Soltan Nahidipoor Parvizi

Soltan Nahidipoor Parvizi, age 92, of Middletown, DE, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, December 24, 2014. Soltan was born in Birjand, Iran in the providence of Khorasan on October 28, 1922. She was the oldest of seven children born to the late Mohammad Reza and Haajyeh Nesa Nahidipoor. Along with her four sisters and two brothers, Soltan was raised in a tight-knit community, where her father worked as a Persian carpet merchant. He was a friendly and outgoing man and he and his wife were well respected neighbors and would often offer their home as a gathering place for local Baha’is and friends. Although Birjand was a remote town at the edge of the Lut desert, it was a well-established municipality and possessed an excellent educational system. At a time when many towns did not offer high school level education for girls, Birjand’s Shokati School for Girls not only offered that, but also provided training for those who wished to become teachers. She finished high school, received her training to become a teacher and then at the age of 18, began her career. Soltan married Seyyed Jalal Parvizi on March 21, 1940 and the two shared 73 years of marriage together until his passing in 2013. The couple raised seven children, including five daughters and two sons. During their married life, Soltan and Jalal lived in many towns and cities throughout Iran, including Torbat- Heydarieh, Neyshabur, Qazvin, Babul, Karaj, and finally Tehran. Relatively early in her teaching career, she was appointed to serve as the principal of the Torbat- Heydarieh’s newly established high school for girls, a position she held in other towns until her retirement in Tehran in 1970. She was loved and respected by her peers and students for her professionalism, fair-mindedness and discipline. As a mother, Soltan mixed tenderness of heart with tough love. She never allowed her motherly fears and anxities to get in the way of her children traveling to far-off places in Europe, Africa and the United States to persue their education or Baha’i service. She spent decades separated from her children as one by one, they left home to start their lives in a different country. As a sister, she was loyal and caring. After her mother passed away suddenly at a young age, Soltan assumed the role of guardian for her younger sisters and brothers who were still in school. Many of them lived with her for years while they attended school and her home was always a safe haven for family and friends who needed her help of advice. Soltan was a dedicated and active member of her various Baha’i communities. She loved reading books, watching classic movies and was an exquisite cook. Her children, grandchildren and friends often remember and crave the beautiful meals she prepared for them. After many years of separation from their children, Jalal and Soltan moved to the United States and settled in Delaware where some of their family lived. Their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are grateful for the opportunity to spend many wonderful years with them and will always remember Maman with love and tenderness. They are also thankful that she is finally reunited with her beloved husband, cherished son, Saham, her parents and one sister who preceded her in death. A funeral service will be held at 10 am on Saturday, January 3, 2015, at the Spicer-Mullikin Funeral Home, 1000 N. DuPont Parkway, New Castle, DE, where a visitation for family and friends will be held from 9 am until 10 am. Interment will follow in Silverbrook Cemetery, Lancaster Ave. and DuPont Rd., Wilmington, DE.