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| Bahá’í News | August 1987 | Bahá’í Year 144 |
A ‘Unity picnic’ in New Jersey
Bahá’í News[edit]
Bahá’ís in Teaneck, New Jersey, and across U.S. hold ‘Unity picnics’ | 1 |
On August 17,1912, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá speaks to the friends at Green Acre | 4 |
‘Let It Be This Generation!’ is theme of Canada’s Youth Conference | 6 |
Bahá’í-organized medical airlift aids poor children in the Philippines | 10 |
United Nations volunteers keep faith in impoverished Bangladesh | 13 |
Renowned Bahá’í sand painter, sculptor David Villaseñor dead at 74 | 14 |
Around the world: News from Bahá’í communities all over the globe | 16 |
Bahá’í News is published monthly by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States as a news organ reporting current activities of the Bahá’í world community. Manuscripts submitted should be typewritten and double-spaced throughout; any footnotes should appear at the end. The contributor should keep a carbon copy. Send materials to the Periodicals Office, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091, U.S.A. Changes of address should be reported to the Office of Membership and Records, Bahá’í National Center. Please attach mailing label. Subscription rates within the U.S.: one year, $12; two years, $20. Outside the U.S.: one year, $14; two years, 24$. Foreign air mail: one year, $20; two years, $40. Payment must accompany the order and must be in U.S. dollars. Second class postage paid at Wilmette, IL 60091. Copyright © 1987, National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. World rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.
United States[edit]
Picnics commemorate Master’s visit[edit]
On a day that dawned dark and dreary and ended in the dazzling glow of love and unity, more than a thousand Bahá’ís and their guests gathered June 27 at the Wilhelm properties in Teaneck, New Jersey, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Unity picnic hosted there by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during His historic visit to North America in 1912.
The day-long event, one of about 1,500 such picnics held across the country on this momentous occasion at the request of the Hand of the Cause of God William Sears, whose presence greatly blessed this one, seemed doomed at the outset as the heavens opened up, drenching the Teaneck area and causing electricians to refuse to set up equipment at nearby Votee Park, where much of the festivities were to be held.
Entertainer Red Grammer leads the children in song during the ‘Unity picnic’ at the Wilhelm properties in Teaneck, New Jersey.
The steady rain was the only element over which the Wilhelm Council, after months of tireless work and careful planning, had no control. As noon approached and the showers continued, the prospect of holding any kind of celebration appeared dim indeed.
The park was abandoned and a decision was made to set up a stage near the grove of evergreens on the Wilhelm property where the Master had entertained His guests on that long-ago day, saying, “Hundreds of thousands of meetings shall be held to commemorate this occasion, and the very words I speak to you today shall be repeated in them for ages to come.”
As workmen set about building the makeshift stage, whose backdrop was the huge blue-and-white globe used at the Peace Conference last August in San Francisco, and Mr. Sears, Counsellors Wilma Brady and Robert Harris, the members of the National Spiritual Assembly, musicians and other performers, and Bahá’ís from all over the East Coast and elsewhere wondered whether there would be a Souvenir picnic in Teaneck, the sky began to clear and the rain slackened to a drizzle. There was hope after all!
Although the weather remained overcast and the ground rain-soaked, that hope soon became reality as the friends opened picnic lunches, chairs were arranged in the grove, and Counsellor Harris, the master of ceremonies, set about helping the Council members revise the program, which was to have begun at 10 a.m.
It soon became apparent that the decision to move from the park, made under such trying circumstances, was a master stroke. The grove, whose natural beauty and charm evoked memories of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá Himself, was the perfect spot in which to have a picnic.
The program got under way shortly after lunch with a number of excellent performers preceding the keynote address by Mr. Sears and the presentation of a plaque to Mayor Bernard E. Brooks of Teaneck for his work in promoting unity among all the people in that city.
Another special guest was state Sen. Matthew Feldman.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s address to the first Unity picnic in 1912 was read by Dr. Robert Henderson, secretary, and Judge Dorothy Nelson, treasurer of the National Spiritual Assembly, which held its regular meeting that weekend in Teaneck.
Most of those in the audience were given roses in memory of the martyrs
[Page 2]
Above: Canada’s Gordi Munro entertains at the ‘Unity picnic.’ Top right:
Mayor Bernard Brooks of Teaneck receives a plaque from Judge James Nelson, chairman of the U.S. National
Spiritual Assembly. Middle right: A
sign welcomes the friends to the Wilhelm properties in Teaneck. Below
right: After the rain, the friends settle
down for a picnic lunch and much
good fellowship and splendid entertainment.
in Iran, while many carried colorful balloons emblazoned with the “Diamond Jubilee” logo associated with the 75th anniversary of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s visit to North America.
In addition to the speakers, they enjoyed songs by such superlative performers as Susan Lewis, Miguel Corrales, Gordi and Linda Munro, Red Grammer, Van Gilmer, and the New Horizon Choir; and story-telling in mime by the Touchstone Theatre.
Later in the afternoon, as prayers for unity were being read in English, Italian, Spanish, Japanese and Lakota (Sioux), the sun made its first appearance, peeking tentatively from behind the clouds as if to say, “All is well after all.”
“This is the one event that will always be associated with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s visit to America,” Mr. Sears said in his keynote address.
He urged the friends at this picnic and, in a tape-recorded message, those at each of the 1,500 others being held across the country, to use the occasion
[Page 3]
as a time to renew efforts in teaching
the Faith.
“We should all decide that we should do something wonderful with our lives,” he said. “Just imagine if, all across America, we should arise after these picnics. Imagine what would happen in the years ahead.”
At the close of his address, Mr. Sears invited all of the friends to greet him at the Wilhelm cabin, and not to worry about tiring him.
“I came here to be tired,” he said. “What finer gift could anyone have than to be tired by the friends?” ... I don’t know how many more Souvenirs we’ll have together.”
