- 1933-12-00 —
Mr Sabri Effendi Elias had come to Ethiopia from Alexandria in Egypt at the behest of the National Spiritual Assembly who had been asked by Shoghi Effendi to send a pioneer to that country. He printed one thousand pamphlets in Amharic, and translated Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era. The same work was later printed in Abyssinian.
- In 1935 when Ethiopia was invaded by the Italians he was forced to return to Egypt, he immediately set off for the Holy Land so see Shoghi Effendi taking with him 18 copies of these translated works. Upon arrival Shoghi Effendi greeted him with, "You have returned victorious and triumphant - because you were the cause of linking the north of Africa to the south".
- Mr Elias brought with him an an animal skin as a personal gift to Shoghi Effendi who accepted it as a gift from Ethiopia to the Bahá'í World Centre and had Sabri himself place it in the Archives which was at the back of the Shrine of the Báb at the time. This gift was the fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 18:7. [KoB58] Note: The reference said it was a "gorzia skin but no reference to such an animal could be found. Perhaps an Abyssinian black-and-white colobus.
- In 1944 he pioneered to Ethiopia again, this time with his wife Fahima and their children Husayn and Safá. [Bahá'í Communities by Country: Research Notes
by Graham Hassall; KoB58-61]
- For more details on his life of service see The Bahá'í World: In Memoriam 1992-1997 p255-257.
- 1934-11-25 —
The first Spiritual Assembly of Addis Ababa was formed. [BW6:70]
- The community was established by Sabri Elias, and Fahima Elias, pioneers from Egypt who thus earned the title Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. Later Elias was asked to return home with other foreigners. [BW6:71]
- Ethiopia was the only independent Kingdom in Africa at this date. [BW6:70]
- Wikipedia says that the Assembly was formed in "late 1934".
- 1951-01-25 —
Claire Gung arrived in Tanganyika aboard the Warwick Castle and obtained employment as a matron in a boys' boarding school in Lushoto. She was the second Bahá'í pioneer to the country. [CG160; CBN No 18 Mar 1951 p10]
- She later pioneered to Uganda and Southern Rhodesia during the Ten Year Crusade.
- An additional group of early arrivals in East Africa settled in Tanganyika in 1951. They
included Hassan and Isobel Sabri who came from Egypt, and Jalal Nakhjavání and his family
from Iran. By 1954, a Local Spiritual Assembly had been elected in Dar es Salaam including
three native believers. Among them was Denis Dudley-Smith Kutendele, the first to accept the
Faith in Tanzania. [A Brief Account of the Bahá'í Faith in Africa Since 1953 by Nance Ororo-Robarts and Selam Ahderrom p2]
History of the Bahá'í Faith in Tanzania said that the first local spiritual assembly was elected in Dar es Salaam in 1952 and that it received civic registration later under Tanganyika's Trustee's Incorporation Ordinance. - 1953-00-00 — Mr. Mohammad Ali Djalali was among the first Baha'i's to reside in Morocco, for which Shoghi Effendi gave him the title "Knight of Baha'u'llah." [BW34p239]
It is not certain which "Morocco". - 1953-03-19 —
Suhayl Samandarí arrived in Mogadishu and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Italian Somaliland. [BW13:452; KoB48-50]
- Within a short time, Sa'íd 'Alí Masqatí, a Somali from the port of Baraawe, became a Bahá'í, the first person to accept the Faith in Somalia.
- 1953-05-00 —
Mary and Reginald (Rex) Collison, an elderly Canadian-American couple, arrived in Ruanda-Urundi (Burundi) from Uganda and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- For the story of Mary Collison's life see BW15:486–8 as well as Servants of the Glory page34.
- Arriving in July was Dunduzu Chisza, a young Baha'i from Malawi, (then Nyasaland) The earliest Rwandan Bahá'í whose name is recorded was Alphonse Semanyenzi. [The Bahá'í Faith in Rwanda website; BWNS349]
- The first Bahá'í to travel through Rwanda may have been Marthe Molitor c. 1947 after becoming a Bahá'í in Belgium. She moved on to the Belgian Congo. [Taarifa]
- 1953-05-28 —
In a message addressed on the eve of the 61st anniversary of the passing of Bahá'u'lláh, at the opening of the Ten Year Crusade, Shoghi Effendi encouraged 70 pioneers to arise to fill the goals promising that a Roll of Honour with their names would be deposited at the entrance door of the inner Sanctuary of the Tomb of Bahá'u'lláh. [MBW48-49]
- He further elaborated in a message addressed to the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada. See the message of the 8 June 1953. [MtC177]
- See 1992 28 May.
