Last week we lost our light-filled colleague, Anu Ramakrishan, at the age of 57 to glioblastoma and we still can’t believe she is gone.
A professional writer, Anu shared her journey on Indiaspora and we encourage you to read it in full. This excerpt makes it crystal clear what is important in life: “In March 2023, I discovered I had a malignant brain tumor and stage IV brain cancer. Glioblastoma is the most aggressive type of brain tumor, and people usually do not survive past 12-18 months. My surgeon gave me a prognosis of six months. When friends and acquaintances hear that I have brain cancer, they tend to break down, overcome by emotion. Many are hesitant to reach out, afraid that I am immersed in grief. I often end up being the one to cheer up the other person, reassuring them that I’m okay, as much as someone with a grade IV malignant glioblastoma can be okay. (To make matters worse, my tumor is both unmethylated and IDH wild type, which means that it is resistant to treatment.) So why do I believe that these past 11 months are the best ones of my life? The way I look at it, I have two choices. I can be filled with regret for all the months of my life that I will never have, people I will never see, and milestones that I will never celebrate. Or I can celebrate each moment of each day, right now.“
In 2011, Anu joined Executive Arrangements just months after her husband Umesh told EA President Margy Judd, “You need to meet my wife Anu. She would be great at that job”. We did and she was! Her kindness, collaborative nature, optimism, and wisdom were felt by everyone on our team. Every candidate or newcomer she worked with on our behalf was the beneficiary of her generosity, her zen nature, and her joyfulness. Who wouldn’t want to relocate to Cleveland/Akron after spending a day with Anu? Her energy was contagious!
Anu’s request to those she left behind is that we celebrate her life, and we will do just that. Now and again we will experience moments of grief but promise to return to the perspective that Anu asked of us. We will continue to be inspired by the example Anu set before us to live our lives in joy come what may.
A Golden Retriever foster mom, Anu had dogs that came from as far away as China, many of them arriving traumatized and malnourished. But the dogs flourished after basking in Anu’s healing care and were placed in forever homes. We encourage donations in her honor to Golden Treasures Rescue.
Executive Arrangements is a small company of just over a dozen full and part time employees, so when we lose someone, it’s impact is outsized and painful. Please take the time today to tell a few people that you love them and stop for a moment and think about how you can leave the world a more beautiful place when you’re gone, like Anu did.