Obituary of Chanchal Singh

Canton--

Dr. Chanchal Singh, 83, of 38 County Rte 29, Canton, passed away peacefully, Friday, May 12, 2017, at the home of his son and daughter-in-law, Shaili and Judy Singh of Potsdam, with his children at his bedside.

Dr. Singh was born April 9, 1934, in Singapore, the son of Kishan Singh & Chanan Kaur Sahota.  He was a 1956 graduate of Punjab University, India.  He completed a Masters of Economics in India.  He furthered his graduate mathematics studies at the University of California, Berkeley before completing his Masters of Mathematics from the University of Michigan in 1966.  Finally, he earned both a Masters and a Ph.D. in Statistics from Florida State University, the latter in 1972.

On August 22, 1966, he married Gursharan Kaur Sachar in Ann Harbor, MI.  The couple raised and nurtured two sons and a daughter.  The marriage ended in divorce after 37 years of marriage.  Despite divorcing, the two remained close friends and confidants until his passing.

Dr. Singh was an educator, starting with SUNY Potsdam, where he was an assistant Professor in Mathematics from 1966-69.  From 1972-2003 he was employed at St. Lawrence University as Professor of Mathematics.  While at SLU, he served as Chairman of the Math Department and was Editor of Mathematics journals and books.

He is survived by his loving children, Harpal (Sharmin Ahmed) Singh of Oakville, ON, Shailindar (Judy) Singh of Potsdam and Amrit Michelle Singh of Albany; one half-brother, Darshan Singh of CA and a half-sister of India.  He is also survived by six grandsons, Samir & Anis Singh of Oakville, ON, Kieran & Colin Singh of Potsdam and Naveen & Sohan Rutty of Albany.

Some of Dr. Singh's interests and hobbies were:  gardening, writing short stories (he was a member of the Canton Free Library Writer's Group), meditation, cooking, "character building" with his children, wood-working, stained glass, making apple cider and watching Indian films.  Most precious of all was time spent with family and friends.

In keeping with his religious beliefs, there will not be any calling hours.  A memorial service will be held on Saturday, June 17th at 2 pm in St. Lawrence University's Gunnison Chapel with a reception to follow.  Lawrence Funeral Home & Cremation Services are handling arrangements.

Memorial Donations may be made to St. Lawrence University Fund in the name of Dr. Chanchal Singh.