To my brother, who left an imprint on our lives

My brother passed away five years ago, but still, I feel that he is living. He left behind a set of children who are like him three sons and a daughter.  Though he passed away, yet his thoughts for his kith and kin is embodied in them.  That is what should be of people, when they pass away, to leave their imprint, at least among his or her near relatives.

 My brother left a stamp on the country as well when he initiated the “School Road Safety” programme as the Senior Prefect of Kingswood College, which has many firsts in the country.  It was his innovative and it was done without any approval when he began to conduct the ‘Road Safety’ in front of the school with the “Prefects Court” helping him.  Then after a few months, the Rover Group Master Mr. Blacker, as he was also a Rover went to the Police in Kandy and obtained their approval.  This was one of the questions posed by Inspector General of Police Sir Richard Aluvihare when he questioned him at the interview. And the only question at the interview.  It was a rare occasion when an Inspector General of Police sat on a Board of interview for Sub-inspectors. Only nine were selected, the other on the Board was DIG Sydney Soyza and two other Senior Police Officers.

 Before he joined the Service yet a Senior prefect, he saved a girl who was drowning in the Mahaweli River at Getambe with one of his friends Dharmaratne, from Dharmaraja College.  They were awarded a medal from the Red Cross as a Branch of the British Red Cross as both were members of the Society.  Though he was from Kingswood, yet he had very many friends from Dharmaraja  

Both of us were together in all that we did while we were at Kingswood.   I still remember both of us going along the bund of the paddy fields with morning dew on our shoes in time to meet the former President D. B. Wijetunge, who then as a Cooperative Inspector was living in a house on the opposite hill of ours and he used to come sharp on time so that we met him at a junction of the footpath and followed him up to Kingwood. 

 To me he was a strength, he was a good orator winning the Kingwood Oratory Prize for three consecutive years.   The last book that was given to him for his Oratory Prize was the “Speech’s of Prime Minister Atlee of Britain.”  
As Senior Prefect, there were two privileges, one to sit with the Staff on stage on Prize day and the other to cane any student - which he rarely did. I met a Tutor of his Mr. Nawomane recently and remembering that he has passed away said “LB your brother was more regarded by the students than us teachers - he had a way which we could not gather.” 

 This short note embodies his talents and capabilities and he was a tower of strength.  Whenever I had penned an article, he used to telephone and ask me as to from where I got the facts and also add something he knows.  He was very vigilant of what I do, which was his practice even when we were at school.  
( L.B.Senaratne )