Hanumantha R. Bapu

Hanumantha Rao Bapu died peacefully at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, IL on Friday, July 2, 2021 at 87 years old.  Hanumu, as he was affectionally known, was born to parents the late Raghavendra Rao and Lakshmi Bai on April 12, 1934 in Bangalore (Bengaluru), India.  He was preceded in death by two half-brothers, Jayathirtha Rao (Nagarathna) and Prahalad Rao.  He was the oldest of his remaining 8 siblings.  He was an avid cricket fan, even serving as an umpire, trainer and commentator for many years in his younger days.

In the late 1960s, Hanumantha came to the United States to study industrial engineering at Kansas State University and the Illinois Institute of Technology.  He pursued the American dream by settling in Chicago with his new wife, the late Chandra Prabha and started his family.  A great source of pride was his home on the northwest side of Chicago.  He was friendly and generous especially to other immigrants from India.  As patriarch of the family, he will be deeply missed.

Hanumantha is survived by his son, Deepak (Pankaja) and daughter, Aparna; grandson, Arvind and granddaughter, Elina; brothers Panduranga (Geetha), Krishna Swamy (Hema) and Anatha Swamy (Raji); sisters, Shakuntala, Rakma (Murthy), Malathi (Raghavendra), Susheela (Srinivas) and Kumuda; numerous nieces and nephews; and relatives in India.

Hindu Pooja Service (family and friends), Wednesday, July 7, 2021, from 2 PM until time of Cremation, 4 PM, at HABEN Funeral Home & Crematory, 8057 Niles Center Road, Skokie.  An open-house style celebration of his life will be held Wednesday, July 14, 2021, at his home, 6635 North Onarga Avenue, Chicago, starting at 3 PM.

To honor Hanumantha, please make memorial contributions to the American Diabetes Association (diabetes.org), P.O. Box 7023, Merrifield, VA  22116-7023.

Letters of condolence to the family can be sent to Aparna Bapu, 6635 N. Onarga Avenue, Chicago, IL 60631.