Ibrahim Saadi

SAADI, COSYN, HANANIA

Posted By: Susan Fry (email)
Date: 2/9/2009 at 11:08:03

Ibrahim Saadi

Born: July 23, 1982
Died: January 09, 2009

Services:A memorial service is scheduled for 2:00p.m. on Saturday, January 31, 2009 at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine in Iowa City, Iowa. Plans are pending regarding the Ibrahim Saadi Foundation, which would include a vision to increase support and educational opportunities for individuals and communities desiring to improve the betterment of human wellbeing.
Visitation:
Ibrahim Saadi, 26, of Iowa City, was killed in a tragic car accident January 9, 2009. Ibrahim was a third year medical student at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, had recently become engaged, and was to gain U.S. citizenship this month.

Born July 23, 1982, Ibrahim was Palestinian and grew up in Jerusalem, Israel. Fluent in five languages, Ibrahim earned his pharmacy degree at Hebrew University and moved to Des Moines in 2004 before attending the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. Ibrahim worked as a pharmacist at Walgreen’s in Des Moines before being accepted into the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. While attending medical school, Ibrahim was a volunteer with the the Mobile Clinic, which provides care to underserved Iowans. Ibrahim was Vice President of American Medical Students Association and was a member of Doctors Without Borders.

While growing up Palestinian in Israel, Ibrahim attended English and Hebrew schools and learned to work across differences. His experiences in these environments strongly influenced his decision to become a physician. In 1993, Ibrahim was one of the youth chosen to represent the Palestinian/Israeli delegation in the Oslo Peace Accord. At the age of eleven, Ibrahim was one of the six children selected by the National Film Board of Canada in a series called “Children of Jerusalem.” The point of this series was to illustrate the situation through the experiences of children growing up in Jerusalem. Ibrahim was devoted to serving people in a way that would help eliminate health disparities. Ibrahim was planning to specialize in internal medicine because it stimulated his clinical reasoning and fostered the kind of care he desired to offer. Quoted in his student profile, Ibrahim stated: “If I could change one thing in the world in general, and the world of medicine specifically, it would be ensuring equality to all people regarding race, religion, creed or financial capability.”

Ibrahim recently proposed to his fiancée, Stephanie M. Johnson, formerly of West Des Moines. Ibrahim and Stephanie had returned from a December trip to Oregon, where Ibrahim had enthusiastically reported his goal of being able to ultimately apply for residency in internal medicine. Soccer was a big interest for Ibrahim, as well. He played soccer as a child and teenager, and helped organize a recreational soccer league in Iowa City last year. Ibrahim followed Liverpool soccer with a passion, having lived in Cambridge at one point in his life.

Left to mourn Ibrahim’s untimely death are his parents, Dr. Adnan and Khawla Saadi of Jerusalem, Israel, his sisters Abir (Mark) Cosyn of Vancouver, Canada and Rasha (Rami) Hanania of Des Moines. Ibrahim will be sadly missed by his nephew Basem, and twin nieces, Dalia and Maya, of Des Moines. Also left to mourn his death is his fiancée, Stephanie M. Johnson, as well as his future in-laws, Dr. Jay and Cindy Rosenberger of West Des Moines and Bill and Terrill Johnson of Clive. Numerous family members and many friends are left to mourn Ibrahim’s sudden and tragic death.

Ibrahim’s funeral and burial was January 16, 2009 in the village of Tiboun, north of Jerusalem, Israel. A memorial service is scheduled for 2:00p.m. on Saturday, January 31, 2009 at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine in Iowa City, Iowa. Plans are pending regarding the Ibrahim Saadi Foundation, which would include a vision to increase support and educational opportunities for individuals and communities desiring to improve the betterment of human wellbeing.