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Taylor Community Mourns the Passing of YFC India Director Prabha George

09.15.2009

Prabhakaran George, national director of Youth For Christ India and a longtime friend of Taylor Prabha GeorgeUniversity, died Sunday in Bangalore, India.

George, who visited the Taylor campus on several occasions and also facilitated numerous Taylor Lighthouse trips to India, was participating in YFC staff training sessions in Bangalore and died from a sudden illness.

"Prabha has been one of our most faithful international partners for 15 years," said Jenny Collins, director of Lighthouse at Taylor University. "He was honored as a Distinguished Friend of the University at Homecoming in the fall of 2007; he visited campus often and shared in chapel and classes numerous times. He helped create powerful month-long learning and ministry experiences for more than 190 Taylor students and faculty/staff sponsors."

Ajith Fernando, national director of Youth For Christ in Sri Lanka, was with George during a YFC meeting in Sri Lanka last week and summarized his thoughts of George in an e-mail message to Collins.

"One thing that I realized afresh last week was how much Prabha loved youth and how urgently he wanted to take the gospel to them," Fernando said. "He was talking all the time about the future of YFC India and his desire to leave it strong when he stepped aside from leadership. He was deeply concerned for the welfare of the staff-the sign of a true leader. On his urging, we have put in place a plan to minister to the veteran workers of YFC for whom he carried a special burden-especially that they would maintain their passion for the mission of Youth for Christ, and that they would motivate younger staff to blaze new trails for the gospel.

Prabha George and family"Prabha had a wonderful record in YFC," he continued. "He was first and foremost a grassroots youth worker. This is what qualified him for the National Directorship of YFC. In places like the Nilgiris and Delhi, he directed very effective YFC chapters that not only led many youth to Christ, but developed a significant number of leaders who are now serving Christ with much distinction within and without YFC. He was a discipler of younger leaders."

George is survived by his wife his wife Nilo, daughter Joanna, son Andy and daughter-in-law Dipti. Funeral services were scheduled for today (Tuesday, Sept. 15) and a memorial service is planned for Wednesday.

 

About Taylor University: Founded in 1846, Taylor University is an interdenominational liberal arts university of evangelical faith located in Upland, Ind. The 2010 U.S. News and World Report survey America's Best Colleges ranked Taylor the number one Baccalaureate College in the Midwest. It marked Taylor's third straight top ranking following ten straight years of being ranked in the region's Top Three.
 
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