Bangladesh will miss you, Father
Timm: Dr Yunus
Nobel laureate Dr
Muhammad Yunus has expressed deep shock at the death of former Principal of
Notre Dame College, Father Richard William Timm, saying that Bangladesh will
forever miss him.
"I am very sorry to
see Father Timm go," said the Nobel laureate in a condolence message on
Monday.
Prof Yunus said no
disaster in Bangladesh could escape his quickest and the most daring responses
and he was a towering symbol of humanitarian work.
Father Timm spent all
his life in Bangladesh, always available for anything which would serve the
poor, said Yunus.
"I met him in Notre
Dame University (in Indiana, USA) in April, 2018. I was at the university to
give their annual public lecture. I was told by one of the Professors that
Father Timm was on the campus. He said that he (Father Timm) apologised that he
could not attend the lecture. I immediately wanted to meet him, which I did as
soon as I was done with the official programme," Dr Yunus recalled.
He said he was
disappointed to see Father Timm in a small hostel accompanied by five elderly
people.
"The man who was
closest to the people is now far away from the people he loved," Dr Yunus
said.
Father Timm wanted to
know everything about Bangladesh. "He was on a wheelchair. The nurse
repeatedly told me not to make him talk. But he would not stop. Finally the
nurse decided to take him back to his room."
Dr Yunus said, "I
could see how much he missed Bangladesh."
Father Timm, one of the
founders of Notre Dame College in Dhaka, repeatedly said, "I wanted to die
and be buried in Bangladesh. But no one is listening to me. I am so
helpless."
"Father Timm,
you'll forever remain in the hearts of Bangladeshis… Bangladesh will forever
miss you. You have left your fingerprints in every disaster area of Bangladesh.
May God grant your soul eternal peace," he added.
Father Timm died in the
United States at the age of 97. Father
Timm, who played a significant role during the Liberation War, breathed his
last at 1:30pm local time in Indiana on Friday. (Collected)
Obituary
Rev. Richard W. Timm, C.S.C. March 2, 1923 ~ September 11, 2020 (age 97)
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Rev. Richard W. Timm, C.S.C., 97, died at Holy Cross House, Notre Dame, Ind., on Friday, September 11, 2020.
He was born March 2, 1923, in Michigan City, Ind., to Joseph and Josephine (Otten) Timm. After grade school and high school at St. Mary’s in Michigan City, Ind., he entered Holy Cross Seminary and the University of Notre Dame in 1940. He made First Vows on August 16, 1942, taking the fourth vow of foreign missions. After novitiate, he went to Holy Cross College in Washington, D.C. for theology, then the Foreign Mission Seminary. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 8, 1949.
After ordination, Fr. Timm traveled to Dhaka, Bangladesh and joined the newly established Notre Dame College. Then, as a visiting professor in the department of nematology at the University of California, Davis, he taught for two years and helped out on weekends in parishes. During this time, he spent more than two months in Antarctica and discovered several new species of nematodes. Among them is the Marine Nematode “Timmia parva”, named after Fr. Timm himself!
In 1970, Fr. Timm had just returned as principal of Notre Dame College, Bangladesh when a cyclone and tidal surge caused widespread damage and casualties. He performed relief work on Manpura Island, the worst affected area, then was invited to direct a rehabilitation program on the island.
Fr. Timm was very active in direct service to the people of Bangladesh through his involvement in Caritas, the Bishops’ organization for welfare and development. He served a 24-year term as executive secretary of the Commission for Justice and Peace; and, in 1987, received the Ramon Magsaysay Award for International Understanding; a very prestigious award referred to as the “Nobel Prize of Asia". From 1984 to 2009, he served as chaplain for the Missionaries of Charity and the Holy Cross Sisters. He also served for over 25 years as chaplain to the Baby Home and House of Compassion run by Mother Theresa’s Sisters. Fr. Timm moved to Holy Cross House in 2017.
Fr. Timm served in Bangladesh for some 65 years. As his confrères in Bangladesh have said, Father Timm “was a legend of Bangladesh, an internationally renowned zoologist, discoverer of at least 250 nematodes, an educationist, a human development worker, a friend of Bangladesh, author of many books and publications, Magsaysay winner, and so on. Most importantly, he was a Catholic priest and member of the Congregation of Holy Cross.”
