Obituary of Santosh Bhardwaj (née Pathak)

Passed away early on the morning of Thursday, January 17, 2019 in a calm and peaceful state at her home. She left our world just as she had lived it for the 87 years of her life. This was achieved with a spirit of great satisfaction and contentment, which is also the literal meaning of her name, Santosh. She led an adventurous life spanning many continents, and education was a key hallmark of her life. She left her proud birth country of India to pursue the study of law at the Inns of Court in England, and then married Kapil Dev Bhardwaj (1928-2018). They made London, England their initial home and then crossed an ocean in 1968 to make London, Ontario home for their nearly 60 years of marriage. Her love of educating young children led her into the sphere of Montessori pre-school education, which emphasized a direct and tactile form of experiential learning focused on each individual child’s needs. This propelled her to become a successful teacher and eventually led her to create and successfully operate three early childhood education centres in London, Ontario. “Mrs. Bhardwaj’s” devotion, focus, and hard work enabled her to offer a caring and attentive hand in the education of countless children in our community. Her love of life, graceful confidence and deep sense of compassion was shared with her sons, Ratan and Rahul, daughter-in-law, Ritu, and grandchildren, Chaya, Devan and Arya Sitara, as well as surviving siblings, Brij, Krishna and Usha, and many others. She also had a great desire to help others, such as fellow women and newcomers to Canada, succeed in life; and started the local chapter of the Association of Women of India in Canada (AWIC). She savoured her life thoroughly, as seen through the glitter of her eyes and sense of fun, via her love of travelling the world with curiosity, enjoying simple and small victories on a daily basis, and maintaining deep, meaningful connections with family and friends in the community. One of her best attributes was having a deep well of instinctive compassion which she could readily channel to help young children in need of comfort, women and newcomers in need of a helping hand, and family members who she could help nudge along the path of life. A funeral and Celebration of Life will be conducted Saturday, January 26, 2019, from 10:00-11:30 a.m., at WESTVIEW FUNERAL CHAPEL, 709 Wonderland Road North, London. A private ceremony and cremation witnessing will follow at Mount Pleasant Cemetery & Crematorium.