OBITUARY Ahmad Nasef helped countless Syrian refugees
On the Islamic Society of Milwaukee’s website, portraits of executive committee members include small sayings picked by the members themselves.
“Loving Allah first makes you love everyone, and we need more love in this world,” says the saying under the picture of Ahmad Nasef.
It’s hard to imagine someone embodying that message more.
A successful doctor with an entrepreneurial streak, Nasef helped patients with sleep disorders regain normalcy in their lives. He welcomed refugees to Milwaukee following the outbreak of civil war in his homeland of Syria. And he traveled abroad to work in refugee camps, often acting as a lifeline for fleeing families.
Naser, 52, died of cancer on Jan. 22. Nasef lost his father at age 4 in 1973 to the Arab-Israeli War. His mother instilled a deep passion for education. He received a medical degree from the University of Damascus in 1992 and immigrated to the United States the same year. He wanted to study in an American school to pursue his version of the American Dream, and landed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Nasef developed a special interest in sleep medicine and became director at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Sleep Disorders clinic until 2006 when he formed his own practice, the Quality Sleep Institute, in northwestern Milwaukee.
When civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, he took an active interest in helping refugees.
That led to multiple trips to Turkey and Jordan, using his medical skills to help in camps. And in Milwaukee, he became a go-to source for help in resettlement, often drawing on his own funds to pay rent, buy groceries, even start businesses. He was well known for setting up the Syrian immigrants who ran Damascus Gate Restaurant on West Mitchell Street, which became well known for its traditional Middle Eastern food, and its role as a gathering place and haven for Syrian refugees.
Kai Gardner Mishlove of “Tables Across Borders” works to highlight the work of refugee chefs across Milwaukee and knew Nasef through the Hungry Hearts committee to provide free meals to the community. She described him as generous and humble.
“He was the type of person that made you feel welcome when you met him,” she said, adding, “there’s certain people that come into this world that share light and love and he was one of those people.”
Hanan Refugee Relief Group is a nonprofit organization helping refugees transition to American life. Sheila Badwan runs the local Milwaukee Chapter and has announced that a scholarship will be created in Nasef ’s name for refugee students.
In the broader Muslim community, Nasef was known for being one of the most energetic members. The last five years he volunteered to teach Sunday school at his mosque. Religious leader Iman Noman Hussain said students were drawn to Nasef, and that “his beautiful character, smile, and love he would show the children impacted them.”
Family friend Hani Sawah described Nasef as “full of love and compassion, sweetness, kindness, and patience.”
He is survived by his wife, Charlotte; his sons, Mohamed Nasef, Omar Nasef and Mahmoud AlChamaa; his mother, Wafika AlChamaa; and his sister, Roula Nasef.
Services took place Saturday at Islamic Society of Milwaukee Brookfield (Masjid Al-Noor).
Drake Bentley at (414) 722-3811 or DBentley1@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @drake_bentley.