Mogamat Ghamim Harris

Mogamat Ghamim Harris, Langley, British Columbia  

November 29, 1937 – January 12, 2024 

Born in Cape Town, South Africa during the time of apartheid, Mogamat Ghamim Harris was one of eight, the son of Imam Sulayman Harris and Rabia Nordein Harris. He is survived by his daughter Waghida (Waheeda) Harris of Toronto, his sister Rachmat Harris Banderker, his brother Mansour Harris, both of Cape Town, South Africa and many beloved extended family members in South Africa, England and Australia. He is predeceased by his wife of 61 years Amina Alexander Harris in 2022, and his brothers Ganief Harris, Imam Yasin Harris, Abdurahman Harris, and his sisters Amina Harris Kamies and Hajiera Harris Abrahams.  

An avid rugby player from a young age, Ghamim also excelled in academics as a distinguished graduate of Trafalgar High School in Cape Town. He became a teacher at age 20 after attending Hewat Teacher Training College and achieved a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Cape Town. Immigrating to Canada with Amina and Waghida, his first teaching position in Canada was at Haldane Elementary in Chase, BC, where he was warmly welcomed within the local community. They later moved to Kamloops, where Ghamim taught for over 30 years at elementary schools throughout the school district, including Brocklehurst, Ralph Bell and Rayleigh Elementary Schools. He cherished his time in the classroom and was always proud to have taught many young people in Kamloops, while also sharing his passions about history, photography and sports.  

He continued his pursuit of higher education, obtaining a Masters Degree in History from Western Washington College in 1977, with a thesis focused on South African history. Ghamim added several accreditations in library and technology sciences, before concluding his teaching career in 2001 at Juniper Ridge Elementary School. A proud union member of the BC Teacher’s Federation, Ghamim served on several committees including the union’s Judicial Committee. In 2011, Ghamim and Amina moved to Langley.  

A devout Muslim, Ghamim was integral to the beginnings of the BC Muslim Association, supported the Muslim community in Kamloops and completed his pilgrimage to Mecca with immediate and extended family in 1986. He was a proud South African and Canadian, loved calligraphy, gardening, travel, supporting South Africa’s Springboks, Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks, and anyone who knew him saw how he adored making people around him smile and laugh.  

Diagnosed with vascular dementia, Ghamim died on January 12, 2024, now at peace. Donations can be given in his memory to the Alzheimer’s Society of British Columbia.  

Inna lillahi wa inna ilyahi raji’un - Indeed, we belong to Allah, and indeed, to him we return