Indian Newslink Sept 1 2017 Digital Edition

SEPTEMBER 1, 2017
Dr N Rasalingam passes away in Auckland
Condolence Meeting on Sunday, September 3, 2017 | At 130 pm at Alexandra Park
Venkat Raman
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
Dr Nagalingam Rasalingam,
one of the most widely
respected and endeared
community leaders, whose
contributions for the betterment of
refugees is legendary, passed away
on Saturday, August 26, 2017 at his
residence in St Johns.
The end came at 630 am after a
prolonged illness. He was 81 years old
and left behind his wife Rasamalar, their
daughter Rosena Sammi, a Barrister
& Solicitor, (who lives in New York
with her husband Parmajeet and their
daughters Zaira and Saffiya) and their
son Dr Ravi, a Cardiologist (who lives
in Boston, USA with his wife Parul and
their son Roshan and daughters Saheli
and Kalyani).
Dr Rasalingam’s cremation will take
place as a private, family ceremony after
a condolence meeting, due to be held on
Sunday, September 3, 2017 at 130 pm at
Dr N Rasalingam
Alexandra Park, Greenlane, Auckland.
New Zealand Veteran
Dr Rasalingam and Rasamalar have
been residents of New Zealand for more
than 47 years. They arrived from their
native Sri Lanka in December 1969.
Dr Rasalingam was a General
Practitioner at Glen Innes for 42 years
before retiring in 2011. He was known
to his patients as a kind-hearted medical
practitioner with a sincere desire to see
them lead a healthy life.
Beyond his medical profession, Dr
Rasalingam was known for his community
and social work for more than 40 years.
Queen Elizabeth II made him a
Member of the New Zealand Order of
Merit (MNZM) in her New Year Honours
List in January 2000 for his services to
the ethnic and refugee communities and
the Kiwi Bank honoured him with the
‘Local Hero’s Medal,’ as a part of its New
Zealander of the Year Award in 2010.
Passion for people
In our Indian Newslink Special
Feature on ‘Sri Lankans in New Zealand’
published in September 2002, we had
said, “There is something in the man
who was drawn into public service-a
natural extension perhaps to the noble
profession of medicine which he entered
more than five decades ago following his
graduation.”
In that year, then Prime Minister Helen
Clark said, “We are proud of people like
Dr Rasalingam who have contributed a lot
to social and community welfare.”
Organisations involved
His passion for community and social
welfare made him a welcome member of
many organisations and soon their leader.
Among them were New Zealand Federation
of Ethnic Councils Inc (National
President), Medical Subcommittee of the
Councils (Chairman), Refugee Migrant
Commission (Vice-President), New
Zealand Chapter of Medical Doctors of
Asia (Vice-President), Advisory Board
for Planning of Auckland 2020 of the
City of Auckland Vision Reference Group
Communitylink
Ranchhod Foundation launches Make-A-Wish with us
Venkat Raman
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
People with terminal illnesses or
life-debilitating condition can
have a wish fulfilled through
the Ranchhod-Make-A-Wish,
launched in Auckland with Indian
Newslink.
The Charity Project is in memory
businessman, community worker and
philanthropist Raman Ranchhod, who
passed away on Tuesday, June 6, 2017
aged 79.
He was a New Zealand citizen for
about 65 years.
Commencing his working life when he
was 16 years old as fruits and vegetables
vendor in Wellington, Mr Ranchhod
launched into car business 16 years later,
and over the next 35 years, expanded
it to account for four dealerships with
rental and finance divisions in the greater
Wellington region.
Philanthropic Project
Mr Ranchhod’s son Mahesh and
daughter-in-law Tejal announced the
launch of the Ranchhod Foundation
Make-A-Wish’ at the Seventh Annual
Indian Newslink Sir Anand Satyanand
Rama (Ray) Ranchhod (18.02.1938-06.06.2107)
Lecture held on Monday, August 7, 2017
at Alexandra Park in Greenlane.
Mahesh and Tejal said that they
and their family were extremely
privileged to honour the memory of their
father through the establishment of the
Ranchhod Foundation Make-A-Wish in
conjunction with Indian Newslink.
Community Worker
“Dad was a dedicated family and
community man, who gave his time
effortlessly to help and guide those
around him. The news of his illness was
extremely hard to fathom for the family
and for the wider community at large. He
was a people’s person and the positive
Mahesh and Tejal Ranchhod announcing the launch of the Ranchhod Foundation Make-A-
Wish at the Seventh Annual Indian Newslink Sir Anand Satyanand Lecture on August 7, 2017
at Alexandra Park, Auckland Picture by Creative Eye Fotographics. Inset: Raman Ranchhod.
impact that he had on many lives, many
of which were communicated to us after
his passing, was overwhelming and
encouraging,” Mahesh said.
Tejal said described ‘Make-A-Wish’
as a family effort in the service of the
community.’
“Any person, of any age, with a
terminal or life-debilitating medical
condition, or even finding themselves
in a situation beyond their control, are
invited to apply. The Wishes received
will be evaluated by a Board on behalf
of the Ranchhod Foundation and Indian
Newslink,” she said.
Continuous initiative
According to Tejal, this would be an
ongoing initiative.
“We are positively anticipating to
present the first recipient at the Tenth
Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business
Awards Presentation Ceremony to be
held on Monday, November 27, 2017
at Sky City Convention Centre. This
would be an emotional experience, in an
environment of success and recognition
at the Awards Ceremony. Applications
are now open,” she said.