True to his word, Mr. Sears went to the porch of the cabin after the program and remained there for more than two hours exchanging words of love and affection with anyone who wished to see him.
Mayor Brooks, in accepting his plaque from the National Spiritual Assembly, welcomed the Bahá’ís to his “living room,” apologizing for its “leaky roof.”
“I couldn’t think of a better place for you to have this assembly,” he told his audience. “In Teaneck we have no majorities and no minorities. We just have people.”
In spite of the inclement weather which led to the last-minute rearrangement of the agenda, the members of the National Spiritual Assembly were obviously pleased with the results.
“It was simply marvelous,” said Dr. Henderson. “One of the outstanding Bahá’í events in my memory.
“We simply can’t say enough about the Council and the hard work and planning that enabled them to overcome every obstacle to make this a truly memorable occasion, one that those who were fortunate enough to attend will remember fondly for many years to come.”
The friends spread their picnic lunches in front of the charming Wilhelm home where ‘Abdu’l-Bahá spent the night on June 29, 1912.
Performers at one of the 1,500 other picnics, this one in Gainesville, Florida.
Some of the more than 1,000 spectators at the Unity picnic June 27 in Teaneck, New Jersey, would do almost anything, it seems, to obtain a better view of the Hand of the Cause of God William Sears and the group of outstanding performers who were there to entertain them.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá in America[edit]
‘This is a delightful spot ...’[edit]
“Are you all well and happy? This is a delightful spot; the scenery is beautiful, and an atmosphere of spirituality haloes everything. In the future, God willing, Green Acre shall become a great center, the cause of the unity of the world of humanity, the cause of uniting hearts and binding together the East and the West. This is my hope.”
On August 16, 1912, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá traveled to Green Acre in a car brought from there by Alfred Lunt. Green Acre, an estate of nearly 200 acres on the banks of the Piscataqua River in Eliot, Maine, was opened in 1894 by Miss Sarah J. Farmer as a conference center for people of advanced and liberal views. Two years later she became a Bahá’í, and, after going on pilgrimage to ‘Akká, offered the facilities of Green Acre to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
Almost within minutes of His arrival at Green Acre, after only a short rest, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá spoke briefly to a large group who had assembled to meet Him. Later, He visited the sanatorium in nearby Portsmouth where Sarah Farmer, an invalid, was a patient. Although ill and frail, she accompanied Him back to Green Acre.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá at Green Acre, August 1912
Five of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s talks at Green Acre are recorded in The Promulgation of Universal Peace (Copyright © 1982 by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States). The following is from August 17 (with notes by Edna McKinney):
“The physical beauty of this place is very wonderful. We hope that a spiritual charm may surround and halo it; then its beauty will be perfect. There is a spiritual atmosphere manifest here particularly at sunset.
“In cities like New York the people are submerged in the sea of materialism. Their sensibilities are attuned to material forces, their perceptions purely physical. The animal energies predominate in their activities; all their thoughts are directed to material things; day and night they are devoted to the attractions of this world, without aspiration beyond the life that is vanishing and mortal. In schools and temples of learning knowledge of the sciences acquired is based upon material observations only; there is no realization of Divinity in their methods and conclusions—all have reference to the world of matter. They are not interested in attaining knowledge of the mysteries of God or understanding the secrets of the heavenly Kingdom; what they acquire is based altogether upon visible and tangible evidences. Beyond these evidences they are without susceptibilities; they have no idea of the world of inner significances and are utterly out of touch with God, considering this an indication of reasonable attitude and philosophical judgment whereof they are self-sufficient and proud.
“As a matter of fact, this supposed excellence is possessed in its superlative degree by the animals. The animals are without knowledge of God; so to speak, they are deniers of Divinity and understand nothing of the Kingdom and its heavenly mysteries. As deniers
[Page 5]
On August 17, 1912, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, accompanied by his secretary and others, strolls on the grounds of Green Acre in Eliot, Maine. The Green Acre Center was given to the Faith by its owner and founder, Miss Sarah J. Farmer.
of the Kingdom, they are utterly ignorant of spiritual things and uninformed of the supernatural world. Therefore, if it be a perfection and virtue to be without knowledge of God and His Kingdom, the animals have attained the highest degree of excellence and proficiency. Then the donkey is the greatest scientist and the cow an accomplished naturalist, for they have obtained what they know without schooling and years of laborious study in colleges, trusting implicitly to the evidence of the senses and relying solely upon intuitive virtues. The cow, for instance, is a lover of the visible and a believer in the tangible, contented and happy when pasture is plenty, perfectly serene, a blissful exponent of the transcendental school of philosophy. Such is the status of the material philosophers, who glory in sharing the condition of the cow, imagining themselves in a lofty station. Reflect upon their ignorance and blindness.
“Nay, rather, the virtue of man is this: that he can investigate the ideals of the Kingdom and attain knowledge which is denied the animal in its limitation. The station of man is this: that he has the power to attain those ideals and thereby differentiate and consciously distinguish himself an infinite degree above the kingdoms of existence below him.
“The station of man is great, very great. God has created man after His own image and likeness. He has endowed him with a mighty power which is capable of discovering the mysteries of phenomena. Through its use man is able to arrive at ideal conclusions instead of being restricted to the mere plane of sense impressions. As he possesses sense endowment in common with the animals, it is evident that he is distinguished above them by his conscious power of penetrating abstract realities. He acquires divine wisdom; he searches out the mysteries of creation; he witnesses the radiance of omnipotence; he attains the second birth—that is to say, he is born out of the material world just as he is born of the mother; he attains to everlasting life; he draws nearer to God; his heart is replete with the love of God. This is the foundation of the world of humanity; this is the image and likeness of God; this is the reality of man; otherwise, he is an animal. Verily, God has created the animal in the image and likeness of man, for though man outwardly is human, yet in nature he possesses animal tendencies.