- 1953-06-01 — Ghulám 'Alí Kurlawala arrived in Daman and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-06-02 — Dunduzu Chisiza, a Nyasaland student who had recently become a Bahá'í in Uganda, arrived in Ruanda-Urundi (Burundi) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-06-06 — 'Izzatu'lláh Zahrá'í (Ezzat Zahrai) arrived in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1953-07-00 — Rawshan Áftábí and Fírúzih Yigánigi arrived in Goa and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-07-00 —
Eskil Ljungberg of Sweden, aged 67, arrived in the Faroe Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- He was the only Bahá'í on the islands for over a decade.
- For the story of his life see BW19:658–61.
- 1953-07-02 — Arthur and Ethel Crane arrived in Key West and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW16:453]
- 1953-07-03 — Sa'íd Nahví arrived in Pondicherry and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-07-04 — Jack Huffman and Rose Perkal arrived on the Kodiak Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-07-05 — Jenabe and Elaine Caldwell arrived in the Aleutian Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1953-08-00 — Shawkat Nahví arrived in Pondicherry and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-08-00 — 'Abbás Vakíl arrived in Cyprus and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-08-02 —
Fred Schechter, an American, arrived in Djibouti (the French Somaliland) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for French Somaliland. [BW13:45; KoB50-58,98,107]
- Mr Schechter went on to pioneer to several Latin American countries, he spent thirteen year on the Continental Board of Councillors for the Americas and served on the International Teaching Centre. He passed away on 27 January 2017 in California, U.S.A. He was 89 years old. [BWNS1149]
- See In Memoriam Fred Schechter: Bahá'í House of Worship Memorial Program.
- 1953-08-03 — Shiyam Behari arrived in Pondicherry and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-08-04 — Amír Húshmand Manúchihrí arrived in Liechtenstein and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-08-05 — Salísa Kirmání and Shírín Núrání arrived in Karikal and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-08-06 —
Amín and Sheila Banání, a Persian-American couple, settled in Athens-Kifissia in August 1953 and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Greece. [BW452]
- They were able to stay in Greece until 1958 when they were asked to leave by the government. [from an interview with Sheila Banani 10 November, 2022 on Thursday Night @7]
- See Professor Amin Banani, 1926–2013: A Prominent Scholar of Iranian Studies by Ehsan Yarshater in Iranian Studies, 2014, Vol 47 No 2 p347-351 for an obituary of Amin Banani.
- 1953-08-08 — Edythe MacArthur arrived in the Queen Charlotte Islands (now Haida Gwaii) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455; BWIM143-145]
- 1953-08-09 — Udai Narain Singh arrived in Sikkim and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455; PH63]
- 1953-08-11 — Virginia Orbison arrived in the Balearic Islands from a pioneer post in Spain and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Balearic Islands. [BW13:449]
It was neither her first nor her last pioneer experience. Between 1942 and 1946 she pioneered to Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Brazil. After World War II she went to Madrid, Spain where she helped raise the first local spiritual assembly and she did the same thing in Barcelona the following year.
In July of 1953 she went to the Stockholm Intercontinental Teaching Conference where she offered to pioneer to Mallorca in one of the Balearic Islands, She stayed about one year before returning to Barcelona in August of 1954 where she attended the Iberian Teaching Conference that was attended by 60 people. Late that nine, she and nine others were arrested by the police and interrogated for 18 hours. They had thought that the Bahá'í were Communists.
In 1956 she moved to Portugal where she was elected to the first Iberian Regional Spiritual Assembly. After three years she was forced to leave by the authorities because of her Bahá'í activities, holding property and owning a telephone.
