Joseph Sunder Devadanam

Family and friends gathered this weekend at First Methodist Church Houston to celebrate the life of Joseph Sunder Devadanam, a loving husband, father and friend to all whom he met, who passed peacefully away to The Lord on Friday, January 20, 2012, at his Lake Olympia home in Missouri City, Texas. He was 69 years old.

Joseph was born January 31, 1942 in Hyderabad, India, the oldest son of Drs. Joseph K. and Elizabeth K. Devadanam. An exceedingly clever young boy, Joseph delighted in taking apart home appliances and reassembling them back—much to the chagrin of his parents. He spent his childhood days with his brothers Vijay and Vasanth and sisters Shanthakka and Usha, often leaving the comforts of his regal Hyderabad neighborhood and venturing to the rural areas, where he watched his father, a Director of Veterinary Medicine, care for animals. He also gained hands-on medical exposure while accompanying his mother Elizabeth to rural hospitals in South India. He learned the value of faith through his parents and his uncle, Bishop Gabriel Sundaram, who presided over the Methodist Church of South India.

He then attended the exclusive Hyderabad Public School, the city’s most prestigious private secondary learning institution. A tremendously gifted athlete, Joseph his school’s cricket, soccer and basketball team, and excelled at track and field events. His classmates and friends would become a who’s-who of Hyderabad—and India’s—future leaders.

After finishing engineering training, and working for the Voltas Limited air conditioning company, Joseph opened his own air conditioning business, Summer Comforters. He quickly secured exclusive contracts with many of Hyderabad’s government facilities and the highly coveted Coca-Cola refinery. Within months, Summer Comforters went from a young man’s startup to thriving local, regional and statewide business.

As soon as Joseph grew his business to his desired goal, he moved on to the next dream: a young girl from Hyderabad named Sona Paul, who phoned Mr. Devadanam by mistake on fated day. Joseph, a young romantic, was smitten with her voice, and persuaded her to stay on the phone and call him the next day—his birthday. A daring, secretive and delightfully romantic courtship that could only be compared to Romeo and Juliet followed, and the two married January 7, 1970.

Newly married to a blushing, lovely bride 10 years his junior, Mr. Devadanam set his sights on Canada. Once he established his residence in Toronto, Sona joined him, and Joseph then helped a host of friends and family journey from India to Canada and lay roots. He managed a staff at the famed Pilkington Glass Factory and welcomed his first son, Stephen in 1973.

The challenge of Canada complete, Joseph set his sights on America. His father, who earned his Ph.D. in Genetics from Purdue University and Masters degree in Theology from Northwestern University, preached the greatness of America, a place he called “a truly Christian country.” Joseph looked no further than Texas, which held a special place in his heart, as his father advised Texas A&M University in Brahman bull breeding, and was an official visiting dignitary from India to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. By 1979, Joseph, Sona and Stephen were in Houston, and Joseph joined Houston-based Customer Controls Company and later, welcomed his second son, Joseph, in 1982.

The lure of the “Big ’80s” oil and gas boom prompted Joseph to launch Sona International, a currency and commodities exchange firm. He rubbed elbows with Houston’s elite during Houston’s Urban Cowboy era, and secured relationships that would fuel and grow his business for the next 15 years.

Joseph retired at age 52, and spent his remaining years watching his sons graduate high school and college and enjoy careers in communications media and music. Perhaps his greatest source of pride was watching his wife Sona begin her career as a banking assistant in Canada in 1972, and grow to her current position as First Vice President for Chase Bank. He became a father-in-law in 2006, welcoming his son’s high school sweetheart Amy McDowell to the Devadanam family. In the twilight years of his life, he and he and Sona traveled, enjoyed their home in Lake Olympia, and basked in the laughter and love of family and friends who surrounded. He was a guardian to all he met and loved, and throwback to royal India and old-school glamour. He now watches over his sons Stephen and Joseph, and the love of his life for 42 years, Sona.

Joseph is preceded by his parents Joseph K. and Elizabeth Devadanam, and his brother Vijay Devadanam. He is survived by his wife of 42 years Sona Devadanam; sons Stephen and Joseph; and daughter-in-law Amy McDowell Devadanam. He is also survived by sisters Shanthi Devadanam and Usha Chatterjee; brother Vasanth Devadanam; sister-in-law Meera Devadanam and nephews Anoop Chatterjee, Ajay Devadanam, Vinesh Chatterjee, Vinay and Sunil Devadanam and niece Supriyah Vasanth. He also counts his sons friends as his cherished nephews and nieces.

The family asks that you visit www.settegastkopf.com to leave messages to Joseph, Sona, Stephen and Joey, and learn how you can leave tributes, donations and memorials in honor of Joseph S. Devadanam—a dashing, noble, and loving one-of-a-kind.