"Remembering Rusiru"/ Addendum
A Supplementary piece to the article "Remembering Rusiru" Collected by Justin Agluba
— Rusiru was a gentle, curious, and very disciplined child. From a young age he showed great respect for his parents, teachers, and elders. He loved learning and always asked thoughtful questions.
— Our family practises Buddhism, but Rusiru developed his own spiritual path later in life and embraced Christianity. As parents, we respected his personal journey. Although our religious traditions were different, our family remained united by mutual respect and love. Faith seemed to give him comfort and strength, especially during difficult periods of his life.
— Rusiru always had a very analytical mind and a strong sense of fairness and justice. These qualities led him to study law through the University of London… However, his true passion remained teaching and literature, which eventually led him to focus fully on academia.
— Reading was one of his greatest joys… He also enjoyed listening to classical music and opera, which helped him relax and reflect. Beyond that, he simply enjoyed meaningful conversations about literature, philosophy, and language.
— Rusiru truly loved sharing knowledge. Teaching gave him joy because he believed education could transform lives… He believed that a good teacher should inspire curiosity and confidence in students.
By Chitrasena
I only had the pleasure of being in Rusiru’s class for a short time, but he left a lasting impression. He was always passionate about teaching and put so much effort into making his lessons enjoyable. He would prepare all kinds of activities and programs to keep us engaged, and you could tell he truly cared about his students. He was a wonderful teacher and will be greatly missed.
By Betty
Our home was a beautiful and peaceful place, and it shaped much of his early life. From the upper floor of the house, we could clearly see Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak) on calm, clear mornings. At night, the ring of lights that surrounds the mountain during the pilgrimage season was also visible.
A very important part of his childhood was the time he spent with his grandmother (his father’s mother). Whenever his mother and I went to work, he stayed with her. The two of them had an exceptionally close and loving relationship, and he always treated her with great respect. She passed away in August 2008, at a time when Rusiru had just completed the second year of his first degree.
When I look at the world today and observe how children behave, I often feel that my son was not just an ordinary human being. He carried a kind of purity and compassion that made him feel more like a gift from above — a divine presence.
These are the details and memories I can offer to help you portray the world he grew up in. I hope they help you honour his life with the depth and truth it deserves.
By Chitrasena
I always think fondly of Rusiru and looked forward to our weekly team meetings, in which he was a dedicated participant. One recurrent image I hold is of him arriving a few minutes late (he would have paused en route to address a student query) and removing his hat before launching into the meeting. This vignette was typical of Rusiru; he always had the best interests of the students at heart.
He was also eager to learn and to extend his repertoire of teaching skills, for which I hope I was in a small way helpful. He was undoubtedly popular in CLL and beyond, and a passionate professional. The memorial lunch highlighted this, and though the mood was understandably sombre and sad in the wake of his passing it was also celebratory, and several brief speeches paid fitting tribute.
By Dave
— Rusiru valued integrity and patience. Even when he faced unfair treatment or professional challenges, he chose dignity and calmness rather than conflict. He believed that true success comes from perseverance and honesty.
— Outside the classroom he was a very humble and compassionate person. Despite his academic achievements, he remained simple, respectful, and deeply caring towards others.
— ...he spoke about his students often and always with great affection. He believed strongly in encouraging young people and recognising their potential. It does not surprise me that he told you that you would flourish in academia.
By Chitrasena
When I met him, it was during my first semester at the University of Auckland. As a non-native English speaker, I was required to pass an English course to continue my studies. I was both happy and fortunate to have chosen Course 101 and met Rusiru. He was always very patient in explaining in class and exuded a relaxed and charming demeanor. I knew he was also accomplished in music, but subsequent interactions made me realize that he was more than just an English teacher. He gave us many inspirations, especially by not showing the slides in class. His words were meant to make us study hard in class to master the content, rather than just browsing through the slides. At that moment, I recognized his responsibility. I also saw him grading our exams outside the classroom many times after class.
Moreover, he was one of the few teachers who could remember my Chinese name and pronounce it almost perfectly, because I wasn’t always very active. His attentiveness touched me, and in 2024, I gave up my university studies in China and came here to start my academic journey anew. His various behaviors made me realize that studying here was also a good choice. Even for our 500-word essays, he would correct and correct them word by word. I was truly very lucky to have such a teacher. After changing to a new teacher, I no longer enjoyed coming to class. I didn‘t mean the new teacher was bad, but Rusiru was too perfect for students at that time.
Later, I studied Computer Systems Engineering at school, but I always walked around the Art Building when I was there. It seemed that this way I still had a chance to meet Rusiru. I told my friends that he was such a good teacher, and they felt sorry for him going to teach at another university. However, I never met him again and didn‘t see any news about him. Reading about his depression made me very sad. He was even unwilling to trouble any of his friends. He was such a good person. Such an experience was truly too unfair. Even I often received condolence emails from the school for students, but I never felt the need for it. I thought the school was already very humane, but after learning about his doctoral course experience, I also changed my mind. Not every student can be taken care of. I really miss him. I hope Rusiru can continue to fulfill his dreams in heaven and no longer bear so much pressure.
He is truly a very good person, and I am willing to believe that he is such an excellent life mentor.
By Anonymous former student
I first met Rusiru Hettimulage when he came in for an interview for part time work at the Language school I was DOS for in 2023. He was immediately the gentleman but impressed with his experience and knowledge. We took him on to work up to 6 months.
Straightaway, I noted that he was innovative and highly student focused. His class resembled a board room some days and a research centre others. Students enjoyed the easy familiarity and enthusiasm, but benefited from the rigorous attention to accuracy and continued practice. He revelled in our trips out when he could converse with students in a less formal manner and explore part of Auckland he hadn’t seen.
As I and my colleagues conversed with him, we realised his depth of knowledge and commitment to exploring useful new trends. So he contributed to our PDs and handed out great advice to everyone interested in wider understandings of how to teach English.
For me, we easily became friends and conversed on many topics. He was exploring more and more, the Christian faith and was fascinated by the Christian Kaupapa undergirding our particular school. He jokingly said I was his spiritual advisor, as my faith background was somewhat different to his. We had deep conversations. Some of them centred around Te Tiriti issues and he genuinely was interested in that.
I switched jobs towards the end of 2023 which meant we no longer were colleagues, but we caught up at Auckland Uni often, when I was at our city campus. Over coffee (and the obligatory cake) we pulled apart some of the challenges I was facing at my school and he would offer his thoughts or even update me on some current thinking in teaching English.
Rusiru was thoughtful and generous, often shouting me to a delicious lunch or dinner despite probably making less than I was. He delighted in the stuff of life, excited by academia, mirthful at some humorous interlude, full of praise for individuals he brushed shoulders with. He carried too much weight which often overexerted him, but he made the effort to be everywhere on time and put in heaps of effort.
When he moved away to Hamilton it was hard to keep contact as I was rarely down there. We missed an opportunity to connect when I was there one time, and promised to organise another catch up. Sadly, it was not to be, and unfortunately I did not find out about his passing till one of his past students informed me a few months later. How deeply sad I was, as were the colleagues he had mixed with at my previous school.
Rest in peace my brother. You taught me a lot and it was a privilege to be part of your life in Aotearoa.
By Mark Hoani Campbell, DOS Aspiring Language Institute (and AEC)
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