Mansour Rasnavad's Obituary
RASNAVAD
Mansour, 69, of Surfside, FL, passed away on June 24, 2013 from a sudden heart attack after lacing up to play his Monday night tennis match. He went peacefully while sitting on a bench talking to a friend.
Mansour was a devoted and loving family man, friend, and colleague. He was born in Rezaieh, Iran, on December 8, 1944, the youngest son of five children of Sattar and Afrooz Rasnavad. In 1966, at age 21, he moved to the U.S. on his own to pursue a college education. By chance he ended up in Washington DC, where he graduated from George Mason University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Economics. It was in Washington where he first met the love of his life, Ann. Before they began their life together, he went to work for Citibank in Athens and Tehran.
In 1974, again by chance, he reconnected with his childhood friend, Farhad Azima, who asked him to move back to the U.S. to join him in building an airline to ship cattle from Kansas City to Iran. While visiting Washington, Mansour and Ann reunited, fell in love, and embarked together for Kansas City. That was the beginning of a loving, inseparable marriage of 34 years and an extraordinary career in the aviation industry, which took him across the world, managing several airlines and a commercial aircraft leasing company. It was also in Kansas City where he proudly became a U.S. citizen.
Mansour and Ann were married in Kansas City in 1979, where they raised their three children and lived for 25 years. Mansour’s number one treasure in life was his wife and children. His love for his family was widely known and adored by others.
In 2002, Mansour became the President and CEO of Florida West International Airways in Miami, FL. He successfully managed the airline through industry downturns and was a recognized leader in the Miami aviation industry. He was adored by his colleagues and associates as a fair, honest, and strong leader.
He is survived by his wife Ann, children Joy, Alexander, and Cyrus, daughters-in-law Shana and Alison, sister Valiyeh Amini and her husband Jafar, nephews and nieces Haessam, Mitra, Mina, Golchin, Masoud, Maziar, Sharpoor, Shervin, and Shaheen, and sister-in-law Jayran, Mansour also leaves behind the Azima family, his lifelong friends.
Email condolences may be sent to [email protected]. The funeral service will be held at 11:30am, Saturday, June 29, 2013, at the Church by the Sea, 501 96th Street, Bal Harbour, FL 33154. His burial service will be held the same day, at 2:00pm at Woodlawn Park North Cemetery, 3260 SW 8th St, Miami, FL, 33135.
Arrangements by
BLASBERG-RUBIN-ZILBERT
(305) 865-2353
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