Following on from BUZZ’s obituary of Graham Eckersley, which reached many thousands of friends all over the planet, we have now received the following from his family:
Graham wanted his passing to help others and so, in accordance with his expressed wish to support medical research in Hong Kong, arrangements have been made for him to become a ‘Silent Teacher’ under the body donation programme of the Chinese University.
Consequently, his cremation will be delayed to some future, as yet unknown, time. He did not want a religious service.
Graham will be transported to the Chinese University on Friday, 28 May 2021 at 4:15 pm. He will not be alone on this journey, his goddaughter, Katherine Chung, and his old family friend, King Chung, will accompany him.
We want to mark Graham’s passing in an appropriate manner and provide his many friends with an opportunity to pay their respects, but Graham’s wishes and the global pandemic, place restrictions on what can and cannot be done at this particular point in time.
After many deliberations, we have decided that the best way forward is to defer holding a celebration of Graham’s life to a time when his sister, Liz, and other close friends now living outside of Hong Kong, are able to travel to Hong Kong. We hope that by this time rules limiting social gatherings will have eased enabling a gathering that truly reflects Graham’s nature and wishes.
An overview of the Silent Teacher program follows, plus a poem from an old friend. Graham occupied a special place in all our hearts.
Silent Teachers
Chinese University of Hong Kong Silent Teachers Body Donation Programme
Over the course of every medical student’s education, the study of human anatomy serves as an important course that deepens his understanding of the human body, and all the while the body donor, silently serves and instructs as a teacher, teaching silently with his own body.
“Silent Teachers” denotes a title of respect for our body donors. They are called “Silent Teachers” because while they instruct our medical students, but they also develop and advance surgical art and research.
To remind our medical students of the selflessness of our donors, we hold a ritual before class in which students will take a moment of silent contemplation and thanks. Students then proceed with their medical study. Afterwards when the course is finished, our medical students will write letters expressing their thanks to the donor. These cards are placed in the donor’s coffin and cremated with the body.
The body students operate on today, will aid them in their care of patients and their families in the future. One student wrote a poem in his gratitude letter. Its spirit captures what we hope students will take from the “Silent Teachers” programme.
“You teach without words, I am silent in gratitude. Life is short, but knowledge is eternal. This knowledge is your epitaph engraved on my heart. Silent Teacher, I am grateful.”
The core values of the Faculty of Medicine at the Chinese University in Hong Kong – Respect, Humanity and Social Responsibility – pushed forth our “Silent Teachers” programme. It raises our student’s excellence in medicine, but we also hope that it will raise awareness on the importance of body donation, build towards a better tomorrow and give back to our society today.
The Chinese University in Hong Kong, Faculty of Medicine
Assistant Dean, Dr. Hector S.O Chan
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