Kamal Nand

June 16, 1944 – April 5, 2025

Kamal Nand was born to James Bechan Satya Nand and Parbha Wati Kalidarn in Tavua, Fiji on June 16, 1944. His father was the Superintendent of Education for the nation of Fiji and his mother retired from her teaching career to become a homemaker. While his father would spend his weekdays in Suva, the nation’s capital, Kamal and his siblings grew up on the family farm in Tavua with their beloved mother, tending cattle, farming sugarcane, and riding horses.

As a boy, Kamal was known for his daredevil feats. He often told his daughters stories of climbing 60 ft. palm trees to retrieve coconuts, swimming across rushing rivers after seasonal typhoons, and helping his uncle tame unbroken stallions that no one else could ride, including a favorite horse named “Brownie.” Kamal also indulged in drag racing on Fiji’s gravel backroads as a teenager, remaining an automobile enthusiast for his entire life.

As a young man, Kamal grew into a notable scholar and athlete, studying French and Latin. Kamal scored top five in the nation for his Senior Cambridge levels, to the delight of his teachers at Marist Brothers High School. At 6’2”, Kamal’s height and physical strength helped him excel on the soccer field as a center forward for his high school team.

Sadly, Kamal’s mother died when he was 17 years old due to cancer. After that tragic loss, Kamal abruptly decided to leave the country and sought admission to the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. He was one of the few students of his grade from Fiji admitted to an overseas university.

Kamal’s years attending college in New Zealand were some of the best of his life. During his summer breaks, he would earn his college tuition money at a mutton factory on South Island, where he became a skilled pool player.

After completing his undergraduate degree at Otago with honors, Kamal returned home and became a chemistry teacher, head of the science department, and a soccer coach at Suva Grammar High School. It was there that he met the love of his life, Nayantra Devi Shandil, a biology teacher. Kamal courted Nayantra for two years before she agreed to become his wife on December 12, 1976. They were blessed with their first child, Arleen Ashika Nand, in 1978.

After the birth of Arleen, Kamal asked his brother Sharwan, a U.S. citizen, to sponsor them to immigrate to the United States. In 1979, Kamal and Nayantra immigrated with Arleen and Kamal’s younger brother Arun to Seattle, Washington.

The young family then relocated to New Iberia, Louisiana, in 1982 so that Kamal and Nayantra could pursue their teaching careers. Kamal taught chemistry at Jeanerette High School and Nayantra taught biology at Loreauville High School. The family soon grew with the birth of their second child, Jenna Jotika Nand, in 1984.

There was truly nothing that delighted Kamal as much as fatherhood. After working hard to provide for his children every week, Kamal used to plop down on the carpet at 6 a.m. to watch Saturday morning cartoons with his young daughters. Kamal purchased a van in 1988 and spent every summer traversing the North American continent with his wife and children, exploring everywhere from Toronto to Tijuana and most of the continental United States in between.

Upon returning to Washington State in 1990, Kamal and Nayantra found employment in the Seattle School District. In addition to his teaching career, Kamal was always interested in entrepreneurship, purchasing three gas stations in Brown Point, Parkland, and Des Moines, starting a Fiji-Indian grocery store in Shoreline, and investing in real estate in Edmonds.

Always a skilled athlete, Kamal won USTA tournaments at the 3.5 rating and picked up golf later in life. He passed on his love of tennis to his daughters, who always admired his powerful kick serve when he was playing competitively.

Kamal taught chemistry and later math to thousands of students at Suva Grammar High School (Fiji), Jeanerette High School (LA), Chief Sealth High School (WA), Denny Middle School (WA), and Ingraham High School (WA) for over 45 years.

Both lifelong learners, Kamal and Nayantra eventually completed their Masters of Education at the University of Southwestern Louisiana and post-graduate work in educational research at Seattle Pacific University. Kamal and Nayantra always encouraged their daughters’ academic achievements and took pride in their daughters each completing their undergraduate and law degrees.

Devoted to his family, a wonderful teacher, and always in excellent health, Kamal’s sudden illness at age 66 took everyone by surprise. Kamal was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, a terminal illness, in 2010 and was told that he only had two years to live. Because of the attentiveness of his caregivers, his wife Nayantra, his daughter Jenna, and his adopted son, Rob Gariepy, Kamal outlived that initial death sentence by over 13 years, only succumbing to his disease in 2025, 15 years after his life-altering diagnosis.

His family hopes that Kamal is remembered for his kind, fearless, and mischievous personality, his love of his wife and daughters, gentleness with animals, enthusiasm for being outdoors, playing tennis, coaching soccer, and his magnificent enjoyment of life. He was a consummate gentleman and a pillar of the local Fiji-Indian community.

Preceded in death by his father James Bechan and his mother Parbha Wati, elder brother Gyaneshwar, and mother-in-law Kamalpatti.

Kamal leaves to mourn his wife Nayantra, daughters Arleen and Jenna, adopted son Rob Gariepy, siblings Prabhuanand and wife Manjula, Sushila and husband Abhinash, Nirmala, Sharwan and wife Sylvia, Pushpa and husband Kishore, Arun and wife Nellie, Pushpanjali and husband Jim, Bob, Pranita and husband Praveen, and Vineeta and husband Stein. Along with numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, lifelong friends, and loved ones who admired, respected, and adored him during his eight decades of life.

In lieu of flowers, Kamal’s family requests that you honor his memory by spending time with an elderly relative, neighbor, or community member suffering from cognitive decline and to provide support and comfort to their caregivers.

A funeral service for Kamal will be held Wednesday, April 9, 2025 from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM at Evergreen Washelli Funeral Home, 11111 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, WA 98133.