A Tribute to Doctor Bombay

As I mentioned to all of you in an earlier post, my best friend's father (who was also a dear friend of mine), died recently. Well why digging through some old pictures I found some of "Doc" and decided to share them with you. We called him "Doctor Bombay" because he was from Bombay, India. Above he is napping with one of his dogs! The man truly loved animals!


To the right you see him talking to me and my ex-husband and my son who are sitting in the car. And yes, there is his dog in the background!
Here he is on the left holding my son. You can tell these are several years old since my son just turned 17 last week. Doesn't he remind you of Omar Sharif from Doctor Zhivago?







And here he is on our boat, don't ask me what he was eating! Below I have also included part of his obituary. We love and miss you Doctor Bombay!


BHARAT (BOB) JAYDEV KAPADIA, resident of Santa Maria, CA Died at age 63 Saturday, March 11, 2006 at 2:55am. Mr. Kapadia died from terminal cancer after being rushed to MARION HOSPITAL when his condition worsened. He passed away peacefully with family members at his side.

He was born on March 01, 1943 in Bombay, India and even as a small boy, Bob had a vision of a more abundant life for himself in America. After leaving his homeland and getting his Bachelors Degree, Bob made his way to California, the land of opportunity where he met Linda Linder. They soon married and had two children, a daughter Renee and a son Robert. His vision and determination continued throughout his life which lead him to become the owner of his own business, "Bombay Packaging", in San Diego.

Bob was survived by his two children and four granddaughters. His daughter, Renee Renuka Corcovelos and husband Andrew, and their two children Briana, 16, and Mariah, 14, along with his son - Robert Santana Kapadia and wife Erica with their twins, Shanee and Shalyn, 11. The Memorial Service (and Hindu religious ceremony) was held at 1pm, Thursday, March 16 at the Dudley Hoffman Mortuary, in Santa Maria.

Though our hearts are filled with much sadness on this day, our message should not be one of despair, but one of love and celebration. For anyone who knew Bharat (Bob) Kapadia, (whom we all called "Doctor Bombay"), knew how much he loved to make others laugh. He was a master storyteller and could keep people entertained with endless tales provoking gales of laughter. His stories were ultimately about people, because his preoccupation in life WAS with people. ALL kinds of people!! For you see everyone was welcome in Dr. Bombay’s circle of friends, as he was a man without prejudice.

His many friendships crossed the barriers of race and cultural background, crossed through barriers of age and generation, and even crossed the barriers of social position and educational background. And when Dr. Bombay bonded with you, believe me, he bonded with you for life. If you hadn’t seen him for quite some time, years even, he would always greet you with that, "Well Hello Stranger", flash you one of his big smiles while he scooped you up in one of his back-patting hugs and you’d pick up right where you left off! This man who in big and small ways, while he was still alive, never stopped trying to make others feel good, was always generous with his time and would do absolutely anything for you if it was humanly possible.

His was a life worth emulating, a life of great faith and generosity, a life of service to others, and a life of simple joys. But for someone who spent a lifetime actively seeking out great levels of interaction with others, he was himself a very private man of the Hindu faith. Bob was a man who knew a hard day's work and never complained about the cards fate dealt him. For him, the possibilities in life always outweighed the risks of personal loss or rejection. His vision in life always gave him the courage to take the risks and the courage to act.

So while we mourn the loss of such a great person, we should not lose sight of these ideals which Bob found so important. He would want us to laugh again and celebrate our memories of him.

Bob Kapadia:

OUTRAGEOUS? Sometimes.
INAPPROPRIATE? Occasionally.
COOL? Most definitely.

But DULL? Never!

Namasté to you, Bharat Jaydev Kapadia.

"I honor the place in you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place in you that is of love, of truth, of light, and of peace. When you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, WE ARE ONE!"