Professor T.P. Srinivasan died peacefully on June 8, 2013, in his Palo Alto, California, home. His wife of 49 years, Saroja, as well as his children, Srija, Srinija, Srikanth, son-in-law, Brad, and grandchildren, Akhil, Maya and Vikram, were at his side during his last days of declining health.

Professor Srinivasan was born in India in 1932, and moved to the United States as a Fulbright Scholar in 1961 at the University of California, Berkeley. He moved to Lawrence in 1968 and served on the Kansas University Mathematics faculty for 32 years, until 2000, before he and his wife moved to California upon their retirement. During his Lawrence years, Professor Srinivasan served in many leadership capacities at KU, including chairing the Math department and the Faculty-Senate, and he and his family served as a welcoming and supportive resource for many university students and faculty from India and other countries who chose to make Lawrence their home. Professor Srinivasan and his family were active in many local efforts in education, civic and political issues, arts and culture, and he, along with the rest of his family, adopted a love of the Kansas Jayhawks basketball team. He was also an avid runner, recognized and known by many Lawrence residents as he jogged by regularly, and he always offered a relaxed smile and wave, even when completing a marathon. His family is deeply appreciative of the many special friends who enriched their Lawrence years and remained in touch with them and took an interest in the lives of Professor Srinivasan’s children and grandchildren.

Professor Srinivasan is survived by the family members listed above, who will honor him at a Hindu ceremony in his Palo Alto home on Sunday, June 23rd. [from the Lawrence Journal-World]

TP Srinivasan was an early member of the noon running group who occasionally competed -- very well -- in longer races. Our records from those years are incomplete, especially for the KU Relays Marathon, but we know that he ran it in 1977, '79, and '80, with a best time of 3:03:51 in 1979 at age 46.

In 1978, he ran a 25K in 1:45:20, meaning five back-to-back 5Ks at 21 minutes, at age 45. He was one of 14 members of the noon group who took part in that race in Shawnee Mission Park on that "beautiful, sunny day, a perfect day for running."

He also was a member of the KU team in the short-lived Inter-University Faculty Competion, a track meet in which university teams exchanged results by mail. He was part of the team in the 1974-75, 75-76, and 76-77 school years, competing at distances from 440 yards to 10 miles. In two of those years, he ranked in the top 10 nationally at 5 miles and 10 miles in the over-40 age division. He also took part in the 1-mile relay competition in 1973 as a member of the 10-man math department team -- yes, 10 runners from the math department alone (there were 15 at one point).

After the 1980 KU Relays Marathon, his only race that we have a record of is the 1985 Maple Leaf 10K, a 42:19 at age 52, still our fourth-fastest individual in the 50-54 age group.

He also took part in our annual group runs from the first year until 1998.

--Dick Lipsey<

From Mike Kelly:

"Sri" Srinivasan was a great educator, a wonderful person and a dedicated runner. We used to joke that you could never hear "Sri's" footsteps when you ran next to him. As a runner, he was as light as a feather. His foot strike was efficient and almost totally silent. "Sri" would allow me to tease him unmercifully and show no irritation towards me for having done so. I was blessed to have enjoyed his friendship. I will long remember "Sri" sharing his joy of running with me and all the KU MadDogs. My deepest sympathies go out to his family and to those of you who knew him far better than I did.

1980 group run; Sri behind Jim Halle and in front of Grover Everett

From Bob Hughes:

Sri was a consummate gentleman and a skilled, cerebral runner.  He knew what he had to give on a course and marshaled his energy very efficiently.  He had a refreshing sense of humor on a run or in an administrative capacity which confirmed his competence in both physical and mental endeavors. Sri brought peace and confidence to those around him and made the road and the world a better place.  His memory will continue to do so.

1995 group run; Sri between Mohamed and Cheryl Miller

From Bob Hanzlik:

A small group of us were jogging today [6/12/13] and at 17th & Louisiana bumped into a neighbor of Ed Morris' who saw Fred and stopped us to comment on TP. I remember him from my early days with the MadDogs (starting around '76); even before I joined the group I would see him running on the street, or in the locker room.
He was short to medium height, very very thin, and had (as I recall) a very unique gait and posture when he ran. In my memory of him he didn't punch his forearms forward and back very much; instead his arms often hung down almost
straight rather than bent, with just a little rotation from the shoulder, but with palms facing back, his wrists would flap so that his fingers went forward and back very noticeably. In the [1980 KU Relays Marathon] photo he seems to be moving his arms in the usual way, but he's also going hard downhill. I never got to know him very well through conversation, but my impression was that when running he could get in a groove and go almost forever. The time on his photo also suggests that.

1988 group run; Sri at right next to Frank Hefner

From Ray Tricker:

I remember Sri and am sorry to hear that he has passed. I remember running with him in our pack runs during the lunch hours at KU. My condolences to his family.