Amardip Randhawa passed away peacefully in his home in Falls Church on June 30, 2019 after a short illness at the age of 75.
Mr. Randhawa was born in the town of Gurdaspur in Punjab, India on Oct. 6, 1943 to Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Paramjit Kaur (Sukerchakia). He was the youngest of five children, and enjoyed a childhood spent outdoors and on the family farm. In school, he excelled in art, math, science, and athletics.
He wanted to come to America, and in 1963 received a full scholarship to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Architecture in 1969 and began his work in commercial and residential architecture soon after graduating. In 1971, he returned to India to marry Simran Brar, also an architect, before they began their life together in Virginia.
He designed several notable buildings in the area, including the Architects Building in Rosslyn, the Stouffers building in Crystal City, as well as the Sikh Gurdwara (temple) in Richmond, Virginia.
While working, he continued to play competitive field hockey for several Washington, D.C. teams and competed internationally, including a trip to the Soviet Union in 1989.
In 1986, Amardip and Simran ventured on their own professionally, specializing in custom homes in McLean, Great Falls, and Potomac, Maryland. In 2006, Randhawa, Inc. transitioned to speculative homes and focused most of their attention in the City of Falls Church, where he and his son Harjote (“Joey”) designed and built close to 50 homes in or around the Little City. In total, he designed and built over 100 homes in the Metropolitan area.
In 2010, Mr. Randhawa fulfilled a dream of owning a family farm in Virginia. He purchased land in Rappahannock County, Virginia and in a nod to his birth state, started 5 Rivers Vineyard. He ran 5 Rivers with the same passion and zeal as his design and build firm, planting and growing over 22,000 vines on 65 acres of land. These grapes, from cabernet franc to petit verdot to viognier, were produced and sold to nearby Virginia wineries.
An accomplished architect and builder, a vintner, a talented artist and an excellent athlete, Mr. Randhawa is most remembered as a kind and loving husband, father, brother, and friend; a charismatic gentleman with elegance and grace to match.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by his brother Retired Major General S.S. Randhawa, sister Mohinder Gill, sons Sunjeet and Harjote Randhawa, daughters-in-law Jennifer Stanford and Samara Randhawa, and grandchildren Zorah, Brooks, and Jussa.
Funeral services will be held at Fairfax Memorial Funeral Home (1934, 9902 Braddock Rd., Fairfax) on Saturday, July 13 from 1 – 2:30 p.m. and prayers services at Raj Khalsa Gurdwara (22821 Silverbrook Center Dr #160, Sterling from 3 – 5 p.m.
