May 22, 1977 – March 7, 2013

Amir Hossein Teymouri was born in Glendale, Calif. on May 22, 1977. He was the first of three children for Hossein and Esther Teymouri. At an early age, Amir was happy, carefree and smiley, yet he did not come without his predicaments, as he was coined the “million dollar baby.” In addition to a complicated birth, Amir required leg braces as a child (much like Forest Gump), speech therapy as a kid and became a regular customer in the local emergency room. During his junior high years, Amir suffered three concussions in one year and was on a first name basis with emergency room physicians. Yet, despite it all, Amir maintained a sense of humor about his clumsiness and it was that quality that made him adorable to all he knew.

Amir graduated from Crescenta Valley High School in 1995. At this time he had already developed a passion for film and took his first job at Blockbuster. He then attended California State University Los Angeles and graduated in 2002 with a Bachelor of Art degree in broadcasting, film and television. While at Cal State L.A., Amir was an active member and president of Phi Sigma Kappa.  He loved his fraternity brothers.

Life was good, but in 2004 life got even better when Amir met his future wife Johanna and daughter Cynthia. Amir became a father again when Lilliana was born in 2006. Lilli is the spitting image of Amir and carries his carefree happy-go-lucky demeanor just like her father. Lilli and Amir were kindred spirits and were inseparable. Lilli loved to curl in her father’s lap or feed him her dinner. Lilli adored her father and Amir loved spending time with his little girl.

Amir was also close to his family. He lived within three miles of the homes of his parents, brother and sister. He loved to frequent intimate family dinners that included at least 10 people, considering his brother and sister were also married. Though he was a picky eater, he loved his mom’s delicious cooking. He was also very close to his cousins. He enjoyed the family Pictionary games on Christmas Eve and playing “Call of Duty” with them into the wee hours of the night.

A few years back, Amir played on a family and friends soccer team which included his brother, sister, dad, sister-in-law and a few long time friends. Amir had played soccer growing up but as a child he was always small.  As an adult he stood 6 feet 2 inches tall. Although he never played goalie as a child, he happily volunteered as an adult. Though no one was surprised with his willingness to fill in, everyone was impressed with his skills. He was good!

While his family was his highest priority, he was proud of his work achievements. He joined Huntington Company a few years ago as a temporary employee and after multiple promotions over a few short years he became the head of marketing and advertising. He also indulged his creative side as a freelance videographer. He had an eye for capturing small candid moments that told a story and relayed emotion. He truly was a master at his craft.

When not at work, Amir was a devout Christian who was active in his local church, Montrose Church. He dedicated holidays to filming worship services and enjoyed spending time with this Tuesday bible study group. Most recently, he and Johanna committed Wednesdays and Sundays as faithful leaders of the Junior High Youth Group. One of Amir’s greatest gifts was his ability to connect with children and mentor them without a sense of judgment. He wanted the kids to know that they were loved and to have real hope. He was a man of action rather than words, and his impact was wide spread.

Additionally, Amir was a “guys’ guy.” He was an avid sports fan and enjoyed playing fantasy football with this family and friends. After his recent victory he held a weekly blog entitled, “Thoughts by your champion” whereby he utilized his clever wit to remind all other competitors how awesome he was.          Amir was a loyal L.A. sports fan and particularly loved watching the Lakers, Kings and the Dodgers. (The latter caused a fun, family rivalry as Johanna loves the Padres.) Last June Amir was quoted as stating that he was “so happy that the Kings won a championship in my lifetime.”

Last year Amir followed the family tradition of running a marathon with Team in Training while raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  In June 2012 he completed the San Diego Rock ‘n Roll Marathon. Over the process, Amir became a dedicated runner and was training for his second “and last” marathon while again raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Cancer Society. Amir really wanted to run a marathon through the city he called his own, Los Angeles. During his training, Amir would constantly run with his brother and sister around the Pasadena Rose Bowl and the hills behind JPL.  Unfortunately, tragedy struck and Amir passed away a week before the race. In his place his family and friends will run the race as a relay in his honor.*

Although he was taken at the young age of 35, Amir left a legacy of having the unique ability to be devoted to his family, friends, community and faith. It was impossible to not smile in his presence. His carefree attitude towards life obstacles was infectious. His willingness to help others knew no bounds. Although a tragedy, he left us all with the challenge to do as he did- spread a smile, hope and goodness to everything and everyone around you.

He is dearly missed.

Services will be held at noon on Saturday, March 16 at Bresee Church “Church of the Nazarene,” 1500 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena.

* Inspired to Run … in honor of Amir Teymouri

By Jeff Carr

Last week was an ordinary week in many ways; full of work, exercise, taking my kids to school, picking them up from their youth group activities… and then it became extraordinary. On Thursday morning, another dad began an ordinary day, but tragedy struck on his way to work, and Amir Teymouri was killed in an auto accident. Amir volunteered in several capacities at our church, but our paths crossed because he was a faithful volunteer leader in the Jr. High Youth Group, where my son is involved.  Amir and his wife Johanna were always present, living out their love for God by pouring into the lives of our kids – my kid. Amir said he wanted the kids to know that they were loved, and have real hope.  His life made it easy for them to believe in love and hope – and it ended far too soon.

The night before, and in previous conversations, we had been comparing notes about physical training. We were both working toward events that were quickly approaching – he was going to run in the L.A. Marathon on March 17, and I am going to run in a sprint triathlon later in the month. He was so excited about the marathon! He has been training faithfully, encouraged others to join him, and had almost met his fundraising goal for cancer research. We made plans for him to join me in training for a triathlon this summer, once he recovered from the marathon. That night, I told him that I had wanted to run the L.A. Marathon before my 50^th birthday, but that I had given that up when a knee injury made it seem unlikely. The cross training involved in preparing for triathlons was easier on my knee following surgery, so I had adjusted my goals and set that dream aside.

After learning of Amir’s death, I was moved to respond in a tangible way. He had given so much to others, and I wanted to honor him and keep the hope he brought to others alive for his own daughters, and for the kids in our community who are now grieving his loss. I thought it would be amazing to run that marathon in his place, if only it were not just a week away, and already sold out. As the saying goes, “Where there’s a will there’s a way” – and on Sunday, a team of six of Amir’s friends and relatives will be running in the L.A. Marathon in his honor! Inspired to run by a man who lived to make hope real for kids, we run to raise money to support his family, and we run to raise hope!  Please join us.

The financial need for Amir’s wife and daughters will be great in his absence. If you’d like to sponsor our run to raise hope, make donations by check payable to Montrose Church, with “Teymouri Family Fund” in the memo line, and mail to Montrose Church, 2678 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020. Or send a donation electronically through this link: http://montrosechurch.org/teymouri.