A message from his wife Ms. Ayesha Afridi
It’s hard to write a eulogy for one’s husband without sounding biased or untruthful. I will try to be as even handed as possible.
Ronny to me was not just a husband but an evolving soul who grew with the years – he was a friend, partner a cohort, but most of all a pure soul. Always seeking an unconditional love from mothers, daughters, brothers, sisters and soulmates – not knowing that the love he sought was always there watching over him silently but eternally.
After Ronnys passing there was an absolute deluge of tributes both from his Army comrades, his banking colleagues and his many friends. The army was Ronny’s one true love. His greatest regret and his greatest love. Regret because he foolishly left it and yearned all his life to be back where he truly belonged; his greatest love because there was no other time in his life that he loved more.
His army friends were the salt of the earth and remained so till one after another they left for distant shores only to be joined up once again with Ronny in company Alpha Bravo or Charlie.
Ronny stepped into the banking world as a fifty-year-old midcareer neophyte but grew into a whole new persona with the help of so many wonderful mentors till he became a mentor himself to so many young aspiring bankers. His colleagues at every bank he worked at were lifelong friends. He helped every and anyone he could in every possible way. From one that needed to get one’s daughter into hospital, to someone who needed a job or a young woman who started hesitantly as a greeter and went on to become Head of Service Quality in other banks. He was always proud of anyone who did well in his “Dream Team”.
Ronny never spoke of what he had done for anyone and was just quietly satisfied at their achievements. He never forgot that he had been in the same position himself and without wonderful mentors and friends of his own, he would never have made it!
Ronny was blessed in the mentor who loved him to the extent that he took him to every bank he headed as part of his core team – time and again he saved our family in every which way imaginable. To him and his army friends who cared so very deeply for Ronny and to the countless friends we both had along the way who helped us unimaginably. Thank you from my heart.
Ronny was blessed by angels in the guise of friends. The late in life friend who saved his life for as long as was permitted who opened his workplace and his heart for Ronnys wellbeing. Only the truly blessed are afforded such kindness.
Friends closer than family with whom we lived, when Ronny was ill and many others whose kindness both of us could never forget or repay. I thank you for Ronny, for the love, the empathy and above all for the kindness you showed us and our family.
His love for his family and his roots was truly strong. He loved being “Afridi” but equally “El-Edroos”. He was gentle and ever smiling even at the end. He was a kind man, a gentle man, a helpful man.
He was an officer and a gentleman. He lived by the credo that we both agreed upon early in our lives. There is no earthly reason Allah has put us on this earth – Prince or Pauper – but to help someone and in doing so be in Someone’s Good Memory.
I know he will always be mine.
In Loving Memory of
Major “Ronny” Afridi
Probyn’s Horse | Citibank
Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un
My dearest friend and brother, Major Ronny Afridi, passed away early this morning — so suddenly, so quietly, that the heart struggles to accept what the mind now knows.
I first met Ronny in the late 1950s — he at Bahawalpur Public School, and I at Karachi Grammar School — through inter-school matches that unknowingly began a lifelong bond. Fate had more in store for us, and we went on to join the Army together, I a course junior, but always his brother in spirit.
Over the decades, that friendship only deepened — extending warmly to his beloved twin brother Johnny. Through all of life’s turns, Ronny remained constant: a man of towering presence — 6 ft 2 — but with a heart even larger. A gentle giant, caring to the core, and an officer and gentleman of the highest order.
Just a couple of days ago, he mentioned he was in hospital for what seemed like a simple backache… and today he is gone. I didn’t even get the chance to speak to him one last time.
That silence will stay with me. My heart weeps. Words feel insufficient. Too many years, too many memories, too much shared life — and now this sudden void. Life can indeed be cruel.
Those who knew Ronny were fortunate. Those who did not have truly missed knowing a rare soul.
Dua
Ya Allah,We raise our hands for our beloved Ronny — a man of strength, honor, and immense kindness.Forgive his shortcomings, overlook his faults, and fill his grave with light, peace, and mercy. Expand his resting place and make it a garden from the gardens of Jannah. Grant him the highest مقام in Jannat al Firdaus, among the righteous and the truthful. Reward him for every kindness he showed, every heart he touched, every duty he fulfilled with dignity. Ya Rabb, grant sabr to his family — to his brother Johnny, and to all who loved him — and to those of us who feel this loss so deeply. Replace our grief with cherished memories, and reunite us with him in a place where there is no pain, no separation. Let his legacy of goodness live on, and keep his light alive in our hearts until we meet again. Ameen. You will be missed more than words can ever express, my dear friend & brother. May Allah grant you eternal peace. Ameen.
From my heart and soul,
Nasir Ahmed Khan
