ARF (Anthony Roland Fairlye) was, for two consecutive years, the lightweight boxing champion in the Medical College, University of Ceylon. He was also a cross-country runner. At Medical College he made life-long friends such as the athlete Paediatrician Dr. H. M. P. Perera and the eminent Obstetrician and Gynaecologist Dr. A. G. Muththuthamby. After graduating from Medical College, he served the government for a few years. His appointment in the Panadura Hospital as the District Medical Officer turned a new page in his life as he subsequently resigned from government service and started a private medical practice in Panadura.

He coped with complicated emergency medical conditions single-handedly; these cases would normally be referred to hospitals but time was of the utmost importance in life and death situations. Whenever he had to send patients to Colombo for hospital treatment, he would even test the engine of the hiring car in order to ensure that the patient reached the hospital.

He was a dedicated General Practitioner and was on-call for his patients 24 hours of the day. People across the entire social spectrum benefited from his services as he kept the cost of his services and medicines to a minimum. He gifted the medicines and his services to the impoverished and to the clergy. His patients came from all walks of life and not surprisingly, my family received a personal service whenever we required it.

Though he was new to Panadura, his generosity and warm-hearted nature soon won him many close friends — Cecil Caldera, Kumara Munasinghe, Hector Weerasinghe, Henry Karunaratne, Cyril Jansz, Bernard Fernando, Felix Perera, Asoka Jayatilleke. His friends and their children recall the trips on board the ‘Golden Eagle’ cruising on the Bolgoda Lake while the Sky Larks (the talented de Silva brothers who hailed from Sri Sumangala Mawatha in Panadura) provided the musical melodies befitting such memorable occasions.

He was a close friend of Professor Christopher Canagaratna, General Surgeon in the Panadura Hospital, who turned chauffer on my wedding day and drove the bride and her father to the Galle Face Hotel. Police officials who served in Panadura — Wilfred Seneviratne, Justin Upasena and V. T. Dickman — were also his good friends.

He was the President of the Lions Club, Panadura, for a while, but his contribution to humanity was more direct. Even after he obtained his registration in England and was eligible to practice medicine in the United Kingdom, he returned to his native Lanka to continue his medical services to the community where he was active in practice until his death on 19th December 1986. He is fondly remembered by his beloved wife (Pearl) and loving children (Charmaine, Shihan and Resanth) on his 15th death anniversary. We benefited from his broad-mindedness and generosity. He led me to think in a holistic manner. This has undoubtedly influenced my recent academic publications on the socio-culture of Sri Lanka.

May He Attain Nibbana
Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya