Obituary of Sudesh Bawa

Sudesh Bawa, 85, of Dewitt Avenue, on Sept 21,2020. The day our dear mother passed away. Born in a small town in Kenya on February 4th, 1935, she moved to Lahore (now Pakistan) with her young widowed mother and younger brother. After partition, she moved to Jalandhar (Panjab) where she grew up and later to Hoshiarpur. She first moved to the United States in 1958 where she lovingly worked in NYC as a teacher before moving back in 1963 to raise her family in Chandigarh. She returned to the United States in 1985, learnt how to drive at 50, and worked for many years as a nurses aide at the Albany County Nursing Home. There are a myriad of things that made our mom unique and special. Her gentle smile, her calm demeanor, her love for family, her pure joy in nature, her brilliant untapped mind. Her delight in feeding everyone, her quiet acceptance of everything. Her serene beauty, her diminutive frame. Her lack of desire for adornment, yet her love for fine things. The magic touch she had in the kitchen. The fierce determination she had to be self reliant. Her stock market prowess, the desire to learn anything at any age. Her non combative nature, love for travel. Her absolute faith in “Mansa Devi”. Her protectiveness and concern. Her pride in her children and grandchildren and spark in her eyes for her great grandchild. Her fierce determination and her steel like strength. Her absolute beauty both of mind and spirit and body. She was never ritualistic and never imbibed that in us either. She enjoyed all festivals as a means of thanking God for all he gave her. She was a person of few words and her soft reprimand could discipline you more than a loud voice ever could. She never wished badly for anyone. She was equally comfortable talking to an ordinary person, as with dignitaries who came to our house. She was generous to a fault and loved to share everything. God please protect our mom. She had the innocence of youth and the grit, determination and strength of a woman. How ironic it is mom that you passed away on the first day of fall. A season you loved so much. You loved to pick the bushels of unblemished tomatoes and eggplant, pluck the largest apples from the trees, cutting into them to make sure they were the best in the orchard. There will always be small incidents in our life that will remind us inexplicably of you. You will always be remembered for the smile that came from your soul and lit up your face. Wherever you are now mom, you will suffer no more. You fought hard and bravely but your frail body finally just gave up. May the purity of your soul let you Rest In Peace. May God give us all the strength to bear life without you. May we always carry the happy beautiful memories of you forever and ever. Love you mom. Survived by her husband of 65 years Sukhdev Bawa; daughter Renu Kallianpur (husband Vinod Kallianpur) of Niskayuna, NY, son Raj Bawa (wife Sangita Bawa) of Ashburn, VA and daughter Rubina Nitta (husband Satya Nitta) of Cross River, NY. Also survived by five cherished grandchildren - Avanti, Aditi, Rahul, Maya and Neha and great grandchild Naina, and many nieces and nephews. Hindu funeral services will be private from the Gordon C. Emerick Funeral Home, 1550 Rt. 9 Clifton Park, NY 12065.