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1. OBA AND LA SALLE SCHOOLS
The following links, are to the College web site, sister Colleges and other OBA and Sri Lankan sites dealing with education.
2. BAILA
The following links, with a ‘baila’ flavour have been provided by visitors to this web site.
3. MISCELLANEOUS
The following links, received from various visitors to this web site.
NOTE
The views expressed on this web site are not
those of the Executive Committee of
OBUK. They may be those of individual OBUK
members who are entitled to express their views
subject to editorial overview, profanity and
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UNITED KINGDOM
SAINTS' QUADRANGULAR 20/20 CRICKET TOURNAMENT 2009
Teams fielded by the OBAs of
St. Anthony's College St. Benedict's College St. Joseph's College St. Peter's College
20th August 2009
Starting at 11.00 a.m. at
Winchnore Hill Cricket Grounds
Firs Lane
N21 3ER
For further details click here
OLD BEN ECT CANDAPPA'S SON TO BE ORDAINED IN MELBOURNE
Deacon Dishan Candappa,
the son of a famous old
Ben and journalist, ECT
Candappa, has been living in
Melbourne since 1987.
He spent his early life in
Colombo where he was an old
boy of St Peters College and a
parishioner of St Lawrence's
Wellawatte.
Dishan graduated in Civil
Engineering and then obtained
a PhD from Monash University
where, amongst other things,
he represented Monash at
cricket.
After his PhD he joined the
Corpus Christi seminary in
Melbourne. Following four years
of study he was sent to the
North American College in Rome where he spent a further four years
preparing for the priesthood.
Some friends and I met Dishan at his ordination as a Deacon at St
Peters in Rome in October 2008. We were fortunate to get the general
Papal blessing and also formed part of a select crowd for the Deacon
Ordination service inside the Cathedral. It was very clear, from the
brief celebrations following the ordination, that Dishan was one of the
most popular people at the gathering.
After his ordination as a priest in Melbourne on 4 July 2009 Dishan will
be returning to Rome for further priestly studies. He will then return to
Australia to serve in the archdiocese of Melbourne Victoria.
I wish him well in his vocation.
Henry Solomon

