Varghese Mathai's Obituary
Varghese Mathai was born on May 12, 1952, to a God-fearing Marthoma family of
Mathai Varghese and Sosamma Mathai (Sankaramkulanjiyil House) in Pandalam,
Pathanamthitta, Kerala, India. From a young age, he was very loved by his siblings and friends, and they called him by a sweet nickname of “Podikunju”.
On January 7th, 1979, Varghese married Lissy Varghese, daughter of P.M. Mathew and Annamma Mathew of Parathanathu House. God blessed them with two children – Juby and Jisha.
In the year of 1984, Jesus took a hold of his heart, and Varghese accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior on June 4th, 1984. Since then, he had a passion to serve the Lord, and he was used in many capacities to build the kingdom of God. Varghese was entrusted with the treasurer position of Chengannur IPC Center that consisted of 32 churches and numerous pastors. God enabled him to serve faithfully in that position for more than 20 years.
However, his service to the Lord went beyond the walls of the church. For 24 years, he served as the chemistry lab assistant in Marthoma College affiliated with the Mahatma Gandhi University. Mahatma Gandhi University is an institution that has around 300 colleges spread across the state of Kerala. In the year of 2000, by God’s grace, Varghese was elected as a Senate member of The Mahatma Gandhi University. This position is only held by two staff members out of 10,000 non-teaching staff, and he was elected by his colleagues to represent and advocate for them. He served in this position until his retirement in 2007.
Varghese was a simple man. He was a man that sought the good of people and was a peacemaker to all his community. He loved to talk and socialize with people of all ages. He always said either you read good books or associate with good people to develop a good character. He eagerly extended his hand to help those in need and those in distress without discrimination.
Varghese moved to Houston, Texas in 2008 to live with his children and his family. He enjoyed spending time with his grandkids and making friends in the neighborhood. In addition to being a people person, he had many talents like singing, public speaking, and cooking. In fact, he loved hosting friends, families, and church members and cooking delicious cuisines for them.
Even though he faced many physical ailments. His faith was never shaken, and he never questioned his creator for the sickness he had to endure. While his body was weak, his soul was very strong, and he encouraged many around him. His face still reflected the light of Jesus no matter what the circumstances were even to the end.
On the previous Saturday evening, in his final hours on earth, his family and loved ones gathered around him to sing, read, and pray to the Lord. On April 29th at 8:45pm, Varghese Mathai went peacefully to be with the Lord whom he faithfully trusted.
He is survived by his wife Lissy Varghese; his son, Juby Varghese; his daughter Jisha Varghese; his daughter -in-law Sherine Varghese and son-in-law Anil Zachariah; his 4 grandchildren, Jasmine, Alwin, Nathan and Aiden, his seven siblings and their families, many nieces and nephews and their families around the world.
He was preceded in death by his siblings Jose Mathew, Mathew Thomas, and Kunjunamma Gee Varghese. We will surely appreciate, honor, and celebrate the legacy of his life on earth until we see him again on the other shore.
“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21
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