In Memoriam 1992-1997/Helene May “Gayle” Wittekind
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HELENE MAY “GAYLE”
WITTEKIND
1908—1997
elene May Burlingame was born in
Chehalis, Washington, on May 5,
1908. She was twenty—seven years old when
she declared her Faith in Los Angeles, California, in 1935.
She helped to form the Local Spiritual
Assembly of Tacoma, Washington, and was
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one ofits members for thirteen years. She pioneered to Mexico in 1957, and during her three years there she helped in the formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of San Miguel Allende. Returning to the United States she pioneered 011 the homefront, helping to establish the Assembly of Escondido, California, which she served from 1961 to 1965. She moved to Olympia, Washington, and was on its first Local Assembly in 1967, serving it for five years.
Helene was a non—degreed physician’s assistant, and she worked providing home care to invalids. She was married three times, but none of her marriages produced any children. Her first marriage, to Leslie Vaughn in the early 19305, ended in divorce around 1936. They remained friends, and Helene helped Leslie choose his second wife. She married Leslie Ames sometime about 1940. It was after Leslie’s passing in 1957 that Helene arose and pioneered to Mexico.
On May 7, 1971, in Orlando, Florida, sixty—three—year—old Helene married twentysix—year-old Warren D. Wittekind, a soldier recently returned From Vietnam. She came out of retirement and went back to work to help her young husband complete a bachelor of science degree and then a doctorate. Despite the thitty—seven year difference in their ages, theirs was a happy union that lasted until Helene’s death.
While they were together, Helene served on the Local Assembly of Laramie, Wyoming, from 1973 to 1978. She then helped form the first Assembly of Richland, Washington, to whose membership she contributed for a period of fifteen years (1978 to 1993). It was in Richland that Helene died on March 8, 1997, and hers was the first burial in the section of the cemetery recently allocated to the Bahá’ís. Her grave faces Bahjí from the center of thirty—six Bahá’í grave sites. Helene had
THE BAHA’I’ WORLD
arranged for her estate to be donated to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States.
From information provided by Wzrren D. Witte/tind