Dr. M. Ali Tabatabai

Dr. M. Ali Tabatabai, 89, of Ames, Iowa, transitioned peacefully at the Israel Family Hospice House in Ames, Iowa, on Feb. 15, 2024, with his beloved wife, Louisa (Braal) and family by his side. 

Ali, the fourth of eight children, was born on Feb. 25, 1934, to Abdul Hussein and Amina Sami Tabatabai, in Karbala, Iraq. He grew up in Karbala and studied Agricultural Sciences at the Agricultural University of Abu Ghraib in Bagdad, graduating with a BS degree in 1958. Ali commenced his studies towards a Master’s degree of Science to study soil chemistry of arid soils at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Okla. He received his Master’s degree in 1960. Professor Jouett Russell of Lincoln, Neb., and formerly of Abu Ghraib, recommended him for an assistantship for the PhD degree in Soils and Plant Nutrition at the University of California at Berkeley where he met Louisa. Meeting in the department they both worked in, they got engaged in December and married the following year on Sept. 8, 1962. Together they moved to Ames, Iowa in 1963 where Ali became professor of agronomy at Iowa State University. For Ali, work was happiness and his passion. He was very proud of his own education, research, and helping others towards advanced degrees.  

Ali is survived by his wife of 61 years, Louisa; children, Fareed (Cara), Layth (Ann) and Janine (Tom); and nine grandchildren, Justin, Taylor, Nicole (Chris Blythe) Ramsey (Taylor), AJ, Rachel, Jenna, Barron and Zaid; brothers, Kasim (Donna), of Austin Texas, and Tahir (Rabab), of London, UK; and numerous nephews and nieces in the US, UK, Iraq and Iran. 

He was preceded in death by his father, Abdul Hussein Al-Tabatabai; his mother, Amina; brother, Ibrahim; and sisters, Zakina, Rabab, Saffia, and Fakhria 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be directed to the M. Ali Tabatabai Memorial Scholarship, www.foundation.iastate.edu/Tabatabai, Iowa State University or the Israel Family Hospice House in Ames where Ali was tenderly treated with respect and dignity. The Tabatabai family is deeply grateful! 

A Celebration of Life event will be held on June 15, 2024, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Reiman Gardens, Iowa State University, Ames. 

Funeral arrangements were made by Adams Funeral Home, Ames, www.adamssoderstrum.com.