Adarsh K. Nanda
Nanda, Mrs. Adarsh Kumari
With great sadness, we share the passing of our beloved mom, auntie, Naniji and Dadima, Adarsh Nanda on July 26, 2025, at the age of 92 or as she liked to say 29!
Adarsh will be greatly missed by her children Deepti (Mike), Alok (Gillian), and Atul (Heidi), grandchildren Neesha (Rob), Tara, Dylan, Tej, Dysan and Dane; great grandchildren Milana and Kaia; nephew Sonny (Marlene), niece Chhavi (Rohit). Mom is preceded in death by her husband Prem, sister Ved and brothers Subhash and Virender.
Adarsh was born on October 18, 1931 (according to her family, but 1932 according to her passport), in Lahore, India to Lila Vati and Tej Bhan Dev. She was an amazing woman and a true trailblazer. She was a very learned woman who obtained multiple degrees from various institutions.
After completing her Matriculation and succeeding in the Board Exams, Adarsh obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1952; her Bachelor of Teaching in 1953 both, at Punjab University in India. In 1956, she went back to the Faculty of Arts to obtain a Master of Arts degree. In 1965, she was one of 10 people who won a Fulbright Scholarship to travel to the U.S. as a Teacher Educator to study Audio Visual Aids. Upon returning to India in 1966, she continued to teach at Mahesh Teacher’s College in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. In 1969, she obtained a Master of Education degree at the University of Poona.
In 1969, she came to Canada to make a better life for her children and to put her education to use. She began teaching elementary kids in Kingston, Ontario and then moved the family to Kingsville, Ontario to join her husband who was teaching at Leamington High School. Adarsh continued to be a lifelong learner and took various courses over the years to qualify for the highest category as a teacher.
She impacted many students over her 30-year teaching career in India as well as at Jack Miner Public School. She was an avid athlete in her younger years but gave it up when she became a mother. Her competitive spirit remained until the end. She loved to win, especially games like Spoons and Musical Chairs.
Prem and Adarsh were avid travelers. They obtained a pop-up trailer and a station wagon to expose the kids to the vastness and beauty of Canada. Each summer they would load up the family and visit one of the coasts or go into the States to go camping. They visited many countries on 5 of the 7 continents.
Adarsh’s friends and family will miss her sense of humour, her fun-loving energy and the ability to engage with perfect strangers! Most of all we will miss the love she showed all of us through her hugs, kisses or smile. Adarsh’s intelligence, strength, determination and curiosity is her legacy to her children and grandchildren.
Adarsh and Prem moved to the Village by the Arboretum, Guelph in 2007. Where they enjoyed many years there, they have many fond memories of friends and neighbours in the community.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, August 1st, 2025, at 11 am at the WALL-CUSTANCE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL, 206 Norfolk St., Guelph. Reception to follow in the Wall-Custance Family Reception Centre. Flowers and condolences may be sent to the funeral home. Alternatively, the family would appreciate donations made to either Guelph General Hospital, Stroke Unit or to Groves Memorial Hospital, Palliative Care Unit.
The family would like to thank all the staff who took excellent care of mom over the past few weeks.
She will be forever remembered in our hearts.
A tree will be planted in memory of Adarsh K. Nanda in the Wall-Custance Memorial Forest.