She was asked to go to Luxembourg where she spent nine years but made little progress in establishing the Faith. She was then asked to got to Malaga, Spain and by 1972 Malaga had a local spiritual assembly so she pioneered to Margella in 1979.
The National Spiritual Assembly asked her to write a history of the Faith in Spain which was completed in 1980.
As was her wish, she passed to the Abha Kingdom in 1985, still a pioneer. [KoB346-347; Wikipedia]
See also Also see Bahá'í World 19 pages 715-721 or 692-697 in the print version and Bahá'í News #586 January 1980 p2-5. - 1953-08-28 —
Mildred Clark, a pioneer in Norway, and Loyce Lawrence (née Drugan), a nurse and hospital matron, arrived in the Lofoten Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- Mrs Lawrence began teaching the Saami.
- 1953-09-00 — Brigitte Hasselblatt arrived in Shetland and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-09-00 — Gertrude Eisenberg arrived in Las Palmas and is named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Canary Islands. [BW13:450]
- 1953-09-00 — Evelyn Baxter arrived in the Channel Islands and was named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-09-01 — Ada Schott, Elizabeth Hopper, Sara Kenny and Ella Duffield arrived in the Madeira Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. BW13:453]
- 1953-09-02 — Brigitte Lundblade (nee Hasselblatt), (b. 1923 - d. 17 May 2008) arrived in the Shetland Islands and was later honoured with being named as Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [Bahaipedia]
- 1953-09-03 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Enayat Sohaili in Nyasaland (now known as Malawi) [BWNS240]
- 1953-09-04 — Kathleen Weston arrived in the Magdalen Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-09-06 — Julius Edwards arrived in the Northern Territories Protectorate (now part of Ghana) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-09-07 — Doris Richardson arrived on Grand Manan Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-09-08 — Jameson and Gale Bond arrived in Arctic Bay in the District of Franklin and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451, SDSC127]
- 1953-09-10 — José (d. 1985) and Hilda (née Summers) Xavier Rodrigues, a Portuguese-English couple, arrived in Bissau from Portugal as the first Bahá'í pioneers to Portuguese Guinea (Guinea Bissau) and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-09-11 — Cora Oliver arrived in British Honduras (Belize) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1953-09-12 — Nellie French arrived in Monaco and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
Then 85, she was the first Bahá'í to arrive in Monaco, but she passed away a few months later. For her act of service in bringing the Faith to the country, she received the accolade Knight of Baha'u'llah from Shoghi Effendi.
A celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the Bahá'í Faith in the Principality was held on 24-25 April 2004 at the Theatre des Varietes in Monte Carlo, and opened with the reading of a welcoming message from the National Council of the Principality. [Newspaper Archive on BLO] - 1953-09-12 — Dick Stanton arrived in Keewatin and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-09-13 — Howard Snider arrived in Key West and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-09-14 — Diá'i'lláh Asgharzádih arrived in the Channel Islands and was named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-09-15 — Elsa Grossman arrived in the Frisian Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-09-16 —
Hugh McKinley and his mother, Violet, arrived in Cyprus and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- Violet passed away in 1959 and she was laid to rest in Famagusta. Hugh remained in Cyprus until 1963. He died in Suffolk in 1999 was was buried in Lawshall, Suffolk. He had been born on the 18th of February, 1924.
- See Ismael Velasco's paper entitled In Memoriam: Hugh McKinley.
- See Life of Hugh McKinley, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by Olive McKinley.
- See Memoram: Hugh McKinley by Ismael Velasco.
- 1953-09-18 — Dwight and Carole Allen arrived in Athens and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Greece. [BW13:452]
- 1953-09-20 —
The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Mr. Max Kanyerezi in Middle Congo (now called Republic of Congo). At this time the country was, together with the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, and Gabon, part of a much larger French territory called the Federation of French Equatorial Africa which was dissolved in 1958. [BWNS246; A Brief Account of the Progress of the Bahá'í Faith in Africa Since 1953 by Nancy Oloro-Robarts and Selam Ahderom p8]
- Max and his wife Florence later moved back to Uganda where he had been raised. [CG106-107]
- The website of the Bahá'ís of the Republic of the Congo gives a different date for the arrival of Max Kanyerezi...
