Sheikh Abdur Rahman

Sheikh Abdur Rahman passed away on March 7, 2020 at his home in Norwell, Massachusetts after a long illness which later in life prevented him from walking, but which could not prevent him from being a loving husband, father, and grandfather.

Sheikh was born near Calcutta in 1939 when India was part of the British Empire. He and his family were swept up in the massive migration of people that occurred when India gained her independence and split into two separate countries. His family settled in what we now know as Bangladesh. As a young man, his friends and family remember him for problem solving and discovering how things worked. It was these talents that brought him to California to study at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.

His problem solving nature led him to engineering. And engineering led him around the world. During the 1970s, he worked with the US Army Corps of engineers, building a military base in Saudi Arabia that was the size of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Later, he would start his own company which he grew to 100 team members at its largest point. The family at SAR Engineering worked on projects ranging from libraries throughout New England, to the Big Dig in Boston, and also, the United States Embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was a source of pride for him to return to Bangladesh as a representative of the United States.

Around the world, he knew well the cities he visited and curated recommendations. In Rome, he'd be recognized in his favorite restaurants. And when you'd join him for dinner, he'd tell you a story about something wonderful he once witnessed there. He consumed newspapers voraciously and followed world affairs closely. You could spend hours talking with him about politics, especially American Presidential politics. When asked, he'd tell you that he bought his first television in 1968 to follow the Democratic primaries.

A sports fan, he taught his sons about Pelé and he took them to their first Red Sox games. When he discovered golf, he took it up passionately and followed Tiger Woods's every round. On Sundays, you'd find him watching The New England Patriots.

If you spoke with Sheikh about Cal Poly, he described it as a garden. He never forgot the beauty of California and Cal Poly's verdant campus. It became a passion for him and he brought it with him to Massachusetts. Sheikh was a talented gardener and was delighted by working with his wife Catherine in their yard where they grew lilies and cut holly branches from their trees at Christmas. Later in life, from his room he could watch the seasons change over Torrey Pond and see how the hours they spent working together would bloom in spring and recede in winter.

Sheikh was the son of Sheikh Anwar Ali & Jabun Nesa and the brother of Sheikh Gulam Rahman of Bangladesh.

Sheikh is survived by his wife Catherine (Dee Dee Boden) his sons, Michael, John, and Steven, the Boden and Blair Familys and his many nieces and nephews. His three grandchildren were an immense source of joy for him. He delighted in watching Clair de Lune and MacMahon coo and crawl over Facetime and he loved playing with Dash, who grew up sitting in his lap, playing with their dogs Lucky, Lulu and Lucy.

Visiting hours in the Sullivan Funeral Home, 551 Washington St, Rte 53 in Hanover on Tuesday, March 10th, from 4pm to 7pm. On Wednesday, March 11th, at 11am a small service will be held in the funeral home followed by a graveside service at New Calvary Cemetery in Boston.