Mr Raman Ranchhod was one of the
finest human beings that the world ever
A moving farewell to man of peace and honour
Venkat Raman
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
More than 700 men and women
attended a Holy Mass and
Condolence Meeting in memory
of Wenceslaus Anthony held at Christ
the King Catholic Church in Mt Roskill
on Wednesday, August 23, 2017.
It was exactly a month (July 23, 2017)
after he passed away after losing a brief
battle for his life at Apollo Hospital in
Chennai, India. He was due to return to
New Zealand three days later after a twomonth
tour which took him to various
cities in India, Sri Lanka, Jerusalem (the
Holy Land) and Egypt.
Unique attributes
During his life as a businessman,
community worker, and a servant of the
Catholic Church, Mr Anthony touched
the hearts of thousands of men, women
and children and eventually resided in
them. He was known for his friendly and
helpful disposition and people reached
out to him for comfort, solace and peace
of mind. Each of them received these
and were grateful to him for his selfless
involvement with them.
Auckland Bishop Patrick Dunn (Centre) leading the Holy Mass
Sneha, Susan and Akash at the Service (Pictures by Creative Eye Fotographics
These qualities were highlighted at
the Holy Mass and Condolence Meeting.
It was a deeply emotional engagement
as Readings from the Holy Bible, songs
rendered by Jeffery Nathan and his
Church Choir and speeches by people
were heard.
Mr Anthony left behind his wife Susan,
daughter Sneha and son Akash who, like
us in the Indian Newslink family are
trying hard to come to terms with the
cruelty of reality.
Susan, whose loss, after 34 years of
married life, was the greatest, was in silent
prayer throughout the evening, while
Sneha, who was sobbing incessantly,
managed to deliver her speech and render
a song in memory of her father, who
always addressed her as, ‘My Doll.’
Akash was more composed, and his
speech, punctuated with sentiments and
subtle humour, was endearing.
Papal Honour, an opportunity
Among the most satisfying things that
people do is to ensure that honour and
citation are bestowed upon people who
deserve by people who are in respectable
positions on the world stage. Queen
Elizabeth honoured Mr Anthony in 2015
by admitting him to the Membership
of the New Zealand Order of Merit
(MNZM) and Pope Francis this year by
approving the nomination of Mr Anthony
to receive the ‘Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice,’
the highest civilian medal awarded by the
Roman Catholic Church in recognition of
his services to the Church.
Personal gratification
Nominating Mr Anthony for the Papal
Honour lifted my spirits.
On June 16, 2016, I wrote to Bishop
Patrick Dunn, justifying my proposal for
21
(Member), Auckland Ethnic Council, The
Refugee Council and Auckland Refugees
as Survivors (RAS) Centre.
He was also a member of the New
Zealand Tamil Society and the Glen Innes
Business Association for several years.
Globetrotter and Speaker
Dr Rasalingam was the preferred
speaker in several international conferences,
seminars and discussions on medical,
human rights, refugees, rehabilitation,
social and cultural issues on both sides of
the Tasman and Asia and his views are
weighed with respect and enthusiasm.
A witness to the plight of thousands of
Sri Lankans who were forced to flee their
homeland in the wake of civil unrest and
brutality, he understood the need for their
meaningful rehabilitation in countries
around the world.
He was instrumental in the establishment
of the first centre for Rehabilitation
of Refugees in New Zealand.
had – gentle, understanding, compassionate,
ready-to-help anyone at any time and
most important of all, a bearer of goodwill
and love towards all.
Ranchhod Foundation
“The Ranchhod Foundation was
established in 2011 with the vision of
aiding in the betterment of humankind.
We, as a family, have undertaken many
charitable projects in New Zealand and
overseas through the Foundation, including
health and eye camps, donations of crucial
medical equipment, providing shelter
to elderly abuse victims and providing
free-of-charge medical services through our
Laduben Ranchhod Hospital in Navsari,
India,” Mahesh and Tejal said.
Among the other beneficiaries are the
Starship Children’s Hospital, At Heart
New Zealand, CBM Foundation of New
Zealand, a rural hospital in Tanzania and a
number of villages in India.
Recognising his great work to the
community, Queen Elizabeth II decorated
him with a Queen’s Service Medal in 2015
recognising his services to the community.
Make-A-Wish Application Form can be
downloaded from www.ranchhodfoundation.com
and www.indiannewslink.
co.nz
a ‘Papal Award’ to Mr Anthony.
After several paragraphs that substantiated
my reasoning, I said, “The services of
Mr Anthony to the Roman Catholic Church
and the young Catholics have been a
source of inspiration to all of us, including
those of other faiths. He considers himself
a ‘Servant of Servants,’ in the true Christian
spirit. He is the Chairperson of the Divine
Retreat Centre Movement in New Zealand
and Advisor to the Vailankanni Committee
to celebrate the feast of the Birthday of
Mother Mary (on September 8) and Director
of Conquest Club, which aims to shape
the character and personality of young boys
in the 8-14 age group.”
Eight months later Bishop Dunn called
to share the good news that Pope Francis
had agreed to honour Mr Anthony but none
of us knew that the Felicitation Ceremony
that we had organised on May 21 at St
Mary’s Church in Avondale would be his
last public appearance.
No one would be able to fill the void of
Mr Anthony’s absence in some of our lives.
We will certainly meet him some day, but
until then, it would be memories and tears.