Saïd Akhavan was an engineer and philanthropist, a devout member of the Bahá'í Faith, whose remarkable life spanned Iran, Canada, and Brazil. He passed away in the early morning of 19 April 2026 at Hill House Hospice in Richmond Hill, Ontario, leaving behind a powerful legacy of unconditional love and sacrificial service to humanity, an inspiration and example for the countless people whose lives he touched.

He was born around 20 November 1928 in Hamedan, Iran, and survived intense hardships, from the high infant mortality rate that claimed half of his siblings, to the 1942-43 famine of the Anglo-Soviet occupation during the Second World War, to the violent persecution of the Bahá'í minority that confronted him daily. He was an exceptional student, and in 1946 he was admitted to the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Tehran at a time when the literacy rate was 15%. He went on to become a highly successful civil engineer at a time of significant progress in Iran, and established a company with his brothers, building large-scale infrastructure projects including oil refineries and power transmission lines, roads and airports. In 1962, he married Behrokh Boloori, and was a devoted husband and father to their children Dariush and Payam. In 1975, he migrated to Toronto, Canada, and was deeply affected by the violent persecution of Iranian Bahá'ís after the 1979 Islamic revolution, including the execution of family and friends. Around 1990, he migrated to Manaus, Brazil, where he supported an orphanage and school for rural children in the Amazon. Subsequently, he was appointed as the diplomatic representative of the Bahá'í community in Brasília, promoting the principles of world unity, universal education and human rights that defined his Faith. In 2017, he returned to Toronto and continued his charitable activities and caring for his family until his final days.

He is survived by his beloved wife of almost 64 years, Behrokh, his children Dariush and Payam, his daughters-in-law Elena Martin Vahdat and Sarira Vahman, and his adored grandchildren André, Jasmin, Kian, and Kamran.

In celebration of his extraordinary life, a ceremony will be held in his honour on Thursday, April 23rd, beginning at 1 pm, followed by burial at 3 pm, and a reception at 4 pm, at Elgin Mills Cemetery, 1591 Elgin Mills Rd E, Richmond Hill, ON L4S 1M9.

For those who are unable to attend in person, the ceremony will be available online on April 23rd, from 1:30 pm Eastern Standard Time, at the following link: https://www.twitch.tv/pakhavan

Donations in memory of Saïd Akhavan may be made to the Bahá'í Fund or to the Hill House Hospice that took such exceptional care of him during his last days: https://hillhousehospice.com/donations