Sad news of Navam Chinniah passing away.
Navam is the 50th in our batch to say goodbye. He passed away peacefully on Thursday, August 3rd.
The following note was derived from the Obituary Notice on the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home website. It was sent to me by Srainee (Bunter) Dias, who was the first to inform me.
Navam will be remembered as one of the brightest students in our Batch. He always had a very assured and confident manner, and a warm smile. He emigrated to the USA in 1968 and enjoyed a very successful career.
Obituary of Anton N. Chinniah, MD (From Abriola Parkview Funeral Home in Trumbull, CT)
Anton Chinniah, MD, age 80, of Trumbull, beloved
husband of Sriani Selviah Chinniah, passed away peacefully on Thursday, August
3, 2023 with his loving family by his side. Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, he was
a son of the late Wilfred and Grace Jayamaha Chinniah.
Doctor Chinniah immigrated to the United States
in June 1968, starting his life in Bridgeport, CT and settling in Trumbull, CT.
He had a successful career in medicine spanning over 50 years at Bridgeport
Hospital. He had his own private practice in Bridgeport where he treated each
patient with love and compassion, always listening and giving them proper
treatment and sound advice. He worked for his community not just for himself.
He instilled these values in his children.
 |
| Navam with Indra Anandasabathy at a Party in CT, Oct 2016 |
In addition to his beloved wife of 55 years, Sriani, survivors include his three loving daughters and their families.
I had no contact with Navam after he left Sri Lanka. He is Number 50 in our roll call for the Final event. The others in 2023 are:- No:48. Cecil Saverimuttu 26.1.2023, and No:49,. J. C. Fernando 18.04.2023
ReplyDeleteI did not meet him after graduation
ReplyDeleteDuring the ongoing Final MBBS examination, he had come to know that I was doing well in the clinicals, he congratulated me for beating him
May he Rest In Peace
Sanath Lamabadusuriya
ReplyDeleteSo sad to hear . Navam was Dr Wilson's Intern and I was Dr E V Pieris's. We shared the female ward in NHSL. I used to enjoy our chats while writing up the BHT and Diagnosis Cards . Never met him after that.
ReplyDeleteMay his soul Rest in Peace
Suri
Very sad to hear that Navam passed away.Bright and studious.Pleasant looking and always smartly dressed.I new him quite well,we were in the same Sig group along with Siri Cassim,Chittha Thiiagarajah, Collure,Chandrasiri and lady Chellappah..Navam was good company and could relate a story well.
ReplyDeleteHe celebrated his first class in the Third MB with a dinner for about fifty batch mates at a Chinese restaurant.
I last met him several years ago in London at Kumar Bala's daughters wedding.We had a very long and most enjoyable chat recalling our student days.A few days later I received an E mail from his wife, saying that during the return flight home,he went on and on talking about med school days.
Condolences to the family.
Hi Bora, I am going to do my best to attend the calling hours at the funeral home on Wednesday. I will convey all of the condolences from his batch mates to his wife Sriani and his daughters. You probably spent a lot of time with Navam during our Medical College days. It is too bad that he didn't make the effort to stay in touch with his buddies from Medical College.
DeleteHi Srianee
DeleteThank you very much for trying to convey the condolences.I too was not good at keeping in touch.When I met Anton Ambrose in London last year,I gathered that that he was in regular contact with Navam.They were class mates at St Joseph's.
Navam was the batch mate who lived closest to me (about an hour away) but in spite of that I saw very little of him. In the past I would occasionally bumped into him at a friend's home or at some large gathering in New York City. Whenever I saw him he always greeted me warmly and we had friendly conversations. I don't believe he attended any of our reunions, although he did attend some of the SLMANA dinner dances in NYC. I got the news through other friends who saw him more often that he was having some major health problems recently. I believe his end was peaceful. May he Rest in Peace.
ReplyDeleteIt is with much sadness I received the news about Navam. Being at my end of the alphabet, as Bora has said, we did much of the academic stuff together and sat closer in the lecture halls. Tall, dark and handsome Navam stood out in a crowd. With his elegant and confident posture we all took notice of him. I well remember he wore brilliant white shirts and trousers very well ironed with knife edge creases.
ReplyDeleteNavam was intelligent and his academic record in the faculty shows that he had a fine memory and a brilliant mind. At the ward classes and clinical appointments he presented cases with confidence, certainty and courage. Despite his many achievements he kept his feet on the ground and took part in the fun and laughter that was endemic in the faculty. He was a regular at the Mens Common Room taking part in the endless frivolous faculty gossip over a cup of tea, as we all did. He was a competitive and regular table tennis player in the common room..
