Miss Sauntharrathnam Swaminathen, a resident of Mercy Home, expired from heart failure on March 22, 2008. Her date of birth was unknown, but she was believed to be in her late 70's or early 80's.

Miss Swaminathen was welcomed into the Mercy Home family, along with her sister Indrani, on January 20, 2006. At the time of her admission, she had this to say: "My younger sister, Indrani, and I have spent our lives together. We were never married. We moved from Colombo to Trincomalee. Then we worked for a hotel. The owner moved to India due to the ethnic conflict. One of the hotel owner's friends referred my sister and I to Mercy Home. At first, I thought that we were going to live in another hotel, but when we moved in I realized it was a home for elders and we are very happy here."

When asked what she liked to do most as a hobby, Miss Swaminathen said, "Listening to the birds." And, indeed, listening to the sounds of nature, and to the Grace Home girls, was something she enjoyed and did frequently.

Mrs. Sugirtha, Mercy Home Nursing Assistant, had this to say of Miss Swaminathen: "Miss Swaminathen came in to Mercy Home with her younger sister Indrani. The sisters helped each other very much. Sauntharrathnam use to speak in a very kind and gentle way with everyone and was one of the most loved elders at Mercy Home. At the end of her life, she deserved a lot of care and attention, and we all did our part to provide a better life for her."

A memorial service was conducted for Miss Swaminathen at the Grace Care Center on March 23. Miss Swaminathen was a devout Hindu and so her memorial service and burial were conducted in accordance with Hindu tradition.

We are glad to have had an opportunity to get to know Mrs. Samathanam. Her presence at Grace will be missed by the other residents, staff and volunteers who had the privilege to spend precious time with her.

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