“You must endeavor to understand the mysteries of God, attain the ideal knowledge and arrive at the station of vision, acquiring directly from the Sun of Reality and receiving a destined portion from the ancient bestowal of God.”
Canada[edit]
‘Let It Be This Generation!’[edit]
“Let it be this generation!” was the rallying cry of 1,700 youth from 32 countries who gathered July 9-12 for a Bahá’í International Youth Conference at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada.
Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í youth came to the conference to consult together on ways in which they can work for peace so that world peace is achieved as a result of the efforts of this generation.
Among those who spoke to the young people were seven members of the Continental Boards of Counsellors: Eloy Anello, Farzam Arbáb, Robert Harris, Lauretta King, Donald Rogers and David Smith from the Americas, and Agnes Ghaznavi from Europe.
Other featured speakers were Jane Faily, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada; Robert Henderson, secretary of the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly; Auxiliary Board member Jack Lenz from Canada; and Kevin Locke, a Native American Bahá’í and renowned traveling teacher from South Dakota.
‘We’re this close,’ says Auxiliary Board member Jack Lenz of Canada.
Young Bahá’ís greet one another beneath a large banner welcoming them to the International Youth Conference in London, Ontario.
Conference sessions were translated into sign language for the hearing impaired by Chuck Bullock, a Bahá’í from Austin, Texas, and Vicki Meyer, a non-Bahá’í from London, Ontario.
The conference was opened with an address by Dr. George Pedersen, the president of the University of Western Ontario, who commended the youth on their “impressive agenda for peace.”
Letters of welcome were received from Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and David Peterson, the premier of Ontario.
A proclamation by the mayor of London, Ontario, Thomas Gosnell, declared July 6-12 “Bahá’í Week” in that city.
The Universal House of Justice, in its message to the conference, said to the youth, “You are called upon to demonstrate to your peers the power of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh through the nobility of your characters, the excellence of your morals, and the vitality of your spiritual discipline.
“Your commitment to the service of mankind should be reflected in your way of life, your pursuit of education, and in the training of your minds in preparation for the challenges which await the expanding Bahá’í community in spirituality, administration, social and economic development, and international relations.”
In addition to the speakers and a wide range of entertainment including song, dance and drama, the youth were encouraged in the evenings to take part in group discussions with the Counsellors and other guests.
At the close of each evening session the speakers made themselves available in the dormitories, and as there was no
| To the youth gathered at the International Youth Conference in London, Ontario
In the Cradle of the Faith a fettered Bahá’í community looks expectantly to the believers in the West to perform heroic and sacrificial deeds which will demonstrate anew the resistless might of the Cause of God. You are called upon to demonstrate to your peers the power of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh through the nobility of your characters, the excellence of your morals, and the vitality of your spiritual discipline. Your commitment to the service of mankind should be reflected in your way of life, your pursuit of education, and in the training of your minds in preparation for the challenges which await the expanding Bahá’í community in spirituality, administration, social and economic development, and international relations. Among the opportunities before you for service to the Faith are a youth year of service, teaching projects undertaken during vacation periods, and dedicated and persevering participation in local community life. We offer you our heartfelt love, our full confidence, and the assurance of our prayerful remembrance of you at the Sacred Threshold. Universal House of Justice
July 7, 1987 |
curfew, these informal sessions continued late into the night.
Also taking place each evening was “Night Beat,” an informal gathering of musicians in the University Center featuring such talented artists as Doug Cameron, James Woodbridge, “4th Epoch” and “New Generation” who performed nightly until 2 a.m.
A special “round table” discussion was held for Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’í representatives of youth groups interested in consulting on ways to work for peace.
Two members of the National Youth Committee of Canada met with members of Canada World Youth, Youth Action for Peace, and other groups, to discuss the need for unity among the peoples and nations of the world.
“Becoming a Spiritual Being— A World Citizen” was the title of a panel discussion chaired by a Bahá’í youth, Mehrdad Baghai.
Panelists were Counsellors Anello and King and two Bahá’í youth, Laurie Torres of Alaska (who was recently a pioneer to Peru) and Owrang Kashef who works at the World Centre in Haifa, Israel.
The speakers urged the youth to consider service overseas as a means of developing their spiritual nature and world-consciousness.
A video tape, “The Global Brain,” by Peter Russell illustrated the evolution of mankind’s collective consciousness, which made a giant leap forward when man entered the Space Age.
Counsellor Eloy Anello (left) has his remarks ‘signed’ for the hearing impaired by Chuck Bullock, a Bahá’í from Austin, Texas.
Looking back on planet earth from outer space, man was able for the first time to see it as an organic whole: truly one world.
As Counsellor Smith said in his commentary on the video, “We need to be willing to find new ways of looking at things, new ways of thinking, if mankind is to survive.”
The Association for Bahá’í Studies met during the conference to talk about projects for Bahá’í college clubs to initiate in conjunction with the ABS.
The Bahá’í Distribution Service of Canada set up a bookstore to sell various materials including T-shirts, buttons and bags with the conference logo, “Let It Be This Generation!” or, in French, “Que ce soit cette génération!”
Alongside the bookstore were information booths for the Bahá’í World Centre; the National Youth Committees of Canada and the U.S.; Canada World Youth; the Louhelen Bahá’í School; service projects such as the Badí’ Peace March from London to Toronto; and upcoming conferences including those in Manchester, England, and Lafayette, Indiana.
The conference drew media attention from around the world. Jeph Pillet-Fabre, a reporter for the French newspaper Liberation, came to cover the event for his Paris-based paper because, he said, “The French youth need an example to follow such as the youth gathering here to talk about peace.”
Locally, the conference received press coverage in the London Free
[Page 8]
Above: In the evenings, the beat goes on. Below: And dancing to that beat are many of the young people attending the Youth Conference.
