Kumudini "Asha" V. Abhyankar

  Born in Mumbai, India on May 28, 1938, Asha Abhyankar began her life's journey. She was the oldest of three siblings born to Narayan and Susheela Ambardekar. Asha grew up in Tara Baag Estates in the Mumbai area and attended Ram Mohan English School through high school graduation. She later attended KC College and received a Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry. She was the first woman at the college to receive a 100% in Chemistry. Later, she worked as a Chemist at Hoescht Pharmaceuticals in India. Asha trained a Chemist at the Pharmaceutical Company who later married her cousin, Shobha Gore. Asha changed her career many times throughout her life. She went from being a Chemist, to becoming a math and science teacher, to ultimately becoming an accounting professional in the United States.   In 1966, she met and married Vasant Abhyankar and moved to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where they both taught at Prince Moconan school. Asha was known as a strict teacher. She lived in Ethiopia for 13 years and during this time she and her husband had two children Anuradha and Anupama. Asha and Vasant loved to travel. They visited places such as Blue Nile Falls, Djibouti and they made several trips to India. After Halle Selassie was overthrown, they uprooted their family and moved to India and then made the journey to the United States.   Asha absolutely adored her family. She always told stories to her daughters about growing up in India and losing her father at a young age. She quickly became responsible for helping to raise her brothers. Once in the United States, however, her brothers helped her acclimate and settle into her new life in the States. She continued raising her daughters in America. Her love and constant worrying (as she was known for) for her family never stopped.   Six years before her passing she suffered a terrible accident and while she was getting wheeled away for surgery, she was directing her daughters on what medications their father took and how to take care of him while she underwent spinal cord surgery.   Her determination and resilience were absolutely remarkable. Given a dismal prognosis of never being able to walk again, doctors were amazed that the spinal cord injury didn't impair her mental faculties even a little bit. She never stopped trying to improve her health. Her determination led her to be able to walk and learn to do things in life a little differently than others.   In Asha’s younger days, she was a table tennis champion and loved playing table tennis into her 70s. In her youth, Asha was an Indian classical dancer who performed throughout India. Her granddaughter has taken after her; she is a dancer and has performed across the USA. Jackie is also a health and fitness nut much like her grandmother. Asha's hobbies included cooking, exercising and taking care of her health. Some would consider her a health nut and exercise enthusiast. Both grandchildren have gotten their love for succulent Indian food from their grandmother's cooking. Her daughters, Anuradha and Anupama, have followed their mothers love for cooking. Anupama loves cooking food and Anuradha loves baking desserts.