Shailesh "Sammy" "Bhailu" Patel

           It is with a heavy heart that we announce that Shaileshkumar Shashikant Patel, better
known as “Sammy” and “Bhailu” to his loved ones, passed away peacefully on Saturday, March
7, 2026 at the age of 56.

          Sammy was born on November 30, 1969, in Anand, Gujarat, India, to Jyotiben and
Shashikant Patel. He was the youngest of four children, with two sisters and one brother. In
1974, Sammy moved to the United States with his family, where they settled in Yonkers, New
York, before later moving to Congers.

           Sammy attended the State University of New York at New Paltz, where he was a proud
member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He graduated in 1993 with a degree in Business
Administration and Marketing.

           In 2002, he married the love of his life, Meenal. Together they built a life filled with love,
living in several places before eventually making their home in Westfield, New Jersey. In 2005,
he had the second love of his life, his dear son Jaiden.

           Throughout his career, Sammy worked with several organizations, including The Times
of India, Comcast, and CMN News. He was also an entrepreneur and proudly owned and
operated Westfield Wine and Liquor, where he became a familiar and friendly presence in the
community. There was always a line of happy customers coming in and even happier customers
coming out. In recent years, he worked as a Field Marketing Executive at Sonata Software.

           Sammy had an innate ability to make everyone feel like they were the only person in
every room. You would never leave without a smile, a laugh, or a drink whenever he was
involved. He loved every soul he met, but the feelings are mutual. There are few people you
meet in these walks of life that make you feel like you have known them forever, but he is one of
those very special people who could speak to you at a spiritual level, and always give the answer you were seeking. 

It takes a village to raise and care for so many people, and yet Sammy was a village of one.

           Sammy lived for life’s simpler pleasures: movies with Meenal, a round of golf, Yankees
games, daily check-ins and laughs with his son, a well-made fire pit, and manning the grill. He
loved listening to old music, his annual pilgrimage to St. Maarten, and that cold cocktail at the
end of a long day of work.

           Sammy went out the way he came in, dancing and celebrating with his wife and loved
ones and plans to see his son the next morning. We will always remember his life of the party
attitude, his inability to quit when things got tough, and his love for everyone and everything
around him. He is celebrated by his wife, son, and beloved dog, along with many loving family
members and dear friends. We know today, he is waking up early, making omelettes with no
onions and garlic, laughing alongside Uday and Shashikant, while Penny barks in the
background. Om Shanti.

           There will be a wake service at Higgins and Bonner Echo Lake Funeral Home (582
Springfield Ave, Westfield, NJ, 07090) from 4-8PM on Tuesday, March 10th. The funeral and
cremation will take place on Wednesday, March 11th at Franklin Memorial Park (1800 NJ-27,
North Brunswick Township, NJ, 08902).

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