Bahá’í World/Volume 20/Eleanore Lorraine (Rene) Hopper Welsh
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ELEANORE LORRAINE (RENE)
HOPPER WELSH 1903—1988
Rene, as she was known and loved, was born in Paris, France, on 25 F ebruary 1903 during a time when her father, Herbert Hopper, and her mother, Marie Squires Hopper, were studying there. Her parents had met at a Bahá’í gathering in the Paris home of May Bolles, after which Herbert made a pilgrimage to ‘Akká to Visit the Master, returning to Europe in the company of Thomas Breakwell. While in Paris he finished his studies of architecture at the Ecole des Beaux Aits. While Rene was still very young, the Hoppers returned to the United States where her father began to practice his profession until his untimely death from tuberculosis when Rene was approximately five years old. Marie supported herself and her daughter
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IN MEMORIAM
painting portraits and teaching art while living in Champaign, Illinois, and later on the East Coast. Rene grew up hearing her mother and friends speak of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá constantly, to the point that she identified Him as a father figure. Once when her mother asked her to learn a prayer, Rene said that is was too long. She said that if ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wanted her to learn a prayer He would reveal one for her because He would know what she wanted to say. When the next pilgrim, Lua Getsinger, returned from the Holy Land, she brought Rene’s prayer, a prayer Which she used constantly and repeated during the last hours of her life.
Rene was nine years old When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá made His historic journey to the West. Whenever possible, the Bahá’ís flocked to the cities where He was Visiting, hoping to catch a glimpse of Him or to attend a meeting. The majority of the early Bahá’ís in the United States knew each other and offered hospitality to each other. For example, an English friend who worked for the Library of Congress invited Marie and Rene to Washington, DC, to share her apartment. Marie took her cook, Eurithra, to one of the meetings and When they returned she told Marie, “He is my Lord, He is my Lord”.
Since both Marie and Eurithra desired to serve ‘Abdu’l-B aha with their own hands, He was invited to tea at the apartment. He accepted on the condition that some black people be invited. The only black person Marie knew, besides the cook, was Louis Gregory, Who was invited. When the blessed afternoon came, all Eurithra’s family were present and Marie was able to serve them all with her own hands. They were all speechless with joy and Rene sat with the other children as close as possible to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, almost afraid to breathe and bother Him. He patted the children and put candies in their mouths While He was talking to the adults and then told the children to go out and play.
Rene had the privilege of being in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s blessed presence several times, but
Eleanore Lorraine (Rene) Hopper Welsh
two other occasions stand out in her memory. One time, when He was speaking from a public platform, the children were seated on the steps leading up to the stage. As He spoke, He walked back and forth emanating tremendous force and power. Rene’s shoulder was level with the platform where the Master was speaking with such eloquence that he held everyone spellbound. As he walked and turned she felt pressure on her shoulder, and she realized that if she kept firm she would have the strength to meet that holy. test, a lesson she remembered all her life.
In May 1912, Rene and her mother were granted an interview with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. As it was the custom in the United States at that time for the children to make baskets filled with flowers for their friends, Rene made one for her “Very Special Friend,” and filled it with pansies and Violets. His room was at the end of a short hall, and when they were announced and Rene saw Him standing in the door, she ran down the hall into His outstretched arms with her nine-year—old heart bursting with love. He hugged her and
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patted her saying in English, “Herbert’s daughter, Herbert’s daughter”. His room was like a garden filled with flowers, and only the spirit and love of that blessed occasion, not the words, remain.
But as was so often the case, another lesson was learned that day. After their Visit, the next guests were another mother and her daughter. The little girl had beautiful golden curls and blue eyes in contrast to Rene’s straight black hair and grey-green eyes. Rene was a beautiful person physically as well as spiritually, but when she was nine she definitely felt inferior. Rene and her mother had asked permission to stay in the waiting room for the hope of another glimpse of the Master when He went for His walk. But before that blessing, Rene first saw the little girl with the golden curls walking down the short hall, carrying with such joy the flower basket that Rene had made with all her love. This is when Rene began to meditate on her actions and began to learn the true spirit of giving. She said she learned from this one experience lessons for the rest of her life.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá gave Rene the name of Nuriyyih, “follower of the Light.” She was too shy to use a Persian name when she was growing up, something that she regretted later in her life.
When Rene became a young adult she moved from Urbana, Illinois, to New York City, where she was a member of some of the early Local Assemblies. In 1926 she married Clarence Loher Welsh, known as Pete, who was a commercial photographer. At that time Pete had not accepted the Faith, although they met because he had come to a meeting in Urbana to investigate the new religion.
Rene followed the career of commercial art, making use of her talent and helping her husband in his career as he progressed from still black and white photography to colour, and then to motion pictures. In 1936, they moved to Greenwich, Connecticut, where in 1946 Pete accepted the Faith. They helped to establish the first Local Assembly and Rene served for many years on the Green Acre
THE Bahá’í WORLD
Summer School Committee, on the Regional Teaching Committee, and as a delegate to state and national conventions.
In 1953, Pete made a documentary on the dedication of the Temple in Wilmette. In 1969, they sold their photographic studio and pioneered to El Salvador. After learning enough of the language to become independent, they became homefront pioneers, moving to San Juan Tepezontes. Even though they could not speak the language well, they served any way they could and have left the beautiful legacy of two slide programmes, one about the Life of the Báb and the other about Baha’u’llah, both partially illustrated with Rene’s pastel drawings.
In April 1980, Pete was the first pioneer laid to rest in El Salvador. He was joined by Rene on 3 August 1988.
J EANNE FARRAND