"Le premier bahá'í au Congo était Max Kanyerezi. Il fut déposé par Violette et Ali Nakhjavani en 1955." (Translation) "The first Bahá'í in Congo was Max Kanyerezi. He was dropped off by Violette and Ali Nakhjavani in 1955." [Reference]
- 1953-09-23 — Ted and Joanie Anderson arrived in Whitehorse, Canada, and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Yukon. [BW13:457]
- 1953-09-30 — Manúchihr Hizárí and Hurmuz Zindih arrived in Tangier and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Morocco (International Zone). [BW13:454]
- 1953-10 — Mrs (Alexandra) Ola Pawlowska arrived in St Pierre and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Miquelon Island and St Pierre Island. [BW13:454]
- 1953-10-00 — Helen Robinson arrived on Baranof Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1953-10-00 — Ursula von Brunn arrived in the Frisian Islands and was named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-10-00 — Katharine Meyer arrived on Margarita Island and was named Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1953-10-00 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Edith Danielson in the Cook Islands. [BWNS265]
- 1953-10-00 —
Edmund ('Ted') Cardell arrived in Windhoek and wss named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for South West Africa (Namibia). [BW13:456]
- He was later joined by his wife Alicia and the first German Bahá'ís to pioneer to Africa, Martin and Gerda Aiff and their children.
- In 1955 Hilifa Andreas Nekundi, (also known as Tate Hilifa), was the first Namibian to become a Bahá'í. Mr. Nekundi later served on the first Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Windhoek, and the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Namibia. [BWNS280]
- 1953-10-00 —
Muhammad Mustafá Sulaymán, an Egyptian, arrived in Spanish Sahara (Western Sahara) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. BW13:456]- For the story of his life see BW18:768–71.
- 1953-10-00 — Claire Gung arrived in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. She spent 18 months in Salisbury (Harare) where she was a member of the first local spiritual assembly. [CG161]
- 1953-10-01 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Emma Rice, followed one week later by Knights Stanley and Florence Bagley and their three teenage children, Susan, Gerrold and Carol in Palermo, Sicily. [BWNS254]
- 1953-10-02 — Lionel Peraji arrived in Mahé and is named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1953-10-03 —
Charles Dunning arrived in the Orkney Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
ul>- In probably it was October of 1954 Harold and Marzieh Gail depart from St Matthew's Quay in Aberdeen destined to pay a visit to Charles Dunning in Kirkwall. On the island the diminutive Charles Dunning is referred to as "a wee chappie". [OPOP55-59]
- 1953-10-04 — Geraldine Graney arrived in the Hebrides and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-10-04 — Una Townshend arrived at her pioneer post. It was planed that her father, Hand of the Cause George Townshend, accompany her to Malta where the warm climate might improve his health. He was not well enough to go so Una went alone. Unfortunately his illness advanced and Shoghi Effendi asked her to return home to care for him so she left at the end of 1954. Una and her brother Brian helped him to complete Christ and Bahá'u'lláh by writing down his dictations as he was dying from Parkinson's. Shoghi Effendi called the book Hand of the Cause of God George Townshend's 'crowning achievement'. [KoB359-360]
- 1953-10-05 — Marie Ciocca Holmlund arrived on Sardinia and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-10-07 —
William Danjon Dieudonné arrived in Andorra and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW12:449]
- He continued to live in the country.
- By 1979 Andorra had a Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly in Andorra-la-Vella and three localities. [BN No 581 August 1979 p11]
- 1953-10-08 — Earle Render arrived in the Leeward Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1953-10-08 — Richard and Lois Nolen and children Linda Jean, Cynthia and John arrived in the Azores and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13p449; Bahaipedia]
- 1953-10-09 — Salvador and Adela Tormo arrived on the Juan Fernandez Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-10-10 — Elly Becking arrived in Dutch New Guinea and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-10-11 —
Fawzí Zaynu'l-'Ábidín and his wife, Bahíyyih 'Alí Sa'di'd-Dín, (Fauzi and Bahia Zein) and their sons Kamál and Sharíf arrived in Tetuán from Egypt and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Spanish Morocco. [BW13:456; KoB35]
- For the story of Fawzí Zaynu'l-'Ábidín's life see BW16:544–6.