Preceding him in death are Fr. Timm’s parents, Joseph and Josephine Timm, his brother Robert, and his sisters Mary Jo Schiel and Genevieve Gantner. (Collected)
Father Richard William Timm: Timeline of Achievements
1923 - March 2, Born at Michigan City, Indiana, United States
1940 - Graduation from St Mary's HS. Michigan City
1945 - BA (Philosophy) from University of Notre Dame magna Cum Laude
1949 - Ordained at Sacred Heart Church, Notre Dame Indiana
1949 - June 8. Holy Cross assigns Timm to establish a department of science at St Gregory's School in Dhaka’s Laxmibazar
1951 - MS in Biology at the Catholic University of America
1952 - PHD from CU, specializing in Parasitology. Arrives in Dhaka in late October
1952-68 - Professor of biology, principal and founder and head of the science dept, Notre Dame College, Dhaka
1953-54 - Fulbright Lecturer in Parasitology at Govt Medical College, Dhaka, with extension at Govt Experimental Farm, Tejgaon
1954-70 - Researches on jute and rice nematode parasites at the Agricultural Research Institute, Tejgaon, under a grant from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Pakistan
1958-63 - Project on Plant-Parasitic nematodes (roundworms) under Food and Agriculture Council, Pakistan
1958-64 - Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) Research Fellow in Thailand and Philippines; SEATO publishes his book on the Plant-Parasitic nematodes of Thailand and the Philippines
1963 - Awarded a SEATO Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for extensive study in Thailand and the Philippines on parasitic nematodes affecting commercial plants
1964 - Founded handicraft organization ‘Jagoroni’ for physically challenged women.
1965 - SEATO publishes his book “The Plant-Parasitic Nematodes of Thailand and The Philippines”
1968 - Father Timm leaves East Pakistan to spend two years in the US before returning shortly before the Liberation War in Bangladesh
1968-70 - Visiting Professor of Nematology at University of California, including two and half months research in Antarctica
1970-73 - Focusses on relief and rehabilitation; both for the cyclone and the destruction caused by the Liberation War
2020/09/unnamed-1599980876619.gif
1970-73 - Founded the science departments at Notre Dame College and pioneered club activities
1970-71 - Learns to speak fluent Bangla
1971-72 - Director of Cyclone Rehabilitation Project on Monpura Island for six months
1972-74 - Planning Officer at Caritas, Bangladesh
1973 - Executive Director of CORR The Jute Works
1974-76 - National Director of Caritas
1974 - Leads the creation of the Association of Voluntary Agencies in Bangladesh (AVAB) and was elected first chairman of its executive committee. Later AVAB became ADAB (Association of Development Agencies in Bangladesh)
1974-94 - Executive Secretary of Commission for Justice and Peace
1978 - Timm serves ADAB as director for nine months.
1987-93 - Founder of the Coordinating Council for Human Rights in Bangladesh and president for three terms
1987 - Receives Magsaysay Award for International Understanding from Manila for 35 years of dedication to the development of Bangladesh. In the same year, he receives ‘Abu Sayeed Chowdhury Award’ for Human Rights in Social Service
1990-93 - Founder and convenor of South Asian Forum for Human Rights.
2000-2011 - Works in various sectors in Bangladesh, especially on indigenous communities, physically challenged women, poor, and has been working on development and human rights
2008 - Timm becomes Caritas Bangladesh Advisor
2009- Honoured by Vatican's Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace as a teacher, author, eminent scientist, and advocate for human rights
2012 – Awarded the “Friends of Liberation War Honour”
Late 2015 or 2016 - He left Bangladesh
2020- September 11, (aged 97) dies at South Bend, Indiana, United States
The Funeral Mass (livestream) : 3:30 p.m. on Friday, September 18, 2020, at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Notre Dame, Ind. Burial in the community cemetery at Notre Dame.
It took me some time to write this. Even longer to post this. As I post this, I just got news that our dearest friend and mentor, Jeffrey Pereira is not well. I join others in wishing him a recovery back to his home soonest.
Fr. R. W. Timm’s news of his leaving his body left me numb. Though he was really unwell, which is why he had to go back to the US, we knew it was a matter of time, it still leaves an empty ache.
I have known of Fr. Timm from the sixties, first by reputation, ( he was featured in Time Magazine for his ground breaking work on micro organisms in Antartica. He left an amazing career in science to teach in Dhaka. He loved Bangladesh). Then when my younger brother became a student of Notre Dame College, we met him as his teacher.
It was in 1970 November after the massive cyclon when he took over Coordination of the field operations of HELP at Manpura Island, that I got the chance to know him personally and work with him. My father on his retirement from Government service became the Dhaka Coordinator for HELP. Fr. Timm visited our house often and I would sometimes volunteer for them. During 1971, he would ask my father to shelter young Mukti Jodhhas who needed a
place to stay in Dhaka. We were taught never to ask questions.
It was in 1972, immediately after Bangladesh’s liberation, when I joined BRAC and Fr. Timm was with CORR, which later became Caritas, that we got even closer. I also fondy remember our frequent meetings when I used to visit Fr. Homerich at Jalchatra in 1975, another wonderful person we lost recently. We used to have Long discussions & debates. That's when I got very close to him.
