In Dr Ismail Peer’s passing away, the Muslim community in Canada has lost a vital pillar
Crescent International
Shawwal 19, 1447 2026-04-07
Daily News Analysis
Dr. Ismail Peer, one of the pioneers of the Windsor (ON) Muslim community, passed away in the last week of Ramadan.
Inna lil Lah-e wa inna Ilayh-e raj‘oon (We are from Allah and to Him is our return – The noble Qur’an, Surat al-Baqarah, ayat 156).
Together with his wife, Sister Khalida, who also passed away a month earlier, they helped build the Muslim community from scratch.
Settling in Windsor in 1972, they realized that the small Muslim community needed institutions to survive and thrive.
To understand the true impact of their efforts, one must keep in mind that Muslims began to arrive in Canada in the late 1960s when immigration laws were relaxed to allow “non-whites” to enter the country.
Prior to that, Canada’s immigration policies were not only restrictive, they were outright racist.
Non-whites were not welcome. Anyone who was not a white European was not allowed to immigrate to Canada.
Dr Peer came to Canada from apartheid-era South Africa.
The racist policies of his native country did not inhibit his intellectual abilities or determination.
As a brilliant young man, he became the first non-white recipient of the Oppenheimer Scholarship in Medicine, breaking the apartheid barrier.
He was not only Windsor’s first gastroenterologist but also one of the first in Canada.
He founded the gastroenterology and endoscopy departments across all of Windsor’s hospitals.
His leadership qualities soon came through.
He served as Director of Endoscopy, Chief of Medicine, and Chief of Staff at Windsor Western Hospital.
These were major responsibilities and would have consumed any other individual’s total energies and time.
Not so with Dr Peer.
Along with professional brilliance, Dr. Peer was also a hafiz-e Qur’an (one who has memorized the entire Qur’an).
His wife, Sister Khalida was no less involved in the activities of the nascent Muslim community in Windsor.
They were instrumental in raising funds for the expansion of the Windsor Mosque.
It stands today as a testament to their dedication and selfless service.
Determined to ensure that the mosque is not just a place of worship but must also serve as a hub of the Muslim community, they engaged the youth to aspire higher.
The Windsor Mosque, as it is generally known, has become a cornerstone of Windsor’s social fabric.
The Peers—husband and wife team—were both leaders in their own right.
While Dr Peer excelled in medicine for which he received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award, his wife was not far behind.
Sister Khalida was also honored with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Award and the King’s Coronation Medal.
This is a rare distinction for a husband and wife team even among the broader Canadian community, much less one of Muslim background.
Yet so great was their contribution and impact that both were honoured.
While we mourn their loss, we also take comfort in the fact that their reward is with Allah, the Merciful Lord, who sees all the deeds of His servants.
As Allah says in the noble Qur’an, “… for whatever good you send forth you will find it with Allah: behold, Allah is watchful of all that you do” (Surat al-Baqarah, ayat 110).
In losing the husband and wife team of Dr Ismail and Sister Khalida Peer, not only the Windsor community but the entire Muslim community in Canada has lost two great individuals.
May Allah reward both for all the good they did in their eventful lives and may He raise them among His righteous servants.
Related Articles
