Obituary of Dr. Bipin GANATRA

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. Bipin Ganatra on June 6, 2013 at the age of 84 years. He passed away peacefully at the Foothills Medical Centre after a long illness. He was born in Bombay, India to Santok and Harkhji Ganatra. He was predeceased by six sisters and one brother. At the age of 11 he accompanied his father and youngest sister to Uganda where he received schooling until he was 18. He went to India for undergraduate studies at Wilson College, Bombay and entered the medical program at Grant Medical College in 1951. During this time he was supported by many family members and classmates. He received an MBBS degree in 1957 and went to London School of Tropical Diseases for post-graduate training. He married his wife Dr. Kamal Soni in 1958 in Glasgow, Scotland. Kampala, Uganda was home for the next 13 years until he and his family emigrated to London, UK and eventually to Calgary. He practiced medicine in Calgary until 2004. He is survived by his loving wife, Kamal, his daughter Seema, his son-in-law John Valentine and his granddaughter Anika. He will be missed by his sisters-in-law Shashi, Raj and Usha, his brother-in-law Som, his nephew Sandeep and many other family members and friends including Hansa and Dr. Manu Patel and Eve Sampson. He was adored by his nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews (particularly Ashwin, Aruna, Mina, Lata, Vivek. He volunteered for many causes including the Overseas Students Association, Bombay, Round Table, Rotary Club, Polio Clinic (Uganda), Raga Mala Music Society, Calgary Multicultural Centre Association, India Canada Association and Calgary Indo Canadian Centre Association. He loved his family tremendously and was generous, caring, protective and compassionate. He was highly intellectual and an excellent advisor in most matters. He stood firmly for what he believed in and was a perfectionist. He loved listening to various genres of Indian music, was an avid reader of current events, politics and investing and loved spending time with his close friends and family. He had many other interests including photography, gardening, travelling and visual arts. Later in life he grew to enjoy golf, computers and other electronic gadgets. One of his favorite places was Fairmont Hot Springs where many wonderful family holidays were spent with close friends. A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, June 15, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. at McInnis and Holloway’s “Chapel of Bells”, 2720 Centre Street North. Condolences may be sent through www.hffs.com. If friends so desire, donations in memory of Dr. Bipin Ganatra can be made to support cardiac research at the University of Calgary’s Libin Cardiovascular Institute. Please send cheques (payable to the University of Calgary) to the Faculty of Medicine Fund Development Office, University of Calgary at 3330 Hospital Dr. NW, Calgary, AB. T2N 4N1. HERITAGE FUNERAL SERVICES “Calgary Crematorium Chapel” Telephone: (403) 299-0111