A Newmarket family of three are among the 176 who lost their lives when Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 crashed after takeoff near Tehran, Iran on Wednesday.
Amir H. Ovaysi, 42, his wife, Sara Hamzeei, 34, and their six-year-old daughter, Asal Ovaysi, a Grade 1 student who attended Meadowbrook Public School on Patterson Street, had been living in Canada for just two years and were returning from their first visit to Iran since coming here.
Ovaysi, a technical sales representative and application engineer with Smith Energy Inc. in Mississauga since last June, is being mourned by his colleagues.
Perry Lam, who worked with the mechanical engineer, posted on Facebook that Ovaysi was one of the best people with whom he’s had the pleasure of working.
His office “now sits empty as we all mourn the loss,” he said. “He was due to come back to work this morning. Rest in peace, my friend.”
Lam’s wife, Jenn Cuthbert Lam, met Ovaysi at the Smith Energy Christmas party.
“He was telling us how excited he was to go to Iran for the holidays,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “Perry says he loved Canada as much as he loved Iran.”
Ovaysi is also remembered as a proud family man who often showed his colleagues videos and photos of his daughter and wife.
His manager, Troy Futher, told Canadian Press the three were in Iran to visit Ovaysi’s parents. Ovaysi left in mid-December, joining his wife and daughter, who had arrived in November.
“He was genuine. He was a super person — a brilliant mind, an astute student,” said Futher, who added it was heartbreaking to inform staff that Ovaysi and his family were on board the UIA flight 752.
“A lot of the employees took it extremely hard,” he said. “It’s been a sombre day, a very difficult day.”
The Region of York expressed its sorrow yesterday at the loss of Bahareh Karami, who had been employed since 2018 as a technologist in environmental services.
“We are so shocked and extremely saddened by this tragedy,” said York Region chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson.
Flags at York Region facilities have been lowered to half-mast until a funeral for Karami is held in Tehran.
The Regional Municipality of York will also host a memorial service to celebrate the life of Karami and demonstrate support for those affected by this week’s tragedy.
The public is invited to attend the service which takes place on Monday, Jan. 13 at 10:30 a.m. in the Great Hall of the York Region Administrative Centre, 17250 Yonge St., in Newmarket.
A book of condolence is available in the Great Hall for members of the public to sign.
The Town of Newmarket is also flying flags at half-mast at all its facilities.
In addition, the community is invited to a vigil on Monday, Jan. 13 to honour the lives lost in Wednesday’s tragic crash, which includes seven York Region students from the York public and Catholic boards.
Five students attended four York Region public schools, including Newmarket’s Meadowbrook Public School, as well as Richmond Hill’s Adrienne Clarkson P.S., Beynon Fields P.S., and Richmond Green Secondary School. And two York Catholic board students attended Jean Vanier Catholic High School in Richmond Hill, as well as an English-as-a-Second-Language program.
York Region District School Board is not releasing the students’ names out of respect for the families and school communities who are grieving, spokesperson Licinio Miguelo said Thursday.
Meadowbrook Public School principal Bob Sandiford said he is attending Monday’s vigil, and noted the school continues to respond to the needs of its students and their families, and staff, in the wake of the tragedy.
“People reflect and do things in their own different ways, some go home and hug their children, some sit back and listen to music and cry,” he said. “We have a marvelous staff here and support from the board, we’ve got the senior team here so everybody that needs to be here, such as counsellors, are here. And we feel extremely well supported.”
Sandiford said the Iranian community is a “very tight-knit, wonderful community” and he anticipates a strong outpouring of support at the Jan. 13 vigil.
Newmarket-Aurora MP Tony Van Bynen posted his heartfelt sympathies on his Facebook page, saying he was saddened to hear that “the lives of three Newmarket residents were claimed in this terrible tragedy”.
“My sincere condolences to the family and friends of Amir H. Ovaysi, his wife, Sara Hamzeei, and their six-year-old daughter, Asal Ovaysi. My thoughts are with the staff, students and families of Meadowbrook Public School as they mourn the loss of a student and friend,” he said.
The vigil is hosted by the York public board, in partnership with the York Catholic District School Board, the City of Richmond Hill and York Regional Police.
It takes place at Dr. Bette Stephenson Centre for Learning, 36 Regatta Ave., in Richmond Hill.
The event gets underway outside at 6:30 p.m. and the community is reminded to dress for the weather.
In a joint statement issued today, YRDSB education director Louise Sirisko and board chairperson Juanita Nathan said the school community is “heartbroken” to learn that five of their students died in the devastating tragedy.
“Our focus continues to be on providing support to students at the affected schools, and we have staff members trained in responding to tragic events at the schools this week,” the officials said.
“We also know that there are staff members and families who are mourning the loss of loved ones. This is a tragedy that is being felt deeply in our community. We are all deeply saddened and our thoughts and condolences are with all those affected by this tragic event,” they said.
In a Jan. 10 statement, the York Catholic District School Board said it is deeply saddened by the death of two of its students, as well as loved ones dear to some of the board’s staff members.
Grade 11 student Dorsa Ghandchi, who was a student at Jean Vanier Catholic High School, and adult English-as-a-Second-Language student, Dr. Farhad Niknam, both lost their lives in the Ukrainian airlines crash just outside of Tehran, Iran.
“As a Catholic community, we are praying for the families and friends of both Dorsa and Dr. Niknam; as well as all the victims of this horrible tragedy,” Catholic school board officials said.
Support teams have been assembled at the board’s schools to provide bereavement support to students and staff.
“We recognize that this tragedy is being deeply felt throughout our community – not only by students and staff, but also by parents, families and neighbours.”
If you or someone you know is directly affected by this event, Victim Services of York Region (VSYR) is available at 905-953-5363 or toll free at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 6790 to provide support.
You can also reach out to 310 - COPE at 1-888-695-0070.
Editor's note: This story, originally published on Jan. 9 at 6:28 p.m., was updated on Friday, Jan. 10, 2020.