- 1953-10-13 — Esther Evans and Lillian Middlemast arrived in Castries, St Lucia, and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Windward Islands. BW13:457]
- 1953-10-13 —
Frederick and Elizabeth Laws arrived in Basutoland (Lesotho) and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449, BWNS262 ]
- For the story of the life of Elizabeth Laws see BW17:459–60.
- Chadwick Mohapi and his wife became the first Bahá'ís in Basutoland (Lesotho). [TG166]
- 1953-10-13 — Una Townshend arrived in Malta and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454, BWNS234]
- 1953-10-14 — Shoghi Effendi announced the settling of 13 further Knights of Bahá'u'lláh, with 178 territories now open to the Faith. [MBW173]
- 1953-10-14 — Robert and Elinor Wolff arrived in Dutch Guiana and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-10-14 —
Edith M. Danielsen arrived on Aitutaki Island, 150 miles north of Rarotonga, before leaving for Avarua, Rarotonga, five days later and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Cook Islands. [BW13:450]
- For the story of her life see BW19:625–6.
- 1953-10-15 —
Enoch Olinga arrived in Victoria (Limbé) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the British Cameroons. [BW13:449]
- The first Cameroonian to become a Bahá'í in British Cameroon was a youth, Jacob Tabot Awo.
- The first Cameroonian adult to become a Bahá'í was Enoch Ngompek of the Bassa tribe.
- The first Cameroonian woman to become a Bahá'í was Esther Obeu, the wife of David Tanyi.
- 1953-10-15 — Eberhard Friedland arrived in French Guiana from the United States and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-10-16 —
Benjamin Dunham Weeden !892-1979) and his wife Gladys (née Anderson)(1906-1979) arrived in Antigua and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Leeward Islands. [BW13:453, KoB297-298]
- Both of the Weedens had served on the International Bahá'í Council, appointed in 1950. [BTSG82]
- For the story of Ben Weeden's life see BW15:478–9.
- For the story of Gladys Weeden's life see BW18:692–6.
- 1953-10-17 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Bertha Dobbins in Vanuatu. [BWNS256]
- 1953-10-18 — George and Marguerite (Peggy) True arrived on Tenerif with their 12-year-old son Barry and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Canary Islands. [BW13:450; BW19p634]
- 1953-10-20 —
Frances Heller arrived in Macau and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the island. [BW13:453; PH73]
- She was the first Knight of Bahá'u'lláh to settle in Chinese territory.
- 1953-10-24 — Elsie Austin arrived in Tangier from the United States and Muhammad-'Alí Jalálí, an Iranian, also arrived. They were both named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Morocco (International Zone). [BW13:454]
- 1953-10-25 — Luella McKay, John and Erleta Fleming, and Alyce Janssen arrived in Spanish Morocco and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456; KoB37]
- 1953-10-29 —
Opal Jensen arrived on Réunion Island from the United States and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- She was later declared a Covenant-breaker.
- 1953-10-29 —
Gladys ('Glad') Irene Parke and Gretta Stevens Lamprill arrived in Papeete from Australia and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Society Islands, French Polynesia. [BW13:455]
- For the story of Gladys Parke's life see BW15:457–8.
- For the story of Gretta Lamprill's life see BW15:534–5. She was the inaugural secretary of the Hobart LSA, a secretary of the NSA of Australia and New Zealand and a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Society Islands. She was known as the "Mother of Tasmania".
