Neha Ganju Tanna
January 5, 1982 - October 23, 2016

Neha Ganju Tanna (34), a young and beautiful woman, passed away on October 23, 2016 due to metastatis of kidney cancer. Originally hailing from the State of Jammu & Kashmir in India, Neha moved to the United States with her family in the 1990s and settled in Miami, Florida. Neha is survived by her parents Deepak Ganju and Chandramukhi Ganju, her spouse Kartikeya Tanna and her three year old daughter Aariyana Tanna.
Full of care and love for everyone she ever met, she had an innate ability to warm the saddest of hearts. While her beauty and charm would light up the surroundings, her incomparably pure soul could deeply touch people's hearts. She was modern in her demeanor and style, yet firmly rooted in Kashmiri and Indian traditions.
When cancer struck, it was a jolt she faced bravely and smilingly. Life, for her, was a gift which she always experienced and lived to the fullest. How could a disease possibly stop that? She took full charge of what confronted her refusing to depend on anyone. Whether it was following up on hospital visits, briefing several doctors about the precise nature of her problem, researching on new developments, battling things out with the insurance company or planning contingencies - Neha was in control of her life.
This quality comes from her educational training and experience in Emergency and Crisis Management. After graduating high school from Miami, Neha obtained a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Florida in May 2005. Thereafter, she obtained a Master of Science in Systems Engineering and Engineering Management from the George Washington University with a focus on Crisis, Emergency and Risk Management.
She occupied managerial and leadership positions at globally renowned companies such as Frito-Lay and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. Since December 2009, Neha worked for Fannie Mae and its contractor G4S managing and leading the emergency incident management center with a brief sabbatical in 2013-2014 when she pursued an opportunity in India.
She had a keen attachment to causes which moved her deeply. She spent three months in Mumbai, India teaching underprivileged and specially-abled kids at The Spastics Society of India (now renamed Able Disabled All People Together - ADAPT providing education and treatment for children suffering from cerebral palsy) and St. Catherine's Home of Mumbai. During this tenure, she donated several hundred books for the needy. Since coming to the United States, Neha also actively participated in advocating the cause of Kashmiri Pandits who suffered brutality and exodus in the late 1980s from their own homeland.
Although her family migrated to the United States when she was 11, she held her Indian roots firmly with her. A gift she asked for on her high school graduation was to travel all around the religious places of worship in her native country India and learn more about her roots.
She had a soft corner for performing arts. Dance was her first love. Beginning at a young age, she would devote hours into giving a dance performance at family functions. After getting into college, she continued pursuing her love participating in performing arts through her leadership roles in student organizations.
Her friends fondly remember her as a mother figure taking care of each one of them with a deep sense of affection and protectiveness. When she spoke to someone in a crowded room, she made one feel as if he/she was the only one who mattered. As a mother, she was meticulous. Even in severe pain in hospital, she ensured her daughter's hair were combed and tied perfectly. She called her pre-school regularly to keep herself informed of Aariyana's progress.
As treatments available in modern medical science failed to show positive results, that did not dampen her spirit one bit. She moved into a new apartment in April 2016 and formulated ideas to set up her daughter's room. She asked her father to build a deck in his backyard that leads to a lake and bought kayaks to go in the water. She planned trips with family including one to Puerto Rico. She bought furniture and set up the apartment.
She even continued working remotely for Fannie Mae/G4S till the last week submitting the team what they were banking on from her. The spirit to live never died.
Funeral Details:
Fred Hunters Funeral Home & Crematory
6301 Taft Street
Hollywood, F/L 33024
Tel: 954-989-1550
Date: Thursday, October 27th 2016
Time:12 P.M to 2 P.M
Neha's family requests that, in lieu of flowers, contributions be given in her memory to any organization which does research on kidney cancer (renal cell carcinoma).

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