MY MENTOR

Sarup Padam has played a significant role in my life, as a father, a grandfather, a friend and most importantly a mentor. His generosity, work ethic, humility and selflessness are all qualities that I admire him for, and qualities I myself aspire to. He was a teacher of all things. His method was simple. He taught by example. When faced with a dilemma, I find myself coming back to one simple question. What would Sarup do? He always seemed to have the right answer for every situation. 

Sarup Padam came to North America when he was a similar age to what I am now. The difference being that I am already established and happy, he arrived at a time that immigrants were not always particularly welcome.

To be an immigrant is to be a person of hope, focus and ambition. It is to know that taking a step into the dark, the unknown, is necessary in search of the light. Throughout his journey he traveled by boat, slept on floors, and worked in labour camps. But he never lost his energy or hope throughout his journey. He came at a time where he didn't have a family here, so rather than feeling sorry for himself he began to create his own family. Whether it was going to the UBC library to make new friends or simply go through the public phone book and call people to build a connection. Sarup could relate to people from all walks of life. He was an empathetic man. He valued character over pedigree. He had a positive outlook on every situation. He looked for the good in each person and he usually found it. Greed was a word that did not exist in Sarup’s vocabulary or dictionary. 

Sarup and Jaswinder struggled through their efforts to have children and as was their nature, they dedicated their lives to take care of their extended family. They brought my dad, my pua ji, my cha cha jis, and my mamajis to Canada to start their respective journeys. I can say that I was definitely one of the luckiest kids in the world growing up to have him help raise me like his own son. He blessed everyone’s life no matter who he came in contact with and had such an amazing ability to connect with the younger generation. He lived a life in which, he ate well, dressed well, treated people kindly and with respect. His life was an example for the rest of us. 

As many of you know Sarup attended the University of Nevada where he studied to become a Civil Engineer. While studying, he used to work part time at the Casino’s and watching featured music artist shows was one of the perks of the job, that’s where he fell in love with jazz music. One of my favorite memories growing up was sitting with him in the living room and listening to his record player on which we used to play his favorite Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole & Frank Sinatra records time and time again. I would just watch him, he would be humming along to the tune with that smile on his face that would light up any room. 

Sarup was a man of few words, he didn’t just talk for the sake of talking but when he spoke his words had so much meaning. I wanted to leave you with some words that he said in his speech at my parents 25th anniversary:

“I have many things to say that are on my mind. I want to say something important today to all the parents, kids and everyone; kids however much time you have with your parents you need to enjoy it, every minute of it and for the parents to spend time with your kids, grand kids, and great grand kids, you should spend as much time together as you can. Since I came to Canada I’ve met so many people, why do I know so many people? Why do we see each other? Where did we meet each other? I think it's because I've known these friends in my past life, that's why our bonds are so strong. We are all going to have a wonderful time in our lives.”

Sarup Padam is the foundation of our family, though he left far too soon he lived a wonderful life. So let us celebrate his life and continue his legacy. Thank you Sarup Uncle. I love you, and will miss you. - Ravi Munday