Kanagasabai Loganathan

Passed away peacefully surrounded by his family at his home in Bethesda, Maryland USA on August 8th at the age of 77. Born in Karainagar, Sri Lanka, to Ponnammah Murugesu and Kanagasabai (Yappan) Arumugampillai. Loganathan is survived by his wife of 52 years, Nagulambikai, his three children, Ravi, Ratha and Raj, daughters‒in‒law, Samira and Artika, and grandchildren, Geethi, Anand and Nikhil. He was the eldest of two siblings and was very fond of his little sister, Jayalakshimi Arumugam, who passed away some years ago. He leaves behind many relatives in Australia, Canada, England, India, Malaysia, Norway, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Switzerland and the USA.

Loganathan was a graduate of Ramakrishna Mission Vaitheeswara Vidyalayam, Jaffna Central College, University of Ceylon, and the Institute of Charter Accountant in Sri Lanka. Upon completion of his education in 1973, he became the owner of the family jewelry business, the Yappan Jewelers (Jaffna, Sri Lanka), which was started by his great grandfather Kanthar Arumugampillai in 1902. While managing the Yappan Jewelers, Loganathan also pursued his career in chartered accountancy and served at the Satchithananda Schockman Wijeyaratne & Company (Colombo, Sri Lanka) and the George Stewarts & Company (Colombo, Sri Lanka). Loganathan also established a jewelry factory for Cartier in collaboration with George Stewarts. He joined the World Bank in Washington DC in 1978 and settled eventually in Bethesda, MD among other Sri Lankan families. In 2004, he retired from the World Bank, where he had served as a senior staff member for Asia and Africa regions.

Loganathan was an ardent devotee of the Karainagar Sivan Kovil (known as the Eelathu Chithambaram), Jaffna Vanai Vaitheeswaran Kovil, Jaffna Kannathiddy Kali Kovil, Jaffna Perumal Kovil in Sri Lanka, and the Murugan Temple of North America in the U.S. He devoted his time maintaining and restoring the temple architectures and ensuring that the cultural and religious festivals were carried out in accordance to the Saivite Hindu traditions. His love of tradition was further depicted through the jewelry he had designed and created for family and friends with a personal touch and consultation to meet everyone’s requests. Loganathan also enjoyed Carnatic music, Bharatanatyam, travel, reading and golf. He was a man of certain specific routines which will be fondly remembered by his family:  A five‒course breakfast which had Amma running in circles in the morning, a good drink with a bowl of nuts with friends in the evening, and a piece of “good” chocolate after dinner, which he often tried to hide from his children and grandchildren.  He will be missed dearly by his family and friends.

 Service Information