Obituary of Ramaben Patel

Our beloved mother, grandmother, and great grandmother Rama Patel, 92, passed away peacefully and surrounded by family on Saturday March 20th.

She lived with three generations of her united family in Kanata - a greater testament than any of the love and respect with which she was showered and the values she instilled in her family. 

She was full of superhuman will, energy, ethic, love, devotion, wisdom, discipline, and spirit.  She was our Iron Lady - with courage of her convictions to blaze her own path from a young age. She was a trend-setting seamstress, street-smart self-made entrepreneur, and a respected volunteer Gujarati teacher for many years. She was a loyal friend and ‘ba’ to many in the community. She lived her life fully and without regrets. She traveled the world, enjoyed cooking and sharing meals, and was always elegantly dressed. Age was just a number: as recently as last year, she’d regularly go swimming or to the Bayshore mall on her own. Ever a prudent punctual perfectionist, she kept those around her on their toes with her tough love and cultivated a habit of excellence.

She devoted her life to raising her family. She was a dutiful daughter, a selfless mother, and a doting grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend. She lent a hand to those in need and stood by them in their sorrows. Her trailblazing story is an inspiration to us all and a lesson that even during extreme adversity, one can live with great pride, honour, independence, belief, generosity, and dignity. She was the best mother one could have.

She embraced all the life’s ups and downs, joys and sorrows as divine will. Through thick and thin, she maintained her sense of humour - she laughed easily, often, and loudly. Her deeply held faith was a bottomless source of strength. She forged ahead with grit and equanimity. She never, never, never shied away from her duty. She never delayed, dithered, or gave excuses. She embodied and lived a life full of dharma and karma. Her actions spoke louder than words.  She wasn’t just great, she was good.

She’s survived by her children (Amrish and Smita in Kanata and Manoj and Sonal in Vadodara), four grand kids, and four great grandkids.

She will be missed greatly and will live forever in our hearts. She remains our superhero - a triumph of self-belief and hard work over adversity. She always chose the right path, not the easy. Till her last smile, her will to fight with her head held high influenced all those around her. She gave us the best of her. We are proud and lucky to call her our mother.

We pray to Bhagwan to grant us strength as we endeavour to follow her on the path of grace and “be like ba”. 

Please join us in praying for her moksha. Om shanti.

The family would like to thank - from the bottom of our hearts - the staff at the Queensway Carleton hospital, friends, family, and community for all their generous support over these past few weeks. In lieu of flowers, we suggest a donation to the Queensway Carleton Hospital, ACE Unit in her memory.

 

A PRIVATE Funeral Service will be held for the immediate family only due to the current Covid 19 restrictions. 

 

For those who wish to view the Funeral Service remotely please follow this link at the time of service which will take place on Wednesday, March 24, 2021 at 10:30 a.m.

 

Click here to remotely watch the funeral