Dr. Constancio Fernandes Miranda

Constancio X.C.F. Miranda passed away on Sunday, September 10th, under the care of hospice and his most beloved wife, Joan Mary Miranda. “Papa Con,” as he was known to friends and family was born December 4, 1926 in Raia, Goa, which was then a Portuguese colony. He met the love of his life, Joan “Tootsie” Menezes, when he was serving as a government engineer in Baroda, India – and took great delight in telling the story of how his first love, civil engineering, allowed him to meet his one true love, his wife. They married in 1957, and had three sons Steven, Christopher, and Kenneth. In 1960, he emigrated to the United States, and was joined there in 1961 by his wife and three sons.

Papa Con did his early schooling in Goa and then went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Pune University (now Savitribai Phule Pune University), where he earned three national gold medals for his performance in physics, mathematics, and civil engineering. In 1960, he traveled to South Bend, Indiana to undertake a master’s in civil engineering at the University of Notre Dame. Having completed his master’s, the family moved to Columbus, Ohio where he began a doctorate in civil engineering at Ohio State University. There, Tootsie and Papa Con had their fourth child, Marie Lynn. Upon completion of his doctorate, Papa Con moved the family to Albuquerque, New Mexico to begin work at the Shock Tube Test Facility.

In 1965, Dr. Miranda fulfilled his most important professional dream of becoming a professor. He landed at the University of Detroit, a private, Jesuit university in the City of Detroit. There, his research focused on structures, especially relating to concrete structures and lateral-torsional buckling in beam columns. He was an award-winning professor, receiving the Engineering Student Council’s “Teacher of the Year Award” multiple times. He was affectionately called “Doc” by his students and ran the concrete canoe and steel beam construction competitions every year. He took their education very seriously, but also made it clear that he cared about each of them, guiding many of them both professionally and personally.

Papa Con and Tootsie welcomed many, many students into their home for dinner, music, singing, and dancing. He was well-known for hosting badminton tournaments that had young men and women decked out in the latest sporting equipment diving for shuttlecocks while he calmly dispatched them from the other side of the net in his standard chupples footwear.

Even while devoted to his career as a professor, Papa Con was first and foremost a family man. His love for Tootsie lasted over more than 60 years of marriage and was immediately apparent in the way he looked at her every time she entered a room, held her hand, or stole a kiss – his favorite trick being sneaking up from behind when her hands were busy cooking. He presided at the head of the family dinner table every evening and made sure all four kids knew they were loved, had what they needed, got out on the dance floor, and learned calculus.

Over the years, Papa Con sponsored many family members in their moves to the United States. He opened the family home to cousins, sisters, mothers, and aunts for as long as they needed. Con’s helpfulness extended well beyond the family, and his ready smile and easy laugh were a gift to all. He was generous beyond measure, knowing that we are all called to love everyone, not just those who are easy for us to love. He never lectured people on what it meant to lead a life devoted to others. He simply did it and thus modeled the way for all who met him.

Con is survived by his wife, Joan Mary Miranda; his son Steven Alex Miranda and wife Carol and daughters Therese, Jeanette, and Elizabeth, and son-in-law Tyler Blackney; his son Christopher Gerard Miranda and wife Loraine and children Michelle, Dana, and Kenneth; his son Kenneth Michael Miranda and wife Elena Papina and children Constantin, Alexandra, and Nikolai; and daughter Marie Lynn Miranda and husband Christopher Geron and children Thompson, Mariel, and Viviana Geron; his sister-in-law Marie Rozenblit and husband Jerzy Rozenblit and daughter Julia; cousins Alec, Herman, and Dennis Menezes and their families; and former students and friends across the world.

Papa Con loved many and was loved by many. We will miss him, but know that emulating his example of living a life devoted to others is the best way to celebrate his life well-lived.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family asks that donations be made to hospice. Contributions may be sent by mail to: Capital Caring

2900 Telestar Court

Falls Church VA 22042

or at their website: https://www.capitalcaring.org/ways-to-give