Melbourne in 1987, he also took part in the walking race. It was a very interesting and enjoyable trip we took together, visiting our friends in Brisbane and Sydney.
He was a devoted husband to his wife Kamal and a loving father.
He took part in motor races and his favourite event was the Mahagastota Hill Climb — he won it twice. He was also President of the Borella Lions Club and was involved in a lot of social activities.
Dear Aiya, there isn’t a single day that passes without you being in my thoughts and prayers. You have left behind golden memories and silver tears.
Rest in peace in the arms of Jesus.
Your loving sister Marie (Marie Doratiyawa)
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