Remembering a life well lived

We were saddened to hear of the demise of our dear friend Vijitha Fernando. A close friend and fellow traveller has departed, and I feel the loss and share the sadness with those who knew him.

My association with him goes back to the midsixties when he arrived at the port of New York on a steamer bringing him from London carrying a letter of introduction from J.R. Jayewardene. He moved in with me and our mutual friend W. Dharmawimala.

The next day I accompanied him to the Headquarters of the Chase Manhattan Bank. He went in with the letter of introduction and came out with a letter of appointment. He worked there for several years before he joined the World Bank in Washington D.C. There he met Ambassador Sarala Fernando, who was at the time a junior diplomat at the Sri Lanka Embassy to the United States, and in due course, married her and settled down in Washington.

Throughout his stay in the United States, he was intimately involved in Sri Lankan societies both in New York and Washington D.C. in their social activities, as well as fundraising for projects in Sri Lanka.

On his retirement, he moved back to his ancestral home in Mount Lavinia with a team of Dobermans who were his best friends. Once Sarala retired, he moved to their residence on her ancestral property on Horton Place. He returned to his previous love of swimming and continued to take an active role in the Sri Lanka National Swimming Association. At the time, he was also a columnist and sportswriter of the Daily Mirror reporting on the Olympic Games.

Buddha said that death is the inescapable destiny of all creatures and that, given its inevitability, one has no cause to grieve. As such, condolences are in order with the sincere hope that his family and friends will have the courage not to mourn but to celebrate his life, friendship, service to the community and his humanity.

May his Samsaric journey be a brief one!