- 1953-10-41 — Zunilda de Palacios arrived on Chiloé Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-10-42 — Geertrui Ankersmidt arrived in the Frisian Islands and was named Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-10-43 — Frederick and Jean Allen and Irving and Grace Geary arrived on Cape Breton Island and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-10-45 — Shirley Warde arrived in British Honduras (Belize) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1953-10-46 — Dr Malcolm King, an American pioneer in Jamaica, arrived in British Guiana (now Guyana) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1953-10-47 — Rolf Haug settled in Crete and iwa named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for that island. [BW13:450]
- 1953-10-50 — Max Kanyerezi, a Ugandan, was brought to Brazzaville by Violette and 'Alí Nakhjavání and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for French Equatorial Africa. [BW13:451]
- 1953-10-51 — 'Amín Battáh, an Egyptian, arrived in Río de Oro (Western Sahara) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1953-10-52 — Bertha Dobbins arrived in Port Vila on the island of Efate from Adelaide, Australia, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the New Hebrides Islands (Vanuatu). [BW13:454]
- 1953-10-55 — Gail and Gerald Curwin with their daughter Leeanna and Maurice and Ethel Holmes arrived in Nassau and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Bahamas Islands. [BW13:449]
- 1953-11-00 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Dr. K. M. Fozdar on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. [PH57; BWNS271]
- 1953-11-00 — The arrival of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh Dr. Mihdi Samandari and Mrs. Ursula Samandari (Newman) in Mogadishu, Somalia (then Italian Somaliland). [BWNS230; KoB48-50]
- 1953-11-00 — Tábandih Paymán arrived in San Marino and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh in November. [BW13:455]
- 1953-11-01 — Mary Olga Katherine Mills (née Bieymann) arrived in Malta and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1953-11-02 — Samíra Vakíl arrived in Cyprus and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1953-11-05 —
Dr Mihdí Samandarí arrived in Italian Somaliland and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- His wife Ursula (née Newman) arrived in 1954 and was also named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
- 1953-11-06 —
Dr Khodadad M. Fozdar, an Indian of Parsi background, arrived in the Andaman Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- For the story of his life see BW13:892–3.
- 1953-11-07 — Husayn Rawhání Ardikání and his wife, Nusrat, arrived in Tangier with their daughter, Shahlá, and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Morocco (International Zone). [BW13:454]
- 1953-11-08 — 'Alí Akbar Rafí'í (Rafsanjání) and his wife, Sháyistih, and their 19-year-old son, 'Abbás, arrived in Tangier and all were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Morocco (International Zone). [BW13:454]
- 1953-11-09 — Matthew W. Bullock of Boston, Massachusetts, arrived in the Dutch West Indies (Netherlands Antilles) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-11-11 — Shoghi Effendi announced the settling of a further contingent of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh in 21 virgin areas, bringing the number of territories open to the Faith to 200. [MBW52–3]
- 1953-11-11 —
Ottilie Rhein (1903-79), an American of German origin, arrived in Mauritius and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the island. [BW13:454]
- For the story of her life see BW18:703–5.
- On her first expedition to provide necessities for living, she met the proprietor of a shop, Mr. Yim Lim, who became the first resident of the country to join the Faith. [BWNS274]
- 1953-11-13 —
Kámil 'Abbás arrived in the Seychelles from Iraq and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455; BWNS272]
- For the story of his life see BW18:722–3.
- 1953-12-00 — Jean and Tove Deleuran arrived in the Balearic Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh in December. [BW13:449]
Photo. - 1953-12-01 — Kay Khusraw Dahamobedi, Bahíyyih Rawhání and Gulbár Áftábí arrived on Diu Island and are named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1953-12-02 — Adíb Baghdádí arrived in Hadhramaut and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1953-12-03 — The arrival, from Egypt, of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Labib Isfahani in Dakar, Senegal. He was followed by his brother Habib Isfahani in April of 1954 who also received the honour. [BW13:452, BWNS283]
- 1953-12-08 —
Loretta and Carl Scherer arrived in Macau from Milwaukee and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for that island. [BW13:453; PH73]
- For the stories of their lives see BW18:738–40.
- 1954-00-04 — 'Aynu'd-Dín and Táhirih 'Alá'í arrived in Southern Rhodesia and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-00-10 — The arrival in Zimbabwe (formerly Southern Rhodesia) of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh Izzat'u'llah Zahrai, Douglas Kadenhe, Nura Faridian (now Steiner), Enayat and Iran Sohaili, Shidan Fat'he-Aazam (later member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Africa) and his wife Florence. [BWNS275]
- 1954-00-11 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Violet Noehnke on the Admiralty Islands, now Manus Province in Papua New Guinea. [BWNS307, BWNS312]
- 1954-00-13 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Ted Cardell in South West Africa (now called Namibia). [BWNS280]
- 1954-01-00 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Dulcie Dive in the Cook Islands. [BWNS265]
- 1954-01-01 — Jean Sevin arrived in Tuamotu Archipelago and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:457]
- 1954-01-02 — Charles M. Ioas arrived in the Balearic Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
Photo. - 1954-01-03 — Howard and Joanne Menking arrived in the Cape Verde Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1954-01-03 —
The passing of Helen "Nellie" Stevison French (b.19 Oct 1868 Peoria, Illinois) in Monaco. She was buried in the Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Chicago.