When I left BRAC in 1980 and joined Nijera Kori, he was of great support to us. One of our strongest mentors. He and I did several joint evaluations of Caritas programmes, travelled the length and breath of the country together. Jeffrey Pereira was the Executive Director of Caritas by then. Another fine human being, I respect greatly. 1981, both Abed Bhai and Fr. Timm were instrumental in getting me to be on the Board of ADAB. For many years, I was the only woman on the Board.
When Fr. Timm initiated a collective effort through the formation of CCHRB (Coordination Council for Human Rights in Bangladesh) again I was taken on their Board. Unfortunately, some unscrupulous elements brought in dirty politics and tried to demean Fr. Timm. The Government of that time was not supportive of him nor of Peoples’s rights. This was due to his strong stance on Human Rights and for his speaking out on the atrocities on the indigenous people of CHT.
Despite this lack of support for Fr. Timm, by the Government of that time, I noticed that whenever we as a group went to meet the Government, all the Secretaries at that time and some Ministers too, were his students and the respect and awe they had of him was genuine.
The current Government however awarded him as a friend of Bangladesh. An award he cherished. But his dream to get Bangladeshi citizenship could not materialise. Due to failing health he had to go back to the US to be looked after by his Congregation.
The last time I met him was a huge Birthday dinner organised with people he was close to, before he left for the US. His incredible memory was beginning to falter, but I was glad he remembered me well.
My niece's son studies at Notre Dame University in the US. My niece took permission to visit Fr. Timm some months back. He was really frail, but remembered my father and us.
He was a giant among other giants. He stood out in more ways than one. To me, he was one of the finest humans I have met to tread this planet. At one time, we as NGOs wanted to say Thank You to the three stalwarts and icons of Bangladesh’s NGO world, Sir F.H. Abed, Dr. Zafrullah Chowdhury and Father Timm. That too never happened.
One bit of his indomitable spirit I remember about him was his habit of falling down and hurting himself or breaking a leg, while riding his bike. But he would always recover and get on his bike again. Nothing could get him to give up riding his bike.
Fr. Timm's contribution will live on. It needs to be archived.
The only regret, he so wanted to be a Bangladesh National. But that was not to be.
We will always carry you in our hearts.
Our dear Fr. Timm with another legend, Fr. Homerich with the photographer, archivist, environmentalist, journalist, researcher Philip Gain. I hope Philip you will not mind my using your pictures for this post.
Fr R W Timm CSC -- the Guru of Caritas Bangladesh
Atul Sarker
He was our beloved Guru, the master of all masters, our mentor, our guide, our philosopher and our light house. We learnt from him how Social Justice is put into action, why primacy of the human person is paramount in development and above all why we need participation of all in social transformation.
It was a blessing for many of us in Caritas Bangladesh to work directly under him and learn basics of social analysis, contemporary development, human rights, institution building as a child learns her/his first lessons in life. His transformative leadership made Caritas Bangladesh what it claims and stands for today. There remains no sector in Caritas Bangladesh Progras where Fr Timm's contribution is absent.
Farmers Right and Fr Timm: To respond to the call of the Father of the Nation, Caritas participated "green revolution" in 1972 --1975. At that time irrigation was a big problem in cultivating the newly introduced IRRI varity. Farmers were almost chained by the powerful "water lords" who possessed diesel powered water pumps and would rent it out with exuberant rate that was equivalent to the cost of one third of their total produce. Visiting the then Rajbari agricultural farm (at that time it was under a farmers cooperative) in Dinajpur, Fr Timm realized that without ensuring the irrigation rights of the farmers and without breaking monopoly of the "water lords" landless and small holder farmers will remain victims of injustice that prevailed during the then farming system.
Coming back to Dhaka, he sat with his favorite desciple and yet another piller of Caritas Bangladesh, Jeffrey S Pereira. Both were convinced that introducing low cost, farmer friendly irrigation gadget is the answer and appropriate strategy to resist the "water lords" that can bring about justice and equity to landless and small holder farmers.
And that was the begging of a new era of traddle pump and that is how Fr Timm began to transform the landscape towards "food sovereignity" in Bangladesh.
Note: This is a very humble series and my first post in FB in respect of our mentor and Guru. I also thank those who inspired/pushed me to write.
Memorial contributions in support of the mission and ministries of the Congregation of
Holy Cross can be made to: United States Province of Priests and Brothers, Office of
Development, P.O. Box 765, Notre Dame, IN 46556-0765 or online at
donate.holycrossusa.org.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Rev. Richard W. Timm, C.S.C.
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