Ex-Athlone IT academic honoured at function in Shamrock Lodge

When Professor Eliathamby Ambikairajah (widely known as 'Dr Ambi') left Athlone to move to Australia in 1999, the departure was described in the Westmeath Independent as a 'major blow not just to the Midlands but to Ireland.' The native of Sri Lanka came here in 1982 to take up a lecturing position with the then Regional Technical College, Athlone. He and wife Sathyia moved to the Valleycourt Estate, and their four children attended schools in the town. At the college, he was appointed Head of the Engineering Department before becoming Head of the School of Engineering, a position he held for the last five years prior to his journey 'down under'. Last week, Dr Ambi and his two daughters, Raji and Amira, travelled from Sydney to Athlone for the first time in eight years. The esteem in which Dr Ambi is still held was evidenced by the number of friends who attended a function in his honour at the Shamrock Lodge Hotel on Tuesday evening last, July 20. The successful event was organised by Gina Dolan and other ex-colleagues at Athlone IT and was greatly appreciated by the visitors. "The night brought back a lot of pleasant memories of my association with my former colleagues, memories of working with them and of being in Athlone for eighteen years. When we worked together we respected one another and we made sure that the college progressed very well," said Dr Ambi. Speaking to the Westmeath Independent on Friday last, he and his daughters outlined their thoughts on revisiting the town. "On the day we arrived, even though the weather wasn't nice, we felt at home because of our memories of being here. It feels very natural to be back in Ireland," he said. His daughter, Raji, who was almost 16 years old when she left Athlone, visited her former school, Our Lady's Bower, where she was given a tour of the new facilities by recently retired principal, Sr Denise, and Raji's former classmate, Niamh Moloney, who is currently a teacher at the school. "I was overwhelmed by how nice the new facilities are," she said. "I think lots of great things are going to happen at that school. The development was so well-thought out. I was so impressed." Raji, who commenced research for a PhD in smart electricity grids at the University of New South Wales this year, commented on some of the differences which she observed since she was here last. "Fundamentally Athlone is the same in terms of the streets and where everything is, but you would notice the new buildings, the new hotels, and some of the new shops that have opened. But you can still navigate your way around quite easily." The family was given a tour of the "lovely" Aidan Heavey library and the Civic Centre by librarian Gearoid O'Brien. Dr Ambi identified a major difference in the fact that the old Athlone Shopping Centre was no longer the hub of commercial activity that it had been when he lived here. "That brought a little bit of sadness to me because that's where everything happened before. When we lived in Athlone the children would be running around there, playing and visiting Santa, but now those shops have gone," he said. However all three agreed that the friendliness of the people in Athlone was still striking. "Sydney is such a big city, it's on a par with New York, for example, so it has a very fast pace of life," said Raji. "Everyone's very busy, very stressed, and always on the go, whereas Athlone is a bit more relaxed. It's nice when you're walking down the street here and people say 'hello' or acknowledge you with a smile. Those are the little things that make a difference." Her sister, Amira, attended Cornamaddy NS and was eight years of age at the time of the move to Australia. She recalled doing "a lot of my growing up in Australia" and said the visit to Athlone was more of a holiday for her, whereas for her elder sister it felt like returning home for a week. "I was born and bred here and had all my friends here. It struck me when I came back this week how much I really felt at home in Athlone," said Raji. Currently Head of the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications at the University of New South Wales, Prof. Ambikairajah took an opportunity to spend time with Athlone IT President, Prof. Ciarán O Catháin, as well as with Athlone native, Dr Jim Browne, President of NUI Galway, during this visit. "I was happy to see that Athlone IT is expanding very well. The new Engineering building looks fabulous and will be a great facility for the college," he concluded.