Press and the university newspaper, Western News.
Among the stellar artists who entertained during the main sessions were:
- Canadian recording artist Doug Cameron and his band, “Blue Velvet.”
- Canadian singer/guitarist Gordi Munro who recently completed a 20,000-mile teaching trip through the U.S.
- Youth Core, a group of 17 non-Bahá’í youth from Ontario who presented a drama about conflicting ideologies achieving unity.
- Negin Khoshkhesal and Habib Zargarpour, Bahá’í youth from Vancouver who presented a “unity dance” entitled “Romebot and Juliebot.”
- Santour player Kiu Haghighi and pianist Rosamond Brenner from Illinois.
- A Canadian dance troupe, “The Atlantic Workshop.”
- Non-Bahá’í singer Rosemary Stewart.
- Singer Nancy Ward who accompanied Mr. Cameron during his performance of the song, “Mona with the Children.”
Mr. Lenz, who besides being an Auxiliary Board member is a musician and composer for radio, television and films, produced a dramatic presentation on the life of the Báb, “Midsummer Noon,” which was performed to commemorate the anniversary of the Martyrdom of the Báb on July 9.
Counsellor Arbáb, who is director of a program in education and rural development in Colombia, spoke twice during the conference. His first talk was titled “Needed—A New Kind of Youth.”
There is no doubt, he said, that “the prevailing world order is lamentably defective.
“Yet this day is infused with the Grace of God—and as overwhelmed as you may be by social conflicts and problems of personal transformation, you can choose the ‘path of sacrifice’ and respond to the sound of the voice that calls you to service from the innermost heart of humanity.
“Face your future!” he told his young audience. “Become involved!”
In this conference, Dr. Faily said, “you will decide how you feel about the issue of world peace.”
Humanity, she said, has come to a point of paralysis, unable to move forward due to a “balance of terror” created by the threat of nuclear annihilation.
The task facing today’s young people, she said, is that of “ushering mankind into adulthood; unifying the people of the world to prevent the destruction of the earth and protect future generations.”
Mr. Locke, a Lakota Bahá’í, spoke on “Native American Prophecies for Peace” and gave a performance of his renowned “hoop dance.”
He explained the significance of the dance, in which various colored hoops are formed into a globe, as representing unity in diversity.
Counsellor Harris said it is the task of this generation to “bust the barriers” to world peace identified by the Universal House of Justice in its peace statement: racism, the oppression of women, economic injustice, lack of education, nationalism, and religious
[Page 9]
Youth join hands to sing a song of love and unity with Doug Cameron and his band.
Counsellor Robert Harris exhorts his audience to ‘bust the barriers’ to world peace identified by the Universal House of Justice.
strife.
Youth can obliterate those barriers, he said, by arising in service to the Cause of God:
“Make the decision to travel and give time to serve the Cause. Convince your parents that you are serious about your commitment—prove you can clean up your own room before you try to save the world!
“And, most important, don’t wait—make the decision to go, and go now!”
“Peace: What Does It Take?” was the question put to the youth by Dr. Henderson, who suggested that they start by trying to be an example to the world.
True happiness, he said, “comes from excellence of character, breadth of learning and the ability to solve problems. You have been given the power not only to affect your own lives but all of society. You are the champions of a new day!”
Counsellor Rogers, in his presentation on “The Creative Dynamic of an Ideal Community,” used classic painting to illustrate humankind’s journey out of darkness.
“However insignificant you feel,” he said, “you should nevertheless arise to serve; stand up and generate light or else darkness will prevail.”
Counsellor Ghaznavi and a panel of youth discussed “The Power of a Moral Character.” The three young panelists were Mark Steiner, Maren Klapt and Ruth Forman.
Ms. Klapt, who spoke in German which was translated into English by Counsellor Ghaznavi said, “Youth can move the world, but first we have to move ourselves.”
The music video “Mona with the Children” was shown during Counsellor Smith’s closing address which emphasized depth of faith and a firm commitment to the Cause of God.
The youth, filled with spirit and a desire to become the “champions of a new day,” arose as one, singing, “Let it be this generation to bring peace; bring it to the world!”
U.S./Philippines[edit]
Bahá’í-organized airlift aids poor[edit]
What started as an idea for a modest service project in the minds of two Los Angeles-area Bahá’ís blossomed recently into one of the most massive humanitarian medical relief airlifts ever undertaken.
Called Project HELP (Hospital Emergency Lift, Philippines), the airlift brought free medical help—in the form of doctors, medicines and medical equipment—from Southern California to the poorest children in the Philippines.
Philippine President Corazon Aquino, saying she was “overwhelmed” by the effort, officially received the airlift’s 15 tons of donated medicines from Bahá’í project leaders David Langness and Deanne LaRue in a formal reception at Malacanang Palace in Manila.
The Project HELP airlift took 25 physicians and health care professionals to the Philippines, with a special focus on the critical medical needs of children. The all-volunteer group flew from Los Angeles to Manila aboard a China Airlines 747 filled with medicines and medical supplies donated by hospitals in Southern California.
Mr. Langness and Ms. LaRue, who run the communications division of the Hospital Council of Southern California, a non-profit trade association, put together the effort in six months solely from donated labor, supplies and travel accommodations—or, as they said, “on two wings and a prayer.”
“We wanted to do several things with Project HELP,” said Mr. Langness, HCSC’s vice-president of communications.
“First, to raise the world’s awareness of the terrible medical plight of the poor in the Philippines; second, to build a program that could link health efforts and support what had already been done; and third, to really apply the Bahá’í principles of world unity and social development in our jobs.
President Corazon Aquino of the Philippines (center) receives a small box of medicines, symbolic of the 15 tons of medicine airlifted to that country last February by Project HELP, from the project’s two principal organizers, Bahá’ís David Langness and Deanne LaRue, during a ceremony at Malacanang Palace in Manila. (Photo by Marissa Roth, the Los Angeles Times)
“It was a life-changing experience to see it work.”