Sirry Cassim was Navam’s study partner. They were an unlikely ‘couple’ Sirry being rather quiet and Navam quite the opposite. This association worked wonders for them both.
We said our final goodbyes in June 1967 at the famous green foyer of the faculty. I never met him again. I have often asked Indra Anandasabapathy how Navam was getting on. They met up occasionally at parties and SL events and assumed all was well.
I send my condolences to Navam’s family at this time of grief..
May his Soul Rest in Peace.
FROM RAJAN RATNESER
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear of the passing of Navam. I met him a few years ago in New York at Sri Lanka medical Association dinner dance. He looked healthy and was the same Navam as in the Medical school days. Surprised with the sad news.
In another note Suri, I too was posted to Ernie Peiris but decided to go to Malaysia for the internship. Was sought of guilty that I did not let Ernie know because he was the advisor to the SCM and when I was president met with him a number of times. He really was a very devout Christian.
Yes he was Rajan and a great role model. He used to remember patent's names and address each by their name, remember ex ward patients, sit down at the desk after ward rounds and personally write an analysis of every ECG in the relavant BHT, made us reply any letters to the GP 's who referred the patient , . He was so punctual you could almost tell the time by the arrival of his two tone Oxford Cambridge by his ward every morning!
DeleteAbove comment was by Suri
DeleteThis is Suri again.
DeleteI remember a very humorous incident about Navam in 1968.
He was following his boss Dr Wilson on a ward round ( I was examining a patient on E V Pieris's side of the ward) Wilson was breezing from bed to bed auscultating the patient's chests without placing the ear pieces of the steth in his ears !
Navam very hesitantly told him "Sir , you haven't put in your ear pieces of your stethoscope " Wilson glared at him and remarked "young man what my ears hear today , your ears won't hear in a hundred years !!!
Sorry to hear Navam’s death.
ReplyDeleteMay his soul RIP .
Mahes Nadarajah
nee SigharayerFROM MAHESWARY NADARAJAH
FROM SUSHEILA
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about Nava’s death
May his soul rest in peace
FROM DHUSHY VEDAVANAM
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that Navam Chinnish one of your dear batchmates has passed away.
I did not know him personally but know of him through friends.
My deepest sympathies to his dear wife Sriani and family.
May his good soul rest in eternal peace.
Dhushy
To the family- please accept our deepest sympathies.
ReplyDeleteIndra Anandasabapathy
Very sad to hear about Navam Chinniah passing away. My deepest sympathy to his wife and family. Shanthy
ReplyDeleteThe picture above with Navam and me was taken a few years ago at a party in Danbury , Connecticut, at a party given by Satchi ( MSU ) and Rajee. They were junior to us in Med. school. Danbury is about an hour and half north of New York city.
ReplyDeleteRajje Samuels brother Bala is a very good friend of mine, domiciled in Canada. They lived down 42nd Lane, Wellawatte , where I also grew up.
ReplyDeleteI am publishing this tribute on behalf of Sirry Cassim. He has been a life long friend of Navam Chinniah. I recall in the faculty they were inseparable. They studied together and were also neighbours in Kollupitiya. Sirry now lives in Toronto, Canada
ReplyDelete............................................
He was a brilliant student. Navam came 1st in the island in the university entrance examination. At the faculty he obtained 1st class at 2nd and third MB and a 2nd in the final exam. He won medals in Anatomy and Pharmacology. He had an excellent memory. He told me that he dreams the notes of the day. Next morning he checks and all is correct.
In the USA he specialised in Internal Medicine. He also trained medical students.
May he Rest in Peace
From Him are we and to Him we return (Al Quran)
I knew Navam from as a classmate at St. Joseph’s college. He was a very studious bright student and for most he kept his composure and extremely polite. Since we graduated from medical school, I have not seen him. However, my brother lived close to him in Connecticut and got most of the information from him. May his soul Rest In Peace.
ReplyDeleteBala , TX
Thank you all for the beautiful, heartfelt comments about our darling dad and “papa/Papum”. Can’t wait to read these to my son, who is his youngest grandchild and is eager to hear from people who knew dad before he came to America. We are lost without him and your lovely memories and comments gave us joy.
ReplyDeleteHi Kishani, I'm glad you were able to access out blog and see all these messages from your dad's 'batch mates.' It was lovely to have met you and your sisters as well as the rest of the family last week. Take care, Aunty Srianee
DeleteThanks , Srianee for passing on the information.
DeleteDear Kishani, It was heart warming to see your comment in our Blog. I am so pleased that you and your family gained some solace reading about the high esteem we had for your Dad. May he Rest in Peace
ReplyDelete