Dear Latika,
I heard the sad news of the demise of Father James this morning and am writing to convey our condolences to you and all the family.
We knew he was seriously ill so it seems God in His mercy has called him to his eternal rest freeing him from all pain and suffering. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time especially when you do not have your children with you to comfort and sustain you.
Father James was such a good friend to us. We have known you both for many years and will never forget your joint goodness to us over the years. He was the first on the scene when my parents died within three months of each other and conducted both the funeral and memorial services. That was 1978. As you know we have kept in touch over the years, never failing to visit you whenever we came to Sri Lanka on holiday from the UK. When we celebrated Sam's 80th birthday with the family in Sri Lanka, it was Father James who took the service and we would not have had it any other way. His and your Christmas letters which we looked forward to until a few years ago brought us so much joy and hope. You were always such good friends.
We are so thankful that God gave us the opportunity to see you both when were in Sri Lanka in February. I will never forget Father James actually calling me by my name (even though it was soon forgotten) as well as the beautiful prayer he said as we were leaving. It brought tears to my eyes - reflecting on that now it seems as if he was saying farewell to us. What a blessing that we were able to see you both then.
Fr. James was and will always be a legend in more ways than we can imagine. His command of the English language, his oratory skills and most of all his beautiful spontaneous prayers will long be etched in our memories. To us as a family, both of you have been a great source of strength and support on numerable occasions. How can we ever forget such a colossus!
With our love and prayers for your health and comfort at this difficult time,
Nirmala and Sam (Williams)
Dear Latika,
I heard the sad news of the demise of Father James this morning and am writing to convey our condolences to you and all the family.
We knew he was seriously ill so it seems God in His mercy has called him to his eternal rest freeing him from all pain and suffering. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time especially when you do not have your children with you to comfort and sustain you.
Father James was such a good friend to us. We have known you both for many years and will never forget your joint goodness to us over the years. He was the first on the scene when my parents died within three months of each other and conducted both the funeral and memorial services. That was 1978. As you know we have kept in touch over the years, never failing to visit you whenever we came to Sri Lanka on holiday from the UK. When we celebrated Sam's 80th birthday with the family in Sri Lanka, it was Father James who took the service and we would not have had it any other way. His and your Christmas letters which we looked forward to until a few years ago brought us so much joy and hope. You were always such good friends.
We are so thankful that God gave us the opportunity to see you both when were in Sri Lanka in February. I will never forget Father James actually calling me by my name (even though it was soon forgotten) as well as the beautiful prayer he said as we were leaving. It brought tears to my eyes - reflecting on that now it seems as if he was saying farewell to us. What a blessing that we were able to see you both then.
Fr. James was and will always be a legend in more ways than we can imagine. His command of the English language, his oratory skills and most of all his beautiful spontaneous prayers will long be etched in our memories. To us as a family, both of you have been a great source of strength and support on numerable occasions. How can we ever forget such a colossus!
With our love and prayers for your health and comfort at this difficult time,
Nirmala and Sam (Williams)
