Shashikant Parekh, who has died aged 82 of Covid-19, was a local hero to the community in Stepney, east London. He served and supported our only pharmacy, Medichem, on White Horse Lane for the last 20 years. He worked as shop assistant, counsellor, bookkeeper and the backbone of this very busy and popular pharmacy, and was known by his customers as “Uncle”. He had helped purchase the pharmacy in 2000 with his son, Mayur, a qualified pharmacist, who still practises there, serving an ever larger and more diverse community.
Shashikant was born in Lindi, Tanzania. His father, Jethalal, was an entrepreneur who started his own retail business at a young age after migrating from India. His mother, Jayakuvar, taught herself religious verses and together they instilled strong humanitarian values into their nine children – three boys and six girls. After completing his secondary school education in local Indian schools in Tanzania, Shashikant joined the family business.
In his spare time he was a keen sportsman who played cricket and loved to swim in the Indian Ocean. He married Pravina Shah in 1961. They had three children, Mayur, Amita and Anandi, and together threw themselves into local community affairs, supporting the Hindu Temple, several Muslim organisations and a mission hospital.
In 1979 they decided to join some of their siblings in London and moved to Ilford in 1979. Shashikant and Pravina quickly found jobs locally and worked in a warehouse in Spitalfields until they bought the pharmacy in 2000. As well as working together, the family all lived together happily in Chigwell, with Mayur, his wife, Heena and their daughter, Nishka.
Regular customers at Medichem could rely on prompt and friendly service from “Uncle”. He was respected for his attention and reliability, and was a popular elder of the Stepney community. Mayur described his father as a great teacher and, although he was a man of few words, everything he did say was wise and helpful.
Shashikant is survived by his children, and four grandchildren, Nishka, Krupa, Aarav and Anika.
