Exemplary colleague, dear friend and confidante

I never thought that I would have to see my dearest friend Preethika depart this world before me, let alone pen an appreciation of her. Professor Preethika Angunawela was an exemplary academic in the University of Colombo. Always calm and collected with a charming smile and kind words to greet all strata of staff and students, immaculately dressed, she conducted herself with dignity and decorum. She served the Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo for nearly four decades until she recently retired somewhat prematurely.

She and I were in parallel classes at Visakha Vidyalaya, Bambalapitiya during our Advance Level days, entered the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo in 1974 and graduated in 1979 together.

Our friendship grew exponentially when she joined the academic staff of the Faculty of Medicine as a probationary lecturer in Pathology after a brief stint in the Cardiology Unit. I was already a probationary lecturer in Physiology. We had a mini batch of “Colombo Medicos 1974” among the academics serving the Colombo Medical Faculty. Jennifer Perera, the first to join, Saroj Jayasinghe, Manouri Sannasgala who later migrated, late Tissa Naotunna and Ranjan Dias were the others. In 2005, I moved out temporarily and in 2010 permanently, from the Medical Faculty to the Institute of Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IBMBB), another establishment within the University of Colombo.

Preethika and I were partners in academic research; what began at the Faculty of Medicine continued to IBMBB. The most significant among them was our work on Molecular Genetics of Cancer. Both of us were co-investigators in the first molecular genetics studies on breast cancer in Sri Lanka initiated by Prof. Eric Karunanayake, and these programmes conducted in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute, (now Apeksha Hospital), Maharagama with Preethika providing expertise in Pathology resulted in three PhDs at the IBMBB. The last PhD viva was online a few months ago and that is where I saw Preethika last, COVID19 having curtailed our in-person interactions.

Our students who worked in these projects always speak about Preethika’s kindness, humbleness and humane qualities besides her expertise in Pathology and are in disbelief at her sudden death. It was to her expertise that most of us turned when we wanted an opinion of a pathologist for us or our dear ones. Though she could have had a very lucrative practice she drew limits, her family was the most important factor for her. She was not willing to sacrifice high quality family time in the quest for a lucrative practice and well balanced her professional career and family life.

As a teacher to generations of medical students from the mid1980s to her recent retirement, she taught and trained thousands of medical students. She was a much loved teacher in the Faculty, very approachable and many students turned to her to find solutions for their problems be it academic or personal. She actively supported student activities especially those of a charitable nature. She herself in her own quiet way helped remote villages and assisted student bodies, friends and colleagues in such efforts. She gave her staff, colleagues and friends an opportunity to participate in her religious and charitable work which included building a chaithya at a temple in a remote village. Though she was a practising Buddhist her husband Brian and the two sons were devout Catholics. If one wants to see religious harmony one should look at their lives. They respected each other’s faith, gave each other space, time and support to practise the faith one truly believed. Her house was equally open to the Faculty’s Christmas Carol group and Buddhist brotherhood’s Bhakthi Geetha group.

When she became a senior pathologist she trained hundreds of budding pathologists. She would have peeped down the microscope long hours diagnosing various diseases including cancer, providing timely and accurate diagnosis to thousand of patients and training young pathologists to do the same in the years to come. She would offer her comforting words and deeds to those diagnosed with serious illnesses to get through the process. It was ironic for her to be struck by the deadly cancer, like her predecessor late Professor Daphne Attygalle.

Preethika was not just a batchmate, academic colleague and friend to me. She was also a confidante. Without any hesitation I could turn to her anytime for her opinion and advice, be it a professional or a personal issue. It was from her that I learned to exert tolerance and patience in the face of adversity. The student in me has not yet achieved the level of these qualities she displayed even before she embarked on meditation seriously. She did not have an iota of professional jealousy. She rejoiced in the success of others. She had an abundance of karuna, muditha, maithree and upeksha. During the last few years she was deeply drawn to religion. She read widely and followed meditation, sil programmes and other religious activities under the guidance of Most Venerable Mirisse Dhammika Thera. Our conversations during the last few years often revolved around the Dhamma.

She led a very balanced life. She enjoyed her walking, swimming and music and practised Dhamma seriously and truly. Her loving husband Brian and doting sons Ranil and Manoj and later their families were her strength. At her cremation it moved many to tears to see her daughters-in-law carrying her grandchildren to pay the last respects to their doting grandmother.

People like Preethika are very rare today. The world lost a human being with humane qualities. We lost a trustworthy friend, a “Kalyana Mithra”, the family lost a loving, devoted wife, mother, mother-in-law and grandma. Our only consolation is that her departure from this world was without suffering or if there was any suffering, it was of extremely short duration. Even with the knowledge of Dhamma it is difficult to fathom why she had to go so soon.

May all the ‘kusal’ she accrued in this birth and along the way in Sansara and our ‘punyanumodana’ for her, make Preethika’s journey in Sansara short. May she attain blissful Nibbana. Until then may she be a “Kalyana Mithra” to us again and again.

May her family have the strength to cope with their immense grief and take comfort in knowing that their loved one was cherished among friends, colleagues, staff and students.

Kamani Tennekoon