The large-scale project grew out of a simple request from three Filipino women in Los Angeles who came to the Hospital Council and asked Mr. Langness and Ms. LaRue for a donation of a few grocery bags of badly-needed medicines.
“We wanted to do a little better than that,” Ms. LaRue said with a smile.
Since the peaceful overthrow last year of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, and the subsequent flight of capital from the country’s economy, simple medicines such as antibiotics and vaccines have been in critically short supply.
Thousands of people, especially Fili-
[Page 11]
pino children, have died as a result of
the shortages.
Ms. LaRue, who is HCSC communications director, said, “There is a measles epidemic rampant in the Philippines today, for example, because the money to buy vaccines just isn’t there. The health care conditions are terrible. We thought we should do everything possible to help.”
Two sick children, together in one bed in the pediatrics/malnutrition ward of a slum hospital in Manila, the Philippines, are watched over by their mothers. These and other slum children were the target of a massive effort by Project HELP to aid the medically deprived people of the Philippines. (Photo by Marissa Roth, the Los Angeles Times)
Project HELP began to take shape quickly after Ms. LaRue secured the donation of free passenger and cargo space on a China Airlines jet.
The Hospital Council asked its 240 member hospitals to give surplus medicines, supplies and medical equipment to the effort, and those gifts—far more than the 15 tons the airline had allocated—soon filled a donated warehouse.
Mr. Langness and Ms. LaRue then sought the cooperation of Operation California, the Hollywood-based airlift relief charity known for its mercy flights to Cambodia, Ethiopia and other disaster-stricken countries.
While Mr. Langness and Richard Walden, president of Operation California, were on an exploratory fact-finding trip to the Philippines, the “Mendiola massacre” of 18 demonstrators and a coup attempt took place.
Although these political tensions threatened to halt the project, the decision was made to press ahead.
A delegation comprised of 25 physician and hospital administrator volunteers was recruited, and the project was officially kicked off at a press conference by U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar.
The senator, who played a major role in the Philippines’ “snap revolution” of February 1986 as the head of a U.S. Congressional team investigating election fraud, said he was “genuinely moved and inspired by such a humanitarian effort.
“Hope comes from persons like yourselves,” he said. “Your care can make a very big difference in people’s lives.”
Also announced at the press conference was a crucial element of the project, a plan to set up a long-term “sister hospital” network between participating U.S. institutions and needy hospitals in the Philippines.
The network was to be implemented as an integral part of Project HELP, said Mr. Langness, and was designed to make the project a lasting effort rather than a token one-shot contribution.
When the Project HELP airlift took off during Intercalary Days late last February amid a flurry of local, national and international media coverage, one other Bahá’í was on board: physician Steve Peterson of Redlands, California, who had volunteered as a
[Page 12]
delegate and soon became a symbol of
the project’s impact when he was featured in a front-page article in the Los Angeles Times headlined “Not Like
Redlands—Manila Slum Hospital Jars
U.S. Doctor.”
The article, complete with a photograph of Dr. Peterson examining a sick child in the Philippines and a disturbing description of health care conditions in a Manila slum hospital, was picked up by the wire services and run in many newspapers across the U.S.
“I would say that this is certainly a graphic illustration of need,” Dr. Peterson said in the Times article. “And no, I’ve never seen anything like this before in my life.
“It would seem on the surface that there’s no solution to the problem—but you’ve got to do something. You’ve got to start somewhere.”
Projecteers, warmly received on their arrival in Manila, set to work immediately on an assessment of Philippine health care needs. The group spent most of its time visiting government-operated hospitals in far-flung rural provinces like the islands of Negros and Samar, and in impoverished urban areas such as Manila’s Tondo, one of the world’s largest slums.
“The Tondo was incredible,” said Mr. Langness. “If you can imagine 20,000 to 30,000 squatters, mostly children, living on a constantly burning garbage dump, with no hygiene, no sewers, no social services, you can begin to get a picture of Smoky Mountain, as it’s called.
“No one in the group could have dreamed, in his worst nightmares, of a hell more real than Smoky Mountain. Once you see conditions like that, you can’t help but be affected.
“But the one thing that really inspired me,” he said, “was that in the face of such dire conditions, the children we met radiated such warmth and happiness to us.”
Hospital conditions seen by the delegates were hard for many of them to believe. Visiting one typical regional hospital on the economically depressed island of Negros, they saw many hospital beds with two patients apiece, toured large malnutrition wards, and noted virtually bare pharmacy shelves.
“Filipino doctors and nurses do a great job,” said one delegate, “but you can’t save lives with no resources.”
Another hospital had the luxury of owning an ambulance but had only enough fuel to operate it one day a week.
Still another hospital appalled physician delegates who saw surgery taking place in a hallway because surgical facilities were packed, and saw disposable surgical gloves being washed—not sterilized—and hung up to dry for reuse later.
At every hospital visited during their
At one hospital, visited before the project’s shipment of medicines had cleared customs, the delegates were so moved by the needs of the sick children that an impromptu collection was taken up, which financed a buying trip to a pharmacy.
week-long stay, delegates noted one common denominator: a drastic lack of medicines.
When a patient needed an antibiotic to fight an infection, for instance, it was generally understood that the patient’s family had to find the necessary medication in a pharmacy or buy from the local black market.
At one hospital, visited before the project’s shipment of medicines had cleared customs, the delegates were so moved by the needs of the sick children that an impromptu collection was taken up, which financed a buying trip to a pharmacy.
The official visit with President Aquino took place on the fourth day after Project HELP’s arrival, and was held in the small palace guest house which she uses as her presidential office.
