James Clement Gunaseelan

Gunaseelan aka “Guna” to his family and “James” to his friends was born and raised in Madras

(Chennai), Tamil Nadu, India. He was born to Jacob and Esther James on March

23, 1942, five years before India gained its independence from the British.

He was raised in the Methodist Church in South India and had deep faith in his

Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. His faith in Christ gave him a heart for the

Church, for pastors, for missionary workers, and for hymns throughout his whole

life.

After graduating with a degree in botany, he got married to Mercy Nicodemus on

September 7, 1970 in Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. Their son David

was born in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh on November 30, 1971 and their

daughter Ada Eunice on December 19, 1972 in Chennai.

While he was working for India Airlines and playing field hockey for their

intramural league, he and his family immigrated to the US in the Rio Grande

Valley (Westlaco, Texas) in 1978 where he taught science classes in high school

and college. The family eventually migrated to Dallas to be closer to his sister,

Kasthuri and her husband Luke Raju. The Dallas metroplex is where Gunaseelan

put down his roots and he eventually settled into a career in hospital

administration, retiring from St. Paul Medical Center. He didn’t like the idea of

stopping work so abruptly so he decided to work part-time for a number of years,

staying connected to his colleagues and family.

He had a distinct love for worshipping faithfully on Sundays and special services,

asking for prayer and praying for others, watching sports and Indian movies,

making or buying mid-afternoon Chai, cooking and going out to eat, and keeping

up with his family with timely phone calls, texts, and greeting cards. His warm

smile, uplifting laugh, and not-always-accurate factoids about the news, weather,

and sports will all be missed.

Gunaseelan is survived by his sister Kasthuri, his brother Prem; his children

David and Ada; his grandchildren Christian, Sarah, Hannah, Elijah, and Josiah;

his nieces Karen and Rachel. Preceding him in peace were his parents, Jacob

and Esther.

A memorial service will be held on Good Friday, April 18, 2025 at Metrocrest

Presbyterian Church, Carrollton, Texas at 10:00am with a reception to follow.