Bahá’í World/Volume 20/Elsa Lilian (Judy) Blakely
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ELSA LILLIAN (JUDY) BLAKELiI
Knight of Baha’u’llah 1895—1988
Elsa Lillian “Judy” Blakely was born in London, England, on 11 July 1895. That she was adventurous, inquisitive and enterpris 929
ing seems evident just from knowing that by the time she became a Bahá’í at the age of 27, she had already been a member of the Church of England as well as a Theosophist, had journeyed throughout Europe as a secretary for an acting group, and had travelled the length of Canada as a cast member of the Montreal Community Players. Of these early experiences she later wrote that “witnessing the World War of 1914 in Europe and living in Russia during the first part of the Revolution brought conviction of the utter ineffectiveness of orthodox religion or such movements as Theosophy to cure world chaos”.
Elsa learned of the Bahá’í Faith in Montreal. Among her first teachers were May and Sutherland Maxwell, in whose home she spent a great deal of time. She also worked with the first youth groups in Montreal, and later served on that city’s Local Assembly.
In 1928, Elsa moved to New York City where she worked as an interior decorator. It is not clear whether it was here or elsewhere that she also gained experience as a literary researcher and a writer, but she later published at least one book.
It was at the Bahá’í Center in New York City that Elsa met Dudley Moore Blakely, a nephew of Lua Getsinger. Dudley, whom Elsa described as a man of limitless gentility and generosity, was an accomplished artist and a F ellow of the prestigious Royal Society of Arts of Great Britain. The couple was married in June of 1934. Although they never had any children, they later raised Elsa’s niece and nephew to adulthood.
Elsa served the Faith in many capacities during this period and the years which followed. She was elected a member of Local Spiritual Assemblies in New York City, Detroit and Eliot, Maine, in addition to Montreal. She served on the Michigan and Central States Regional Teaching Committee, the Maine and New Hampshire Regional Teaching Committee, and the Green Acre School Committee. She was also a delegate to several national conventions.
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Elsa Lillian (Judy) Blakely
At the encouragement of Loulie Matthews, the Blakelys undertook a teaching trip in 1936 to Venezuela and Guyana (then British Guiana). A letter on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, dated 6 March 1936, expressed his enthusiasm for their journey into “Virgin soils” and declared that they were undertaking “the work of a true pioneer”. They made numerous trips to South America during the next two decades to help with the formative stages of the teaching work there.
It was in 1954, however, that Elsa and Dudley began a teaching proj ect which would immortalize them in Bahá’í history. The preVious year Shoghi Effendi had inaugurated the Ten Year Crusade, calling for the establishment of the Faith in 29 Virgin territories. One of these was Tonga, a group of islands with a land mass of 270 square miles located some 2,800 miles south—west of Hawaii.
On 28 May 1953, Shoghi Effendi cabled the United States, encouraging Bahá’ís to travel to the distant lands he had designated.
Would to God that Bahá’í warriors... will promptly arise and enroll themselves to
THE Bahá’í WORLD
achieve the goals ere the conclusion of the opening year of the decade-long, greatest collective enterprise since the memorable episodes associated with the Dawn~Breakers of the Heroic Age.
Elsa and Dudley were among the Bahá’ís who answered the soul-stirring call, and were consequently designated as Knights of Bahá’u’lláh.
Why the Blakelys chose Tonga is not entirely clear, although Elsa once recounted being quite captivated by a picture of Tonga’s Queen Salote which she had seen during the coronation of Elizabeth H of England in 1952. Whatever their reasons, they set out in the spirit that Tonga would become their new homeland and arrived in the capital city of Nuku’alofa on 12 July 1954.
While Dudley pursued his painting and sculpture as well as applied his engineerng skills to several diverse projects which benefitted Tonga, Elsa was active in teaching and promoting women’s rights. She became acquainted with Queen Salote and had the honour of frequently Visiting the palace, often for tea. An institute for women was formed by the Queen and she directed Elsa to employ her writing skills to produce a monthly newsletter for the fledgling organization. Elsa also wrote a pamphlet, The Faith Of Bahá’u’lláh, Abraham’s Descendent, which was translated into Tongan by the islands’ first native believer.
Not only did Elsa and Dudley hold numerous teaching and proclamation meetings in their home, they frequently journeyed to remote Villages and built friendships with countless Tongans. Their reports to the Holy Land elicited assurances from Shoghi Effendi of his high regards for their efforts and the importance of the Polynesian peoples embracing the Faith.
By the latter part of the decade the Faith began to grow rapidly in Tonga. The first Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in Nuku’alofa in 1958 and a second at M’ua
IN MEMORIAM
two years later. In 1959, the Regional Spiritual Assembly of the South Pacific was formed, encompassing 10 territories including Tonga. When Elsa and Dudley departed from Tonga in 1963 they left behind a strong Bahá’í community.
After living for a while in Hawaii, the Blakelys returned to the American continent and established residence in Bennington, Vermont. They pioneered again in September 1977 to the Bahamas (Elsa was 82 years old), but unforeseen circumstances forced their departure in less than six months. They moved to Savannah, Georgia, and then homefront pioneered to nearby St. Simons Island, Georgia, becoming an integral part of that community for many years. Elsa passed away in St. Simons on 31 December 1988.
During the early days of the Ten Year Cmsade, Shoghi Effendi exhorted the Bahá’ís of the world:
...never to tum back in the entire course of the fateful decade ahead until each and every one will have contributed his share in laying on a world—wide scale an unassailable administrative foundation for Baha’u’llah’s Christ—promised Kingdom on earth...
Knight of Baha’u’llah Elsa Blakely contributed her share and far more not only during the wondrous years of the Crusade but throughout the nearly seven decades she steadfastly served her Lord.
BRUCE WHITMORE