English: Mr. Hiddadura Godwin Mendis, (17th November 1928-7th March 1999) was born to parents, John Mendis and Eugenia Mendis (Diseased in 1975), and was married to Bernadette Ruby Mendis (Bernie) on the 27th December 1956 at St. John the Baptist Church, Nagoda. Together, Mr. Mendis and Bernadette had seven children- Nelum, Nirmali, Rohitha, Edel, Franklyn, Marina, Shehara- where they lived as a family in Welisara.

Mr. Mendis was a man of great values, solid integrity, and of rich character. A man who loved his family very much, he diligently fulfilled his responsibilities, duties, and obligations to them faithfully. In addition to this, he loved God, and he was an active member of the Legion of Mary. He would always do whatever he could to help those around him. He joined the Legion of Mary as a junior member at De Mazanod College. Soon after his graduation, he initiated the Legion of Mary in Nagoda, Kandana Parish, and became an extremely active Legionary. He held many positions at parish, regional, and district levels. Mr. Mendis became the National President (Senatus of Sri Lanka) at an incredibly young age and held this position for three consecutive terms, which was nine years, being unanimously elected by the other members.

One of his notable accomplishments and projects that he embarked on was the founding of ‘Maw Sevena’- a home for destitute children which he built in Mattakuliya, Colombo 15. Another noteworthy and momentous project was the initiation of a model housing village in a very poor area in Ragama, which is called Magulpokuna. Mr. Mendis managed to build 144 new houses with all the basic, necessary facilities including proper shelter, water, sanitation, and electricity, complete with a junior school and health center. Coincidentally this was the first model village initiated in Sri Lanka.

Due to the excellent work he had completed successfully, he was invited by Rev. Fr. Mervyn Fernando to join his institute. At the age of 43, Mr. Mendis retired from his post as Head of the Drawing Office at the Posts & Telecommunications Department, and joined the Family Studies & Services Institute (FSSI) in 1978, where he was the Executive Director until he passed away. At the FSSI, his duties comprised of scientific counselling, conducting, counsellor training programs, child education programs, communication, leadership, marriage, and much more. There were no boundaries to the work he did, working with all religions, all races, and all schools- governmental and non-governmental.

Being incredibly knowledgeable, his experience in the field was also demanded abroad, and not just within Sri Lanka. He travelled all over the country and the world conducting programs such as for the Police Department, the Prisons Department, the Child Probation Department, the Justice Ministry, and countless more. The hundreds of conferences, seminars, and workshops were sometimes sponsored by the United Nations. He also worked with organisations such as Alcoholics Anonymous, National Dangerous Drugs Control Board, and top NGO’s such as the United Nations and Save the Children. Various social clubs such as the Rotary Club, the Lions Club, and Zonta all availed his valuable services as well.

Despite all his commitments, Mr. Mendis was a true family man, and made sure that they were looked after very well. He prioritized providing for them and ensuring they got the best food, were healthy, and had the best possible education. He would help his children out with their homework and assignments, made timetables for them to study, and inculcated religious values in them.

When Mr. Mendis pre-maturally retired from Government Service in 1978, he was only 43 years of age and he unfortunately suffered two heart attacks within a short span of time. Due to this, he had to gradually reduce his involvement and high responsibilities of Legion of Mary. Because by then, he had joined FSSI on full time basis and it was too much to manage. However, he always remained a Legionary and always supported the cause and work of the Legion of Mary.