Abbas "Ben" Mehraban

Abbas Mehraban (known to friends and family as Ben), 79, passed away on April 15, 2025, at Kobacker House in Columbus, Ohio. He was born in Shiraz, Iran, the fourth of six children, to parents Ali Mohammad and Soghra. As a young man, he traveled to the United States to attend college, where he met the love of his life, Alicia. Together, Ben and Alicia moved to Iran for eight years before settling back in the U.S. to build a life and raise their family.

Ben retired in 2021 after working 40 years at American Electric Power (AEP). At AEP, he was the “go to person” for contract negotiations, project management, implementation coordination, final testing, and performance tracking for new and major research and development equipment. He was known for being highly ethical, very conscientious, incredibly hard working, and completely dedicated to both his family and to AEP. Ben was loved for going above and beyond to support and mentor many professional colleagues and community members.

Ben earned numerous awards and recognitions from AEP and from professional electrical engineering organizations. His accomplishments and active involvement in such organizations made him a well-known expert and leader in power engineering around the world.

Some of his contributions to innovations in power transmission include: design and implementation of the world’s first Unified Power Flow Controller (UPFC), Static Var Compensators, Gas Insulated Substations (GIS), High Voltage DC (HVDC) Transmission, High Temperature Super Conducting cables, Grid of the Future, and the HVDC interconnection between US and Mexico. He was a lifetime member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and an active contributor to many of its subcommittees.

Ben had a wide range of hobbies and interests: He was passionate about physical fitness, he loved traveling, skiing, bicycling, golf, tennis, and playing cards and backgammon with his family. He was a devoted Ohio State Buckeyes fan and relished Saturday afternoons at the Shoe cheering on the buckeyes with his sons. Ben loved music; Iranian classical music, western classical music, and rock and roll, especially the Beatles.

Ben will be remembered for his concern for others, service to many causes, unconventional wisdom, unique and disarming sense of humor, and the deep devotion he held for his family and friends. He is preceded in death by his parents and brother Hossein. He is survived by his beloved wife of 53 years, Alicia; their two sons, Robert and Andrew; his siblings: sisters Zahra and Parvin and brothers Hassan and Hamid; and many loving family members and friends, both in the U.S. and abroad.

Visitation will be on Tuesday, April 22 from 4-7 pm at Schoedinger Funeral Home, 1740 Zollinger in Upper Arlington. A funeral mass will be held on Wednesday, April 23 at 10:30 am at St. Andrew Church 1899 McCoy Rd. in Upper Arlington. All are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations be made to Dawn Farm, https://www.dawnfarm.org/donate and Chamber Music Columbus (In memory of Ben Mehraban) at https://www.chambermusiccolumbus.org/make-a-gift/.