February 5, 1927 - December 27, 2023
Died peacefully at St. Catharines Hospital on December 27, 2023 at the age of 96 after a short illness. Beloved husband and companion of Usha (née Parasnis) for 71 years, loving father of Anu, Sucheta (Bilzac) and Aloke (Siri), and devoted Grandpa/Pabha of Kiran (Australia), Elena (Australia) and Neha (Montréal), Prabhakar will also be missed by his extended family in Canada, India, Australia, Sweden, and the U.S.
Born in Puné (Poona), India, Prabhakar was a talented young violinist and artist. After his father died when he was only sixteen, Prabhakar relinquished his artistic pursuits to study business and commerce. He obtained a Bachelor of Commerce in 1947 and a Master of Commerce in 1950, both from the University of Poona. He worked for several companies, first in India and then Malaysia and Singapore, but decided to emigrate to Canada in the late sixties. He landed in Vancouver in March 1969, and kept heading east, until he found employment at Ontario Paper in St. Catharines. He worked there in many different roles, retiring as VP Marketing in 1990.
Throughout his life, Prabhakar was a voracious reader. A committed secular humanist, his library nevertheless included an enormous range of authors and subjects, from the writings of Carlos Castaneda and Fritjof Capra, to political and other biographies, classic novels and short stories, and to books about art, religion, and music. He was a keen observer of current events, and for most of his life, newspapers and newsmagazines were never far from his elbow. Though he never again picked up a pencil, piece of charcoal, or paintbrush, Prabhakar maintained a strong interest in art—the watercolours of Andrew Wyeth were a particular favourite.
In retirement, Prabhakar and Usha travelled widely throughout the U.S. and Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia, and Europe. Prabhakar continued his studies in music theory, both Western and Indian classical music. One of his greatest pleasures was to hear all three of his grandchildren play their chosen musical instruments. For a while, he was active in the Ontario Paper Retirees’ Association, working assiduously on pension-related issues.
After a private funeral service, a Celebration of Life will be held at a future date. In memory of Prabhakar, contributions can be made to the Canadian Diabetes Association.
SHARE OBITUARYSHARE
v.1.11.6