By Zach Patberg
For sophomore Adeeb Mannan — a devout Muslim immigrant from Bangladesh who was killed March 4 when the car he was riding in ricocheted off another car and wrapped around a tree off the Long Island Expressway in Flushing — a student read a verse from the Qu'ran.For sophomore Savita Singh, 20, a pharmacy student who died in the same crash, a Hindu prayer from a book of the Veda in The Upanishad was read aloud.For sophomore Maria Kaliakmanis, who tried to help a stranger stranded on the icy shoulder of the LIE in Shirley L.I. on Feb. 20 and was struck by an out-of-control car as her mother watched in horror from the backseat — a portion of the Book of Wisdom from the Greek Orthodox scriptures resounded off the church walls and fell onto the ears of the couple hundred congregates filling the pews.”Maria, Adeeb and Savita, who are gone too soon, in their lives of energy, beauty and intelligence did not count the years, they made the years count,” said Rev. James Maher from the pulpit at the campus' St. Thomas More Church.Family and friends described Mannan, 19, a physics major, as a brilliant student who enjoyed fantasy novels and was dedicated to his morning prayers.Kaliakmanis, 20, was also devoutly religious and practiced her Christian faith through selfless acts in her daily life, according to those who knew her.For Savita's mother, Molly Singh, the turnout at the service was proof that her daughter would be missed by far more than herself.”I was in such grief,” she said after the service. “But when I look around I realize how much she was loved in this world.”Savita's cousin, Daren Persaud, 18, recalled how he would look forward to coming down from his home in Toronto every summer to stay with the 20-year-old in the Bronx.”She would take me shopping at these girl shops like Victoria's Secret,” he said, grinning.Then there was the other, more big brother side to her that always made Persaud feel protected, even while getting lost when walking home at 4 a.m. one night after seeing the Vin Diesel movie, “xXx” — a movie she insisted they see.”I was scared as hell, but she was laughing about it,” he said. “I felt safe being with her even though she was a girl. Now when I walk in those same places I feel different, less safe, less happy.”According to friends and family, she had that effect on everyone.”The minute my young daughter walked in the door something happened in the room, it would light up — her smile made everyone more pleasant,” her mother said.Her last memory of Savita was the morning before the accident.”She woke up on Thursday and the way she looked was a perfect picture,” she said. “It's how I will always see her.”Reach reporter Zach Patberg by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 155.
