Krishna Praba

He was born in February 1932 in a small village outside of Bangalore. He was his mother’s eighth child at that point. Krishna was one of five siblings who did survive to adulthood.

Krishna grew up in Madras (now Chennai), during the Indian Independence movement, with family and temple a great part of his life. He spent his early years between Madras and Bangalore (now Bengaluru). In Bangalore he lived with his eldest sister’s family. He was very close to her and her family and was influenced by his brother-in-law on the importance of education. He returned to Madras to finish high school at The Hindu High School in Triplicane. He attended Vivekananda College and India Institute of Science. He interviewed for an army position but eventually decided to move to the US. VTK Surendra kindly and generously funded his travel.

Krishna moved to the United States in 1957 with plans to earn money and help his family. He attended Princeton University and obtained a masters degree in Electrical Engineering.

He initially worked for the Fischer and Porter Company. He began pursuing a PhD at University of Pennsylvania. In Philadelphia, he met and fell in love with Irja Matilainen. She was studying there. Irja returned to Finland for a year after their meeting. Krishna continued to write to her and eventually they married in 1961. For the first years of their marriage they remained in Philadelphia.

After marriage, Krishna completed a PhD in Electrical Engineering from University of Pennsylvania (1964). He began working at RCA in 1967 and remained with the company as it merged with GE and later Lockheed Martin. He developed computer programs for antenna design (including antennae at the Empire State Building and the Sears Towers). Later he participated in projects for satellite communications. In total, Krishna authored or helped author 5 US patents between 1984 and 1992.

Krishna and Irja raised their family in Cherry Hill, NJ. They participated in activities with the local Indian and Finnish communities. Krishna loved to entertain and see family. He liked to cook and he loved to play bridge. Once his children had completed school, he and Irja moved for a few years to Sunnyvale, CA. They were able to reconnect with family. They traveled and participated in Elder Hostel trips. Upon retirement, they made a cross country tip across the US and resettled in Palm Beach, FL where they spent over a decade. During their time there, Krishna enjoyed time on the beach, bicycle rides in Palm Beach and nearby towns. He volunteered in a local library and wrote book reviews for them. He enjoyed visits from family and friends.

Krishna sustained a fractured hip in 2017. He recovered partially after being transported to Austin but suffered significant losses to his mobility, vision, and hearing. He passed peacefully on October 15, 2021.

He is survived by his wife, their two children and four grandchildren as well as many cousins, nieces, and nephews of the PB family line.

Krishna was a person full of vitality, wonder and appreciation of the beauties and hardships of life. He overcame great obstacles beginning as an infant. He had great excitement about education and loved many sciences, engineering, and literature. He focused his life efforts intensely on providing for his family, both immediate and more distant. He was generous, kind-hearted, adventurous, and intelligent. He was a great husband, father, uncle, grandfather, and friend. He was a talented writer and storyteller. He is greatly missed.