Arian Reza Labbaf

A funeral ceremony honoring and remembering Arian Reza Labbaf will be held 11 AM Saturday, July 23, 2022 at the Redeemer Covenant Church, 5415 E. 101st Street Tulsa, OK 74137. Interment will follow in Rolling Memorial Gardens. Arian passed away unexpectedly July 13, 2022 in Bixby. He was 17 years old.

Born August 16, 2004, Ari was the son of Amir and Shari (Hosseini) Labbaf. Ari excelled in academics from an early age, receiving a letter from President Obama upon his completion of Spring Creek Elementary School. Though he grew up speaking Farsi in the home, Ari learned English quickly, scoring at the top of his class. He was also invited to attend a debate program in Texas hosted by Duke University for the gifted and talented. Ari graduated in the top three percent from Broken Arrow High School with the Class of 2022. While in high school, Ari competed on the wrestling team. He had been accepted and awarded a scholarship to attend the University of Oklahoma in the fall.

Ari was a natural born entrepreneur and a master negotiator. He enjoyed buying and selling items online and had a tremendous amount of success doing so. Ari designed his very own computer program to track his sales. He loved to spend his money as quickly as he earned it, mostly on other people. Ari was very sociable, generous to a fault, and certainly loved by everyone he encountered.

Ari played the piano and eventually began writing his own music. He loved Legos, as well as taking things apart just so he could put them back together. Above all, Ari loved the martial art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He loved everything about working out at the Brothers gym, especially his coaches, James and Hunter. Ari experienced tremendous success competing in the American Grappling Federation and the Oklahoma State Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Championship. A natural born leader, Ari led several people to the gym, especially those who might be struggling in life. Ari dreamt of becoming an MMA fighter.

Ari cherished everything about his family, particularly his younger brother, Arman. He was extremely close with his extended family and cousins as well. Ari was known to have the “playbook of life” for the younger men in the family who looked up to him. He may have also been known to have taught them a “one liner” or two from time to time. On January 20th of this year, Ari met Hannah Do, who became his first serious girlfriend. With so much in common, Ari and Hannah were making plans for a bright future together.

It would be an understatement to say that Ari lived life to the fullest. He believed that life was too short not to be happy. Happiness was his ultimate goal in everything that he endeavored. He once said, “If I die doing the things I love, I will die happy!”

From a young age, Ari made the decision to become an organ donor. After the accident, Ari held on long enough to allow his family an opportunity to say goodbye and honor his wishes to bless other families with the gift of life. He died a hero.

Surviving family include his parents, Amir and Shari Labbaf; his brother, Arman Labbaf; grandparents, Akbar Hosseini and Gohar Soltani; aunts, uncles, and cousins: Ali, Tera, Josef, Davood, Farbin, and Sarah Labbaf, Najmeh Aboutalebi, Ehsan and Parsa Hemmasian, Fati, Maryan , Ali, Mojgan, Rayan, and Aaron Hosseini; Forood, Pardis, and Parstoo Yazdani, Samira and Ardeshir Heidari; Mehdi, Mehran, and Mehrad Ghorbani; Elaheh Saei; and his girlfriend, Hannah Do.

Ari was preceded in death by his grandparents, Reza and Launa Labbaf.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, please direct memorial contributions in Ari’s honor to fund training or gear expenses for children or young adults in need to practice Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

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