Obituary of Venketraman K. Moorthy

It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you of the passing of our father/father-in-law, Venketraman Krishna Moorthy, affectionately known as V.K. (Veekay) Moorthy, born June 1, 1932 in Trivandrum, India. He passed away peacefully on October 2, 2018 at approximately 3:07 pm. He epitomized the meaning of the word husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brother, and uncle; he was gregarious, generous & a great listener. His determination and work ethic was unparalleled, and brought him great successes in his personal and professional life. He lived his life by the following quote from Dale Carnegie: Every day in every way, I’m becoming better and better.

He grew up in Trivandrum, and attended college in Madurai. Soon after graduating college, he moved to Bombay in 1952 and started working, eventually landing a job as Chief Accountant at Cementation Company Limited. After a few years, due to his persistence, and hard work, he joined Bakelite Hylam as Chief Financial Officer. Once Bakelite Hylam was taken over by Union Carbide, he became Treasurer and rose to Vice President of Union Carbide India. After working at Union Carbide India for several years, he received an overseas posting in 1983 and moved to Union Carbide Hong Kong Limited as General Manager/Director for all of Asia- Pacific. Following a stint in Hong Kong, he moved to Singapore and continued in his role as GM/Director of Union Carbide Asia Pacific until 1998, when he officially retired from Union Carbide. He received numerous accolades in his thirty-five plus years at Union Carbide, including the prestigious Chairman’s Award in 1997. Even with all of his successes at work, he was most devoted and dedicated to his family and friends.

Soon after moving to Bombay in 1952, he met and fell in love with our mother/mother-in-law, Lakshmi K. Moorthy, in 1958 through close friends. After meeting clandestinely and dating on the local train, they decided to marry on July 3, 1959, at which time, our mother/mother-in-law gave up her career as an income tax officer to dedicate her life to their family. With the promise of a good life, and financial security, they moved to a cozy home in Kalina, a suburb of Bombay. Within the first year of their marriage, in May 1960, they welcomed their precious daughter, and apple of their eye, Janaki (Jana), fondly named after his mother, who he lost during his teenage years.  After living in Kalina for a few years, they moved to Chembur, and lived in a ground floor duplex, and the building was named Jai. Once they welcomed their cherub of a son in November of 1962, they struggled to find a name, and conveniently named him Jai after that building. Our father was a family man first and foremost, and took care of his younger brother, Viswesh, his brother-in-law, Krishna, who both lived with them for many years, and his younger sisters, Vallibai and Kalyani. Following many joyous years raising their children, Jana and Jai, in their Chembur home filled with siblings, cousins, and extended family, they briefly moved to Calcutta before returning to South Bombay in 1976. After Jai and Jana completed college, they moved to his first overseas posting in Hong Kong. They lived in Hong Kong, and Singapore through the 1990’s, and eventually emigrated to the United States in 1998 with the sole purpose of being close to their children and grandchildren. They lived in Massachusetts with Jana and her husband, Dilip, but eventually moved to New Jersey and settled in next door to their son and daughter-in-law, Jai and Prema, in the sleepy town of Mahwah, where he remained until his death. For the past few years, he was also taken care of by Ceecee, who treated him and loved him like her own father. He was married to his wife Lakshmi for 59 years, and she remained diligently by his side every single day until his passing.    

He was a man who spoke thoughtfully, and in measured tone. He read voraciously and used self-help books as guidance. His advice was sought out by all those who knew him, and he was an icon/role model to many in the family. He was also an avid golfer. A testament to his strength and determination, he survived a tragic accident near Osaka, Japan while on a business trip in 1997 that almost cost him his life. Following numerous surgeries, and months of rehabilitation, he resumed his normal activities albeit he gave up his love of golf. As a family, we feel blessed to have had the “bonus 21 years” of his life. Although he was diagnosed with Primary Progressive Aphasia in his mid to late 70’s, he remained communicative and interactive through verbal and non-verbal cues through the years. He communicated with his endearing smile and laugh, and towards the end by squeezing of our hand. He was loved by all and will be dearly missed, but at the very end, he was surrounded by his immediate and close family.

He is survived by his wife, Lakshmi, his two children, Jana and Jai, Dilip, his son-in-law, and Prema, his daughter in-law, his grandchildren Vivek, Varun, Vinay, Riya, and his granddog, Chutney. He has one surviving sister, Kalyani, and her husband, N.S. Sharma & one brother, Viswesh, and his wife, Lalitha. He now joins his parents, his younger sister, Vallibai, and his brother-in-law V. Mahadevan.

May his soul rest in peace.