Mr. Ahmed A. Rayner, Sr. was born in 1893 in Calvert, Texas. He graduated from Prairie View A & M University in Prairie View, Texas in 1911. Following his graduation from Prairie View, he migrated to Chicago, Illinois. He eventually became a graduate of both Worsham College of Mortuary Science (in 1914) as well as a graduate of John Marshall Law School (in 1934). While in Chicago, he started working for Jackson Funeral Home. After leaving Jackson Funeral Home, he began a career as the Livery manager for Metropolitan Funeral Home, which was affiliated with the Chicago Metropolitan Mutual Life Assurance Company. A.A. Rayner, Sr. eventually resigned from the “Met” in 1947 to begin his own company.