Sugumaran Thambyayah
An appreciation
“Kumaran” as he was affectionately called has been a ‘life-long friend’- sincere, dependable, loveable, affectionate and devoted Christian throughout his life. He is the eldest son of late Daniel Selvaratnam and late Blossom Thambyayah, and a dearly loved brother of Arunkumar, Vinothkumar, Jeyakumar and Kumuthini, now living in Canada and USA with their families. He married Thilaka Sinnathamby in the year 1990, and blessed with two precious daughters in Rachael and Sharon. He was educated at St John’s College, Jaffna, and then moved to Colombo where he became actively involved in the CSI Colombo Church at Wellawatta over many years. He worked as the Director for Pan-Am Foods Ltd. His talents in cricket and music, sense of humour, and his genuine friendship kept many of us very close to him.
Passion for Music-
His passion for music and singing with a guitar in hand, accompanied with western and eastern musical instruments played by experts in their own field, attracted us in variety of contexts- Group singing, Choir practices, Youth gatherings, train and bus travels, Christmas carol party rounds, Church services, church picnics and the like- both formal and informal occasions. Kumaran was a ‘leader’ in all of these, as he knew what he played on his guitar; for he knew old Tamil film songs, Pop songs in Sinhala and Tamil and English, Lyrics and Hymns from the school and church ‘song books’ including ‘light songs.’
CSI Hostel-
Kumaran was residing at the CSI Hostel at 39 Fussels Lane, Wellawatta, the residence of the Priest-in-Charge, which became vacant during 1977 until 1983. The assistant pastor, (kutty pothagar) was meant to play the role of being a ‘warden’ resident with them. Fellow hostellers of different age experienced a deep sense of friendship; among them were late V Navaratnam (Assistant Commissioner, Department of Census and Statistics), late Mr C D Wijayaratnam (Williams Biscuit Company Ltd.), late Mr Sutha Thevasakayam (Lipton Tea), his brother Mr Mano Thevasakayam (Shipping Company), M Vijayakulendran, Roy Wijayaratnam, Ranjit Wijayaratnam, Brian Simon Rasiah (Accounting student), Kumaran Thambyayah and self- altogether ten of us, kept the place vibrant and active. We still hold fond memories of each one of them- a fun-loving bunch kept the Christian presence of the place- Parsonage and CSI Chapel.
Kumaran in Colombo-
Friends and families kept in touch with him and his family on every visit from overseas. He treated our friendship with same affection. We experienced his generous hospitality at reunion gathering parties at outdoor venues, group singing and reminiscing the past and updating on people. Thilaka always joined such occasions with no excuse, and she shared Kumaran’s passion with great appreciation till the end. The weddings of his two daughters were held on a grabd scale, a responsibility he discharged as a loving Dad.
Cyber Christmas Carol Service-
The architects of the CSI Cyber Carol Singing were Kumaran Thambyayah (Colombo) and Ponnarasu Thurairatnam (Canada), and Arjuna Backus and Dharma Ariaratnam (Melbourne), Pirian Aseervatham (Sydney), David Thambiratnam (Brisbane), while many individuals from the UK joined every year. It was an event, we always looked forward to be part of, but now Pirian and Kumaran have joined the ‘eternal choir’ in heaven. As we all pass in age, we still cherish the gatherings and singing our favourite carols in Tamil. It has gone on for six years so far, and we hope we can join in for another two or three years.
Goodbye good friend!
Rest peacefully and see you on the other shore!
For many of us that spent the formative years of our lives in Sri Lanka we made life-long friends, who never went far away from us spiritually. We connected through various channels and kept ourselves abreast with the happenings in our lives.
Kumaran was one of us that made a huge contribution to our fellowship with a deep passion within him to connect people. His simplicity masked his talents as a leader, businessman, musician and cricketer. His humour with a carefree attitude hid his Christ like love as a devoted husband, an adoring father and an invaluable member of the extended family.
Thank you, Kumaran for the wonderful memories you gave us and we are deeply saddened that we were not there during your last moments. Yet, we have your email and WhatsApp messages to cherish forever!
May God be with Thilaka and all the family as they come to terms with his loss! May the fragrance of his memories be of some comfort!
Ponnarasu(Ponna) and Premarajah (Prem)
[On behalf of all his life-long Friends]
