Afshan Kirmani

Winchester - How do we describe the sounds of her laugh or the taste of her food? How can we begin to tell you what she meant to so many people? She was our mother, she was a sister, she was a daughter, a niece, an auntie, a cousin, a grandmother, and a friend. She stood for so many people. We know she doesn't belong only to us. Her heart encompassed whole universes. The world is quieter without her, muted, a little less bright, a little more gray.

Afshan Kirmani came into the world on July 17, 1954-fifteen minutes after her twin brother, Ataullah Kirmani, who preceded her in death. Afshan was also preceded in death by her elder brother Shujaullah Kirmani, and her parents Zakaullah Kirmani and Zahra Khattoon Faruqi.

Even in childhood she was a force of nature, unable to sit still, always curious, always learning. Born in Sandila, India, Afshan spent the first part of her childhood in Karachi, Pakistan, making mischief with her cousins and twin. Upon her father's death, she came to live with her eldest brother and the mother of her heart, Carla Kirmani Taylor, in Storrs, Connecticut and graduated from EO Smith High School in 1974

Gifted with a natural ability for healing, Afshan left this world proudly as a professor of health sciences. She had so many careers across her life: hairdresser, phlebotomist, x-ray technician, and patient advocate to name a few. She completed her undergraduate degree at Leslie College in 2010, only after she made sure both of her daughters had their degrees and careers well in hand.

Our mother loved life. She loved adventure-be it a beach in Bali, cooking demos on YouTube, bungee jumping in Louisiana, or learning how to play the sitaar in her sixties. No matter what the circumstances, she strove to find the silver lining, often carving it out, cooking it up and serving it along with a healthy dose of advice to anyone who walked through her door. She was creative, loving, caring, and bright. She taught us what unconditional love is. She taught us what it means to keep living, no matter what. Her faith was unshakeable, her resilience a constant surprise. Her voice has traveled through telephone lines and cellular waves to touch every continent. She always knew where her people were, and there were a lot of people who were hers. Whether it was her younger brother-in-law, Ejaz Rana and his wife Pinky Rana, whom she raised like her own, the friends she knew for over forty years, or the neighbors she met last week, she knew.

Afshan Kirmani died in her eldest daughter's arms on January 22, 2024 in Brussels, Belgium. She was planning on many more adventures, but Allah (swt) had other plans. She lives on in the smiles of her grandchildren, Suleiman Malcolm Rana Bokhari and Zaynab Malala Rana Bokhari. She lives on in the memory of her elder siblings, Sanaullah Kirmani and Mubina Hassanali Kirmani, Humaira Kirmani and Maarij Kirmani, Razaullah Kirmani and Amna Kirmani. She lives on in the laughter of her many (many!) nieces and nephews, the hearts of her cousins, her friends, her son-in-law Saad Syed Bokhari. And mostly, she lives on in her daughters, Aroosha Zoq Rana and Adeeba Afshan Rana. She gave us her heart. She gave us each other. She taught us to make a home, to keep the door open, and to keep a hot meal on the stove. Come by whenever you like.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to MECA (mecaforpeace.org) and the National Federation for the Blind (nfb.org).