HONORARY CONSUL GENERAL DUDLEY THAMBINAYAGAM
Dudley Thambinayagam, the
well-known Old Ben and
active promoter of the Old Bens
Movement, was appointed
Honorary Consul for the Republic
of Estonia in Sri Lanka.
The photograph shows Dudley
being presented the exequatur
by Foreign Minister Rohitha
Bogollagama at the Ministry
recently.
Eulogy on the burial of Michael Caderamanpulle - 23rd May 2009
A NOTE TO THE FERRYMAN
Take good care of this Man, my Father, while he is in your
possession. Let him rest peacefully, for he needs some sleep and
quiet. His adventures on the Blue planet were such that he rarely
contained his excitement, nor did he hide his disappointments for he
celebrated life at every instance and was ebullient and cheerful
despite its uncertainties. He buried himself by using the World and his
knowledge in an open experiment that lasted 68 years. His day
started at dawn when he asked his maker to bless him so that those
less fortunate than himself might benefit from his generosity and
concluded with an account to his closest friends of his successes and
failures.
I handover a Man of many talents and skills. While the turquoise blue
water licks the edges of your boat, and your oar strokes the heads of
fish and mermaids in this sea of a thousand oceans, I want you to
consider what I have written carefully. I have asked that the water
genies of the moon travel swiftly on a moon beam and pour out their
goblets taken from the sea of stories into his mouth. The stories will
entertain him on this long journey while Armstrong, Dizzy and Cole
play a little jazz. Do not worry about the coast ahead for a light footed
Peter Pan has assured me it is free of the Pirates , beasts and
charlatans of the like he might have met in his life. The good don't die
young. My experience tells me the unhappy and restless do. The force
of their will to be happy rings a bell in heaven and someone Big and
White or dark and deep snuffs a candle. Please convey to his maker
that of his skills that might be most of use on the other side, here are
a few.
My Father could make an awesome steak and the good Lord will find it
hilarious that the lowly crab once simmered in saffron , chilies and a
twenty other spices from the Island whence he came makes for a dish
that could start a story at lunch that could end only by dinner. If a
Piano could be tuned by a blind man then my Pops could , without ever
playing a tune. The Steinway in heaven might be a good place to start
with. Give him two pieces of metal and a nut and bolt and a jolt of
lightning and he will make you a dollar. This Man saved a million trees
with his Box of Paper that carried the charred tea leaf from its source
to a billion lips. A leopard's breath became fiercer than a Tigers snarl in
photos' I've seen him snatch. There is not a species of animal of use to
man he did not breed nor wish to; while in his garden bloomed shoots
of Orchids of such colour that even the Sun stopped and smiled. A
grasp of Math and finance that would make a Medici blush. I give you a
Man so generous of heart and spirit, that People from far and near
clasped their mouths in disbelief as to where the source of this wealth
lay? The source Mr. Ferryman lay in his knowing that in the end all he
was ever going to be, was a piece of valiant dust.
When he reaches that Marble shore and his maker takes him into his
arms , let him have a room with running water, a library of leather-
bound books and please I beg you , find the "muse" he missed on
earth, snatch her quick and let her lie with him.
As for me no amount of money and materialism that my family
unfortunately sought, can replace the love he had for me. If it is about
what really matters, I inherited the most.
Love Sherhan
OBITUARY
Alistair & Camille (neé Cramer) Gonsal remember ....
MICHAEL CADERAMANPULLE
“A warm, innovative and honourable Old Ben with great panache ........”
Michael Caderamanpulle, was
Alistair's (Alie's) classmate
at St. Benedict's College: he was
also our very dear friend; and our
friendship continued until the day
he died. He was a warm, gentle,
innovative and honourable Old
Ben with great panache who, during his lifetime,
supported many charitable
causes and individuals who were
in need of help. He never held
back in his support for others
often doing for them what he did
not do for himself.
Mike was also a loyal Old Ben and
we always reminisced about the
good old days at St. Benedict's
College and, of course, Kotahena,
our stamping ground. He often
recalled the cost to his parents
for his education - 50 cents a
week - because he, like Alie, was
the 3rd son in the family and,
therefore, entitled to discounted
school fees. He was very proud
of, and grateful for, the excellent
education he received at St
Benedict's and was always a
dedicated supporter of the
College. As a successful
businessman he employed many
Old Bens.
The wonderful stories Mike often
related about the enjoyable times
he had at St Benedict's with
teachers like Mr. Jeganathan, Mr.
Assey and, of course that
Benedictine Icon and his favourite
teacher Mr. Chapman (who in
later years always insisted that
Mike and Alie called him
"Chappie" rather than "Sir"). We
had the distinguished privilege of
accompanying "Chappie" from
Melbourne to celebrate Michael's
60th Birthday in Colombo.
Typically, and in Mike's
inimmitable style, the invitations
to his birthday celebrations
included return air tickets with
hotel accommodation.
Michael knew our families very
well. He always spoke of the
good times he spent at the
Camille's (neé Cramer) home in
Kotahena - especially the jokes
and the times when Camille's Dad
got on his Ducati to go to the
tavern or Docklands to buy a
bottle of arrack that he would
then share in a drink with the
'boys' together with a "taste" of
beef pepper steaks or stew
prepared by Camille's Mum. He
also always spoke of the good
times at Alie's home and Alie's
sister Jeanne who got the 'boys'
together to learn Christmas
carols etc., that they would sing
at Radio Ceylon or other shows in
which she was involved.
Michael owned 'Club Oceanic' in
Trincomalee in addition to several
other flourishing companies. He
had an enquiring mind and was
constantly making notes and
calculations about his next
project - the latest we were
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told was the importation of Jamnapari
goats from Australia or Malaysia.
Whether it was farming, cooking,
bottling, marketing, etc., Mike
was ALWAYS thinking of his next
big project.
Michael and Alie had much in
common with regard to their
approach to business ventures. He
was fascinated with Alie's talent
with mangled bumper bars and
the business he set up at his
workshop at the Gabba
hammering out the dents, re-
chroming and re-selling the
bumper bars as the main supplier
to all of Queensland's panel
shops.
Mike's hobbies were orchids (he
had a superb collection at his
home and was very much into
tissue culture), keeping beautiful
fish, photography, reading, music
and cooking.
He was a marvellous cook and
delighted in cooking his Sunday
lunches himself: his favourites
were prawn and crab curries. This
was the menu whenever he had
friends, particularly, when they
visited him from overseas. He
was always excited and happy to
have us cut up the ingredients
with him and he would
meticulously wash and prepare
the whole box of crabs - (enough
to feed the 5000!) with a
constant flow of recollections and
laughter from our days in
Kotahena and the excursions we
made together, particularly our
trip to Dangkotuwa with our
parents and family and when
Michael ended up falling in the
well! We will truly miss his small
talk and mimicking accents of all
languages and people!! So very
funny.
A keen photographer in College,
he took it up again in retirement.
His photographs of wildlife taken
in Yala and Bundagain are prize
photos truly worthy of exhibition.
He loved reading - and had an
impressive library, listening to
classical music and enjoying his
collection of paintings. He
supported the Arts & Music at
many institutions in Colombo.
Goodbye Michael, dear friend, we
will certainly miss you, your
stylish manner and dynamic
personality. Thanks for the
memories - your words will
always remain in our hearts.
-
"In the final analysis and by the goodness of God we are what we are"
-
and
-
"We must thank our Maker for all that we have"
How very true.
May you Rest in Peace with Our Maker, Dear Friend.
Alistair & Camille Gonsal
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OBITUARIES
Hover over name below for details

PARIS BENS
Click here for photographs received from Lucky Caldera.

SYDNEY BENS
Sydney Bens Bulletin January 2009 added.
Click here for bulletin.

WEST COAST BENS
December 2008 Bulletin published
Click here to view Bulletin

EAST COAST BENS
Bens Yuletide Bash 2008 link added.
Click here for photographs.

NEW YORK BENS AGM 2008
Click here for photographs and new Committee details

WA BENS ‘THOSAI EVENING’
Western Australia Committee receive progress update.Click here for report
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