Sri S.A. Balakrishnan

It is with a great sense of sadness I would like to share with you all, the passing away of Sri S.A. Balakrishnan who leaves behind, his wife Chellam, elder daughter Sudha, her husband Dr. Giri and granddaughter Sahana, and younger daughter Vidya, her husband Etienne and granddaughter Asha along with innumerable number of relatives from India.

My association with the Balakrishnans dates back to September 1969. With no relatives for us in the city, the closest were these new friends with common cultural and religious interest. There were no temples, no relatives, one Indian condiment shop, on Belmont Avenue and the weekly social meet of a set of 5 families included Balakrishnans very prominently. Their love for our classical music, their connections to great musicians like KVN, Alappuzhai Venkatesan, Trichur Ramachandran, Semmangudi and all through Chellam’s brother Sri S.V. Krishnan (SVK) running the Ragha Sudha at Coimbatore gave the real connections to initiate CTU in Chicago. Balakrishnan (SAB) was one of the key persons responsible for the registration of CTU as a 501(3)(C) non-profit tax-exempt organization in the State of Illinois. I have visited his brother in Germany, his sister in Delhi university campus, and needless to say SVK at Coimbatore and later at Madras. What T.M.Narasimhan does now for CTU like storing many CTU items like audio equipment etc. in his house – used to be done by SAB under great care in their apartments that would change from year to year and finally at Buffalo Grove in the early years of CTU.

Chellam’s mom would carry many items from India not just for their daughter and son-in-law but for almost all of us close to the family. Any item on sale at the Sears Company would be informed to all of us by SAB through whom we would get the best deals on many household items at great discount. When carpets were delivered or when furniture had to be moved in their house or apartment the members of our small group were ready with our primitive skills. If there was any sibling fight or difference of opinion on family issues, SAB would call me and he treated me as his own brother to discuss even personal family problems.

Ever since he took early retirement, the family had to face a new SAB with accruing health problems. His moving closer to Sudha and Giri, and his love for our Carnatic music reached its pinnacle when he would sincerely attend CTU programs on a wheelchair. Like Ramaswamy, the enormous strain to move out of the house on wheelchair, to listen to live concerts would show how much one is willing to bear to attend a live CTU program.

The most recent move to a new apartment to escape climbing steps unfortunately did not help. His deteriorating health with a slowly deteriorating health of Chellam are showing warnings for our older society of first generation immigrants. Their love to entertain close friends with ordered food and some items made under great strain by them all show SAB’s commitment to the older values.

Even though he might not have read the Thirukkural
இருந்தோம்பி இல்வாழ்வதெல்லாம்
விருந்தோம்பி வேளாண்மை செய்தற் பொருட்டு.

The family has been practicing this meticulously

(The rough meaning of the thirukkural: The purpose of any family life is mainly to entertain guests).

People like SAB and Dr Ramamurthy are quite hard to find in societies. CTU owes a lot to such people for their instantaneous help.

SAB reminds me of another famous Thirukkural
உடுக்கை இழந்தவன் கைபோல ஆங்கே
இடுக்கண் களைவதாம் நட்பு

 

In grief,

Dr. T.E.S. Raghavan