Khadija Noor Rahman was born on November 8, 1938, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to Abdul and Rahela Hossain. She came of age in a time of great change and uncertainty, and she met it with a steadiness that would define her for the rest of her life. Khadija was educated, devout, and possessed of a quiet authority that made people naturally seek her counsel. She immigrated to the United States in 1980 with her husband and children, settling in Dearborn, Michigan, which was already home to one of the largest Arab and South Asian Muslim communities in the country. Khadija became a cornerstone of that community. For over two decades she taught Quran and Islamic studies to children at the Islamic Center of America, shaping the faith formation of hundreds of young people. She was known for her patience, her clarity, and her ability to make ancient teachings feel immediately relevant. Beyond the mosque, Khadija was a trusted elder in the Bangladeshi community of Dearborn, a mediator in family disputes, a source of comfort to the grieving, and a fierce advocate for the education of girls. She organized a women's literacy circle that ran for fifteen years and helped dozens of newly arrived women gain the language skills and confidence to navigate American life. She was a grandmother of extraordinary warmth, who taught her grandchildren to cook, to pray, to be generous, and to never be ashamed of who they were. Her home was a place where the door was always open and the tea was always hot. Khadija Noor Rahman passed peacefully on August 12, 2026, at the age of 87, surrounded by her family. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un.

Hobbies & interests

Teaching Quran and Islamic studies to children; organizing the women's literacy circle; cooking traditional Bangladeshi dishes — especially biryani and mishti doi; embroidering and sewing; reading Islamic poetry and literature; tending her indoor plants and herb garden

Survived by

Her son, Dr. Kamal Rahman (Nasreen) of Dearborn, MI; her daughters, Shaheen Rahman-Chowdhury (Rafiq) of Ann Arbor, MI, and Parveen Rahman-Islam (Tariq) of Toronto, Canada; nine grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and her sister, Bilkis Hossain-Ahmed of Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Preceded in death by

Her husband of 44 years, Mohammad Anisur Rahman; her parents, Abdul and Rahela Hossain; and her brother, Nurul Hossain.