Seychelles loses funeral services pioneer Ernest Athanasius |02 June 2020

Thursday was a dark day for many who have over the years come to know and love businessman Ernest Christopher Athanasius, who passed away, aged 82.

Mr Athanasius was well known to many and is arguably a household name, having pioneered the first funeral services business in Seychelles from his home in 1974, before growing the business and settling into the St Therese funeral parlour, Plaisance, operating under the name Ernest C. Athanasius Funeral Services.

Born a Roman Catholic in Mombasa, Kenya on August 26, 1937, from a family of 12 siblings, a young Athanasius first came to Seychelles in 1958 as a teenager. Coming from humble beginnings, Mr Athanasius knew the value of hard work from a young age, joining the workforce at the age of 17 as a trainee office marines technician in Kenya. He married the love of his life, Anne Hellen Nalletamby in 1961, and after his marriage, visited Seychelles again in 1969, taking the decision to return for good in 1972 to settle with his family after Kenya became an independent state.

In 1974, he began his machine equipment repairs business, his first business venture from which he became extremely popular, providing an unmatched specialised skillset and knack for repairing sewing machines – to the relief of the many seamstresses on the island at the time, typewriters and other equipment.

Over the years, an ambitious Athanasius received further in-service training opportunities in the United Kingdom, France and Sweden specialising in the repairs of office machinery and Chubbs bank safes.

In 1974, Mr Athanasius founded his second business, Seychelles’ first funeral services business, operating from the garage of his home, with the support of his loving and dedicated wife, and their two daughters, Erna and Lucy, who at the time were still pursuing their education.

At the time, recall his daughters, bodies would be exposed at home and coffins were transported to the cemetery in the back of a pick-up truck.

A firm believer in family values, Mr Athanasius decided to start the business as a means to allow the living to give a dignified send-off to their loved ones. Together with his wife Anne, they themselves started making coffins, going the extra mile to line the coffins with satin lining, which Anne sew herself, after a day’s work as a secretary.

As demand for his product and the business grew, Mr Athanasius started to introduce new products and services, making different types of coffins to accommodate different clientèle, eventually offering caskets, a product which was initially met with some resistance, due to the difference in size as compared to coffins, which meant more work for gravediggers.  

With a vision to grow the business and expand its offering, Mr Athanasius in 1980 opted to further his knowledge, and enrolled in an embalming course, as his daughter Erna also made her way to pursue medical studies. During those days, in the case that a foreigner would pass away, an embalmer had to be flown in from Nairobi to embalm the body prior to repatriation. Having successfully completed the course, Mr Athanasius became the first certified mortician in Seychelles, an interest which he has since passed on to daughter Lucy, also a certified mortician and a member of the British Institute of Embalmers.

As demand for funeral services grew, Mr Athanasius, a God-fearing man, who with his wife Anne were faithful members of the Holy Family Church choir in Nairobi, eventually opened the iconic funeral parlour at Plaisance, the parish at which he regularly attended service, and from there provided his services for four decades, running a one-stop shop with the exception of booklets and flowers. Despite growing demands and heavier workloads with two businesses, Mr Athanasius ensured that the business was family-run, only taking on external employees briefly to assist with making coffins.

“He started the business as a service to the living. It was almost a one-stop shop and it meant everything to him. He was willing to offer his services anytime and my mum would often tell him off for answering the phone at odd hours. Anytime someone needed a service of him, he was willing to help and he was there for them. Even those who passed at home, he would felt like he wanted to give a service,” recalls daughter Erna.

Despite the successes of the first and for a while only funeral services business in the country, Mr Athanasius continued to manage and work in his machine and equipment repair business, and never officially retired from the job, and the office which he kept for 47 years, and only managed to part with late last year.

In recent years, Mr Athanasius, after leading the business for over four decades, he wound the business.

On the family front, Mr Athanasius cherished his wife and daughters and ensured to leave them with many profound memories which they hold dear and close to their hearts. Both recall his wittiness and unbeatable sense of humour, his charisma, and tremendous efforts to ensure that they had the best in life, although he was also strict and expected them to make the best grades.

“He was a very loving person and loved fishing and everyday he would take us to Beau Vallon beach to swim, as he loved swimming. He loved to dance and we grew up loving to dance and listening to music,” his daughter Lucy remembers.

Asides from a passion for providing his services, Mr Athanasius had a flair for visual arts, and would often produce oil and watercolour paintings, an expression of the world around him from which his family and loved-ones will be reminded of their sweet and fond memories.

While many will remember him for his entrepreneurial spirit, Mr Athanasius will be remembered as a loving and devoted father and husband, and grandfather to one grandson, Richard, the light of their lives.

The funeral service of Mr Athanasius will take place today at 1pm at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception followed by cremation in a private ceremony at the Padayachy Funeral parlour.

Laura Pillay