Delegates also toured the palace itself, infamous as the repository of the materialistic excesses of the Marcos regime such as Mrs. Marcos’ shoe collection. It is now used as a museum—and as a grim reminder of those excesses—and is open to the Filipino people.
President Aquino gave the delegation a warm and gracious reception and praised the group for its spirit of cooperation and international assistance.
“As we continue our struggle for democracy,” she said, “we are overwhelmed by the kind of support your group has shown for my government.
“On behalf of the Filipino people, I wish to thank you for the medicines you donated and your support for my country.”
Mr. Langness addressed the large reception audience and the President, and then both Bahá’ís presented Mrs. Aquino with a small box of medicines that was symbolic of the larger shipment.
The visit to the Philippines lasted a little more than a week, and all of the 25 delegates expressed a desire to return to continue the work.
“It was a startling, eye-opening, amazing experience,” one of them said.
“Once you see those (children’s) faces,” said another, “it makes you want to do everything in your power to keep helping.”
As a result of Project HELP, Ms. LaRue and Mr. Langness have been honored by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the Filipino community of Southern California, and the Hospital Council’s board of directors which gave them both “Leadership in Health Affairs” awards, which had been bestowed only once before in the organization’s 65-year history.
“The sense of hope, of new freedom, and the happiness it engenders, infuses the Philippines with a wonderful feeling today,” said Mr. Langness.
“For me, as a Bahá’í, doing this kind of relief work makes for a deep sense of humility in the face of the world’s massive problems, but it’s also a great antidote for cynicism.”
Project HELP, said Ms. LaRue, “taught me that, with a little creativity, just about anyone can apply Bahá’í principles in their work. And that is incredibly fulfilling.”
United Nations[edit]
In Bangladesh, volunteers keep faith[edit]
United Nations Volunteers (UNVs), under the auspices of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), was created in 1970 by the UN General Assembly to channel volunteers who are professionally qualified men and women into development activities in the Third World.
About 1,000 UN Volunteers from 80 countries are now in the field. Each volunteer assumes his or her assignment solely at the invitation of the host country. As part of the only volunteer-sending organization in the United Nations system, UN Volunteers work as citizens of the world, operating beyond politics and taking their cue from the developing countries’ needs.
The average UN Volunteer is a young professional, 25 to 35 years old, with a master’s, technical degree or extensive professional experience and several years of experience in his or her area of expertise. More than 75 per cent of UN Volunteers presently in the field are from developing countries, reflecting increased promotion of technical cooperation among developing countries and encouraging the fruitful exchange of talents and ideas.
Volunteers first and foremost, UNVs take up their assignments not for careers or employment but for commitment and service. In accepting a UNV post, each UN Volunteer accepts as well the challenges basic to international development: the need to adapt one’s know-how to circumstances, to adopt the host country’s development aims as one’s own, and to shoulder the job’s inherent difficulties and frustrations in order to see some aspect of human existence change for the better.
The following story, reprinted from a UNV newsletter of April-June 1986, is by Thirupukuzhi V. Srinivasan, a UNV medical doctor in Mirzapur, Tangail, Bangladesh:
“It is another cloudy morning, with a forecast of thunderstorms, already most of the rivers brimming over, causing suffering to the people. Thus life in Kumundini begins, with the chirp of exotic birds, melodious Rabindra Sangeet (Tagore songs) in the air, and the hustle and bustle of people going to work.
“UNV doctor Krishna Hort from Australia prepares himself for a journey to a nearby village which will take several hours. First he travels by an overcrowded bus, then he takes a boat to cross one of the innumerable unnamed rivers. He does this regularly to come to the people of the village and educate them in antenatal care, child care, family planning and primary health care.
“UNV Aye Aye Myint, from Burma, wearing a colorful national attire, rushes to the labor ward to attend to an expectant mother brought on a bullock cart from afar.
“And I, UNV Srinivasan from India, wearing an operation theatre attire, enthusiastically prepare myself for a series of long and gruelling operations. With available minimal equipment and limited precious oxygen, I struggle every day to contribute to a better life for hospital inmates while at the same time pleasing the surgeons with dedicated work.
“My compatriot, UNV Baboo Hudani, is an ophthalmologist. In broken Bengali he greets his patients and does not miss any opportunity of kindling in them a hope of regaining eyesight.
“We are the four United Nations Volunteers working within the project ‘Assistance to the Kumundini Hospital’—a hospital situated 44 miles from Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. And what was started 42 years ago as a 20-bed hospital—by a philanthropist named Rana Prasad Saha who did not have even the resources to provide medical care for his own mother—has grown into a famous charitable hospital with a capacity of 750 beds.
“The UNV assistance to Kumundini Hospital began with the arrival of the first UN Volunteer in 1982. He was Dr. Krishna Hort, a pediatrician who served the first two years (December 1982-December 1984) as a UNV in general medicine, followed by a four-year assignment in his specified field, pediatrics. The UNV is completing the sixth year of service at the hospital. Prior to the UNV assignment he worked as an Australian volunteer. UNV Krishna Hort understands the complexities of a traditional society and rightly thinks that language is an important and effective vehicle to understanding the culture and tradition of a society. The UNV has succeeded in not only picking up the Bengali language but also a Bengali bride.
“In the initial stage of the UNV assignment, Dr. Hort’s work did not proceed smoothly, mainly because of his unfamiliarity with Bengali culture. Now, after having mastered the language, he understands the society well. As a doctor with long experience in Bangladesh, UNV Hort feels that in Bangladesh more time and money are spent for curative medicine than for preventive and community medicine.
“Moreover, he strongly suggests measures to improve the status of women in the society. This, he thinks, will lower the high mortality rate among pregnant women and infants. During his UNV assignment, Dr. Hort has seen considerable improvement of services in various clinics of the hospital, but he expresses only cautious optimism about a quick reduction in the infant mortality rate. ‘There is a long way to go,’ he says.”
