BELMONT, MA—Sachi Thanawala-Patel, a 39-year old mother of two and a resident of Belmont, MA, died on Thursday after she was struck by a van while walking on a crosswalk to work on Tuesday.
Her heart was donated to a 50-year old man and kidneys to a teen age girl and boy.
Ms. Thanawala-Patel is survived by her loving husband Aakash, her two adorable sons Arnav and Veer, who are 8 and 4 years old respectively. Her other immediate family includes her parents Gaurang and Daksha Thanawala; her parents-in-laws Jayendra and Rita Patel; Sachi’s siblings Dwiti & Varun, and their respective spouses Sidarth and Nandini; and her brother-in-law Aalok and his wife, Sajni. She also had 2 nieces and 1 nephew who she loved like her own children, and countless other family members and close friends, whose lives will be much less bright in absence of Sachi.
Ms. Thanawala-Patel met with an unfortunate accident while walking to work from her home in Belmont, and was seriously injured. She put up a brave fight for 2 days but ultimately succumbed to her injuries.
She was born in Ahmedabad, India and is the eldest of the three siblings; she lived in the USA since 2002. For anyone who knew Sachi, she lived her short life of 39 years wearing her heart on her sleeve, nurturing and giving every step of her way. An occupational therapist by profession, her life was dedicated to service.
“We have known her as bubbly loving baby, and a as an adult caring, compassionate and warm person,” said Jasmine Shah, a dance teacher and one of Ms. Thanawala-Patel’s relatives.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s office was quoted as saying that Ms. Thanawala-Patel was struck by a 2015 Ford Transit Van at the intersection of Sycamore Street and Lexington Street in Belmont at 8:25 AM on Tuesday.
She was declared dead from her injuries on Thursday at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. MassLive.com reported that the driver who crashed into Ms. Thanwala stayed on the scene and no charges have been filed in connection to the incident.
“This is a tragedy involving the loss of life of a Belmont resident walking in our community,” MassLive quoted Belmont Police Chief McLaughlin as saying in a statement. “Our hearts go out to the victim’s family during this difficult time.”
The crash remains under investigation by the Middlesex D.A.’s office, Massachusetts State Police and Belmont Police, according to MassLive.
The mother of two, Ms. Thanawala-Patel was the Director of Rehabilitation at Belmont Manor since March of 2016, according to the Belmontian. She was an occupational therapist with 12 years of clinical and management experience in Geriatric care at Belmont Manor, a nursing and rehabilitation home located a few blocks from the accident scene.
Funeral arrangements are as follows:
Date: Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Time: 11:00am to 1:30pm
Venue: Brasco & Sons Memorial Funeral Home, 773 Moody St, Waltham, MA 02453
(781-893-6260)
Dress Code: None
Private Cremation Ceremony (close friends & family)
Date: Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Time: 2:00pm to 3:00pm
Venue: Newton Crematory, 791 Walnut St, Newton Center, MA 02459.
