Agent took up stained glass as a hobby on advice from doctor
Published in the Nov. 26 – Dec. 9, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Ameer Tozy stands at the entrance to Guglielmo Winery below one of his stained glass creations. Photo by Marty Cheek
Since childhood growing up in Mosul, Iraq, coming to America and pursuing his education was a dream for Ameer Tozy. He worked in Baghdad for more than four years in international banking until the firm was shut down by the government due to political reasons after the Iraqi revolution in 1958. The bank went into liquidation and he was appointed as one of the liquidators. That’s when he said to himself it was time to leave the country.
Morgan Hill Life asked Tozy about his life and career in real estate at Coldwell Banker as well as his artistic talents making stained glass window pictures.
How did you get from Mosul, Iraq to Morgan Hill when you were a young student?
I left Iraq in 1960, voyaging to America on the Queen Mary. I chose Montana State University in Missoula, Montana simply because I knew only one friend who left Iraq before me who was there — and I had no idea what the weather was going to be like in Montana. At the end of the winter quarter and summer session I took off to the sunnier climate of Monterey, where I was accepted at Monterey Peninsula College. I received my associate arts degree and went to San Jose State University and received my bachelor of science degree in Business and Industrial Management in 1964. My wife and I chose to live in Morgan Hill since 1973 because it was and is a small community with wonderful weather and people that would be a great place to raise our three daughters and would be close to major cities such as San Jose and San Francisco and close to Monterey Peninsula, Carmel and Santa Cruz beaches.
How did you get into the real estate business and what is your approach to helping people?
Real estate was my passion when I was at San Jose State in 1962. I went to the employment office on campus looking for a part-time job since I was self-supporting to pay for my living expenses and education. The office directed me to Title Insurance and Trust Company (now Chicago Title) for a filing clerk position. I was puzzled when I got there when I saw a nice clean building. I thought to myself this must be the wrong place as I was expecting the place to be “tile” company, which presumable is not as clean. I went in and it sure was a title company. I worked there during my senior year. I was hired immediately after graduation as a full time “title searcher.”
I leaned the title industry on the job, training seminars and self-study of California land and title history and civil code relating to the title industry. Thereafter I moved through the ranks. I worked there for 26 and a half years and retired in 1989. After that, I obtained my real estate broker license and have been working at Coldwell Banker in Morgan Hill since. Integrity is the most important in my life. My goal is to find the dream home for buyers willing and able to purchase a house they can call “home.”
A detail shot of Tozy’s stained glass art work. Photo by Marty Cheek
How did you learn the art and craft of stained-glass windows and why is it a passion for you?
In 1980 I had a heart attack and double bypass surgery. My cardiologist advised me to take on a hobby that may reduce the daily work stress. I was inclined toward art since childhood doing drawing, painting, and wood work. My wife saw an ad for stained glass classes in a shop in downtown Morgan Hill. She told me I might like to consider taking the course. It made sense to me and I did take one class in copper foil and did very well in it and I enjoy it very much. Thereafter, the shop was closed but I found a stained glass shop in San Jose. I took a leaded class there and went on to others in different cities for other classes in sand blasting, painting, and fusing. I became good at it and I taught stained glass in Morgan Hill at the community adult school for 12 years at Live Oak High School until I left teaching about 10 years ago due to my real estate job.
My favorite stained glass pieces are the “El Toro Mountain Scene” that people can see at the Guglielmo Winery and the “Guglielmo Logo” on the winery gate as well as several art pieces in my own house. I still have my stained glass studio at my home, but my time is limited in stained glass fabrication as it is very labor intensive and time consuming.