United States[edit]
Artist, sculptor David Villaseñor dies[edit]
David Villanueva Villaseñor, an artist and sculptor who perfected the technique of permanent sand painting to help preserve for future generations that unique and important art form of the Navajo Indians, died July 6 in New Mexico after a long illness.
Mr. Villaseñor, a Bahá’í since 1955, was widely known and universally respected as the foremost practitioner of sand painting, which he described as “one of the most beautiful and hallowed rites of the Navajo through which his reverence for all creation is made visual with superb dignity and in which always the Great Spirit is honored.”
Until Mr. Villaseñor perfected, with the use of glue and colored sands, the sort of “permanent” sand paintings that could be hung on a wall, such paintings, considered sacred by the Navajo, were created, displayed and destroyed within 12 hours.
Noting as a young man that the ancient art form was dying out, Mr. Villaseñor spent years developing a technique by which to preserve it, and many more years reintroducing the art of sand painting to Native Americans throughout the Southwest and on the West Coast.
He demonstrated his work at colleges and universities, made films for educational television, and lectured on sand painting in the U.S. and other countries.
In 1981, Mr. Villaseñor was featured in a half-hour episode of “American Perspective: Another View,” a series of 10 television documentaries that presented positive profiles of Americans of diverse ethnic backgrounds.
The “pallet” used in sand painting, he pointed out, consists of different colored rocks that are ground to the consistency of sand: “Apache tears” (obsidian), moss agate, copper sulfates, malachite, turquoise, azurites, limestone, amethyst and agate.
DAVID VILLASENOR
He combined these elements with extraordinary care and skill to create paintings unmatched in their beauty, design and exquisite detail.
Mr. Villaseñor was born February 25, 1913, near Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Orphaned at age six by the Mexican Revolution, he came to the U.S. 10 years later with no knowledge of its language or customs and lived near and among the Indians of the Southwest.
While he was with the Navajo, a sand painting was made in his honor. As is the custom, he sat in the middle of it during the ceremony, and was immediately fascinated by the sand.
When it was time for the sand painting to be “read,” the medicine man said Mr. Villaseñor would be a great teacher with sand and a great sand painter.
True to that prediction, sand painting and its spiritual symbolism soon became a major force in his life.
It was not for himself that he dedicated years of trial and error to develop the work for which he was to become famous; his main interest was to find a way in which to preserve the holy books of the American Indians.
Mr. Villaseñor saw that the art of sand painting was waning, and realized that the symbols in the sand represented the spiritual teachings of the Indian. His permanent sand paintings became a gift of love to Indian and non-Indian alike.
While engaged in these pursuits he also helped establish the Santa Fe (New Mexico) Native Market, which today is a flourishing center for the sale of handmade Indian jewelry, pottery and sand paintings.
It was there, in the early 1930s, that Ernest Thompson Seton, founder of the Woodcraft Rangers, saw Mr. Villaseñor carving whimsical wooden figures of animals.
The two of them soon began a happy 10-year association at the School of Indian Wisdom where Mr. Villaseñor worked with young boys, teaching them sand painting, whittling, nature crafts, wood carving and Indian symbolism.
In 1942 he enlisted in the Army, was granted U.S. citizenship and assigned for three years to medical art work.
It was during this time that he developed an original method for taking molds of hands, feet, ears and other living tissue, using a material that made a soft mold to give complete details of the area involved including
[Page 15]
pores, follicles, tissue structure, etc.,
without causing further damage or
trauma to the area.
The technique, known as moulage, was used to show progress and change from pre-surgery conditions to postoperative recuperation.
For its development, Mr. Villaseñor was awarded the Army’s highest possible non-combatant citation for his “permanent contribution to medical science.”
His original work forms part of the permanent exhibit of the Museum of Pathology in Washington, D.C.
In 1948 Mr. Villaseñor married Jean Gimlin who survives him and with whom he co-authored several books including How to Do Nature Painting, Tapestries in Sand, and How to Do Permanent Sand Painting.
As a sculptor, Mr. Villaseñor, after much careful research and study in Mexico, created a full-scale replica of the Aztec calendar.
From the carving a special mold was made from which came two fiber glass castings. The resultant sculptures are 12 feet in diameter and weigh some 600 pounds.
The first is on permanent display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History; the second stands in La Plaza de la Raza in Lincoln Park, East Los Angeles.
In 1976, after working for 10 years in his spare time, Mr. Villaseñor completed a 10-foot-high figure of the great Cherokee Indian Chief, Sequoyah, fashioned from a Sequoyah redwood tree.
The sculpture was given to the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly which in turned presented it as a gift to the Cherokee Nation at a ceremony in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
After becoming Bahá’ís in 1955, Mr. and Mrs. Villaseñor devoted considerable time and energy to teaching the Faith, often using Mr. Villaseñor’s knowledge of sand painting and Indian art, culture and symbolism to open the door.
Mr. Villaseñor served on Assemblies for many years, was a member of the Spanish Teaching Committee and an assistant to the Auxiliary Board.
Meanwhile, he worked for three years with Lockheed Aircraft’s Research and Engineering Division, served as art director for the public television series “Ahora,” and took part in the making of several documentary films.
But sand painting remained his first love, and he traveled extensively to lecture about and present demonstrations of his art.
One-man shows of his work were presented at the American Museum of Natural History (New York), the Southwest Indian Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, the Palace of the Legion of Honor (San Francisco), Descanso Gardens (La Canada, California), the California Institute of Technology, and many other places.
Mr. Villaseñor was buried July 8 in the Santa Fe National Cemetery.
Besides his wife, he is survived by a brother, Alonzo, and two sisters, Ernestina and Librada.
Pakistan[edit]
Counsellor Sábir Áfáqí (in white suit) is shown during a visit May 12 to new Baluchi Bahá’ís in Kohmachi, Baluchistan, Pakistan.
