Bahá’í World/Volume 20/Aparicia Ortiz Gutierrez
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APARICIA ORTIZ GUTIERREZ
1957—1990
Aparicia Ortiz Gutierrez was born in Honduras in the Garifuna Village of San Pedro de Tocamacho, municipality of Iriona in the Department of Colén, on 14 February 1957. Her parents were Mr. Méximo Ortiz and Mrs. Paula Gutierrez.
Her childhood was spent in the place of her birth, and she attended primary school to grade five. Her mother was a Bahá’í, and in her youth Aparieia was devoted to teaching Bahá’í children’s classes in addition to demonstrating to her own people and to strangers the qualities and virtues pointed out in the Sacred Writings.
Aparicia married Daniel Martinez and gave birth to four children: Patricia, Claudia Ondina, Julia Vanessa, and Melvin Omar, all of whom became believers. When her sister passed away, Aparicia also adopted her sister’s twins: Juan Eloy and Juan Guillermo. Following ancient customs, she worked in planting and harvesting the root vegetable yucca, and preparing cassava. She did not neglect her good habits and the fulfilment of her material and spiritual duties, particularly in the raising of her children and assisting her mother at home with support of the family.
In J anuary 1990, a new national teaching initiative was launched by the National Spiritual Assembly of Honduras. The first
THE BAHA’l WORLD
Aparicia Ortiz Gutierrez
permanent teaching team was established in the Village of Sambo Creek, and Aparicia decided to give two months of her time to work on this group. The team consisted of six Garifunas drawn from around the country. She was the heart of the team: an example of purity, devotion, self—sacrifice, and dedication for all the others. In all the towns she rapidly won the respect and admiration of the people for her radiant example of service and sacrifice.
Then in February, the National Spiritual Assembly of Honduras decided to send a team of Garifuna travelling teachers to the Garifuna people of Livingston, Guatemala, for the first time. Although ‘Aparicia was eager to return home to be with her children, she agreed to travel to Guatemala to serve her Lord in the new field of service.
Nearing Livingston, she fell ill from a pain in her heart. Three hours after arriving, she died suddenly of a heart attack. She had a Bahá’í funeral at the cemetery of Puerto Barrios in Guatemala. She is survived by her children and by her siblings: J orge, Nolasca, Edna, and Jerénimo.
IN MEMORIAM 961
Aparicia was the first Garifuna believer to give her life for Baha’u’llah. As one of her companions on the team expressed, “she was too good and pure for this world”.
Upon hearing of her passing, the Universal House of Justice sent the following message on 16 March 1990 to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Honduras:
DEEPLY TOUCHED ACCOUNT LOVE DEVOTION APARICIA ORTIZ. MAY HER EXAMPLE BE SOURCE STRENGTH FOR BAHA’I COMMUNITY HONDURAS ENSURING HER LABOURS 1N CAUSE MAY YIELD ABUNDANT HARVEST. KINDLY ASSURE FAMILY FRIENDS OF APARICIA OF PRAYERS IN HOLY SHRINES FOR PROGRESS HER SOUL IN ALL WORLDS OF GOD.
NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF HONDURAS