Interview - Aban Rustomji

Aban Rustomji was born in Surat, India in 1943 but was raised in Pakistan. She was raised in a Parsi community. Growing up an only child, she lost her mom at a young age and was very close to her dad as a result. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree and marrying her husband, she and her husband relocated to Columbia, Missouri to obtain their master’s degrees. After realizing her job in the library interested her more than her English courses, she decided to pursue her master’s in library sciences. She found work at a library in Loyola University Chicago after graduation. She returned to Pakistan when her husband found work there and had a son and a daughter there; they were raised there for their early childhood. In 1979 they moved back to the U.S. when they came to Houston for her husband to pursue oil-related career opportunities. She worked as a librarian in Spring Woods High School for 23 years. After retirement, she worked as a bookkeeper for her husband’s company, Coating Industries. Since coming to the U.S., she has remained actively involved with the Parsi and Zoroastrian community, even contributing her library skills by maintaining a catalog and organizing events at the center. During her time in Houston, she has also been involved in planning a Zoroastrian world conference and helping plan the construction of the Zoroastrian center.

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