The world[edit]
New Delhi Temple draws large crowds[edit]
The Mother Temple of the Indian Sub-continent in New Delhi continues to attract thousands of visitors every month.
In April, a group of devotees who were attending a “mela” at the nearby Temple of Kalkaji chose to offer prayers at the House of Worship. On April 7, the last day of the celebration at the Kalkaji Temple, the Bahá’í Temple received more than 35,000 visitors.
Also in April, the third secretary of the Chinese Embassy, Zhao Li, accompanied by his wife and two colleagues, visited the Temple. Mrs. Zhao was deeply impressed, and said she wished there were such a Temple in China.
Among other visitors were a team of 11 Polish mountain climbers on their way to Nepal to scale Mount Everest. They copied the short obligatory prayer in Polish from Volume XIV of The Bahá’í World and spent an hour asking questions about the Faith.
One young Indian woman from Delhi emerged from the Temple with her face alight and told the Bahá’í guides of a recurring dream she’d had as a young girl about a temple in the shape of a lotus.
The Delhi Tourism Development Corporation brought its first group of visitors in April, and now brings more visitors almost daily.
Trichur, the cultural capital of the State of Kerala, India, was the target last February of a week-long teaching effort conducted by 23 Bahá’ís.
By the end of the project, which was dedicated to the memory of the late Sri A.P. Kumaran, 200 families had received the Teachings, and 62 new believers had been enrolled.
Three Auxiliary Board members helped with the project, conducting a deepening institute on the first day, during which they spoke about the sacrificial services to the Cause by their late co-worker.
The “Bal Mela” (Bahá’í Children’s Fair) has become a popular annual event in the more than 100 Bahá’í tutorial schools in Uttar Pradesh, India.
One hundred twenty-nine such schools including 17 middle schools cover a wide area of the three districts of Etawah, Kanpur (rural) and Farukhabad. There are now more than 8,000 students and 250 teachers in these schools.
The Children’s Fair, a day-long program of games, sports and cultural events, has become a tradition after only five years. This year it was necessary to hold several such events to cover the region and make the Fair accessible to all the schools.
Fifty-three schools participated with 1,820 children taking part: 1,131 boys and 689 girls.
In addition, there were 2,732 visitors, some of them students at private government schools. Many of these guests were impressed by the Bahá’í celebration and expressed an interest in attending Bahá’í schools.
Hawaii[edit]
Roberta Momi Williams of the Bahá’í community of Honolulu is shown as she read the opening prayer in the Hawaii State Senate at Naw-Rúz 1987. Each year on March 21, the Bahá’ís of Hawaii are invited to say prayers at the opening of the state legislature. This year has been declared the Year of the Hawaiian by the governor of the state; Roberta Williams is of Hawaiian ancestry.
Kenya[edit]
Counsellor Aziz Yazdi, a member of the International Teaching Centre in Haifa, Israel, and Mrs. Soraya Yazdi paid a brief visit to Kenya in January.
Three hundred Bahá’ís attended a meeting with Mr. Yazdi at Givogi in Kakamega, according to the quarterly News Bulletin of the Auxiliary Board members in Kenya for February 1987.
In Kisumu, the home of the Oburas overflowed with the Bahá’ís who came to meet the Yazdis.
In Namawanga, Bungoma, 155 Bahá’ís from 16 communities gathered at the Bahá’í Center where Mr. Yazdi exhorted the group, which included 65 youth, to take up earnestly the question of social and economic development, saying they should improve both their spiritual and material lives.
The Counsellor stopped next at the Nakuru Center to see the dormitory and to hold a prayer session with the friends who had gathered there for a pre-primary school teaching course.
A meeting with the Bahá’í community of Nairobi ended the visit of Mr. and Mrs. Yazdi to their former pioneering home.
Bangladesh[edit]
Two Children’s Conferences were held recently in Bangladesh. At the National Hazíratu’l-Quds in Dhaka on December 27, 30 children attended a conference organized by the National Bahá’í Women’s Committee, and on January 3, at the Bahá’í Center in Mymensingh, 52 children came to a conference organized by the Regional Teaching Committee.
The youngsters at both conferences enjoyed singing, dancing, prayers and poetry readings.
Republic of Ireland[edit]
A recent talk by a Bahá’í to a women’s group in Waterford, Ireland, was so well received that the speaker was invited to prepare an exhibit on the status of women for the Waterford Federation of Women’s Organizations. The talk was based on reports from the Bahá’í International Community about activities undertaken by Bahá’ís in support of the United Nations Decade for Women (1975-1985).
United States[edit]
Dr. Robert C. Henderson (left), secretary of the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly, presents a copy of ‘The Promise of World Peace’ to William F. Gibson, chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, during the NAACP’s 78th annual convention in New York City. The presentation was made on July 8 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s address to the NAACP’s fourth convention on April 30, 1912. As a part of the presentation to the 3,500 delegates and guests, Dr. Henderson included in his remarks the statements made by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá at that earlier event.
Australia[edit]
In March, about 100 people of diverse backgrounds attended the dedication of the Toowoomba, Australia, Peace Garden in East Creek Park.
The ceremony was opened by the mayor of Toowoomba and an alderman.
The concept of a peace garden was recommended to the city council by the Spiritual Assembly of Toowoomba, which contributed $3,000 toward the total construction cost of $8,000.
The garden, which is circular to symbolize the unity of races, nations, classes and religions, has nine path-ways leading to its center.
Its two bronze plaques were unveiled by city officials who praised the Bahá’ís for their peace initiatives.
The dedication ceremony ended with peace songs and the release of doves.
Nigeria[edit]
Twenty women were among the 70 Bahá’ís who met last February at a National Teaching Conference in Lagos, Nigeria, to launch that country’s Six Year Plan goals.
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