In September 1953 Nellie French, 85, became the first Bahá'í to arrive in Monaco, but she passed away a few months later. For her act of service in bringing the Faith to the country, she received the accolade Knight of Baha'u'llah from Shoghi Effendi.
A celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the Bahá'í Faith in the Principality was held on 24-25 April 2004 at the Theatre des Varietes in Monte Carlo, and opened with the reading of a welcoming message from the National Council of the Principality. [Newspaper Archive on BLO]
- Evincing a marked talent for singing, Nellie left in 1888 for Naples, Italy, to develop that interest. The four-year residence abroad gave her the opportunity to learn the French and Italian languages, to acquire an appreciation of the Latin fine arts, and to master a strenuous course in training for the operatic stage. She suffered a case of typhoid fever in 1892 and returned to the United States to recuperate; but her recovery was followed by scarlet fever which impaired her vocal chords irreparably. Her aspirations for a musical career were ended.
- In 1894 she married Stuart Whitney French, a childhood companion. About 1896, accompanied by her mother, she attended a few meetings at the home of Dr. Khayru'lláh. The spiritual seeds were sown. Moving to Arizona in 1900, Nellie French lived in Bisbee until 1904 and in Douglas until 1917. Her visits to Chicago and New York furnished a few Bahá'í contacts with meager information; the Bahá'í messages. Mrs. Isabella Brittingham went to Arizona in 1917 to teach the spiritual significance of the Bahá'í Faith offered Nellie a rare privilege. That experience confirmed Nellie who became the first resident Bahá'í teacher in Arizona.
- Mr. and Mrs. French moved to Pasadena in 1918. During Riḍván, in April, 1921, Mr. and Mrs. French visited Haifa and 'Akká; that pilgrimage became the fulfillment of all her hopes.
- She contributed to the literature of the Faith by her work from 1930 to 1946 as Chairman of the Bahá'í World Editorial Committee, during which time she assembled material for volumes IV—X. She translated into French and Italian the "Blue Book" and the brochure "Number 9," and for several years she wrote "Loom of Reality," a column published in the Pasadena Star-News. In 1931 she made permanent Braille plates for Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era and for the Kitdb-i-iqan. She served on the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada 1929 - 1938.
- As an administrator, she served as Chairman of the Pasadena Spiritual Assembly from 1928 to 1938. For four years, ending in 1944 she was Chairman of the InterAmerica Committee, and in this capacity she presided at a session of the Centenary Celebration in 1944. Later she was a member of the European Teaching Committee. She helped support the work of the International Bureau at Geneva and the All-Indian project at Macy, Nebraska, undertaken by her sister-in-law, Mary Farley Stevison.
- In April, 1952, thirty-one years to the day, Nellie French returned Mt. Carmel to meet the beloved Guardian in person.
During the Holy Year which was also the first year of the World Spiritual Crusade, Nellie French settled in the principality of Monaco to win the accolade, "Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW12p700]
- Find a grave.
- 1954-01-04 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Abdu'l Rahman Zarqani, in the Seychelles. [BWNS272]
- 1954-01-05 —
Munír Vakíl, a former general in the Iraqi army, settled on one of the Kuria-Muria Islands in the Arabian Sea and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- For the story of the hardships of his pioneering post see ZK99–101.
- 1954-01-06 — Elizabeth Bevan (later Mrs Golmohammed) arrived in Rhodes and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1954-01-07 — Virginia Breaks arrived on the island of Truk and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Caroline Islands. [BW13:450; MBW57]
- 1954-01-08 — Kenneth and Roberta Christian arrived in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-01-09 — Andrew and Mina Matthisen arrived in the Bahamas and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1954-01-14 — Lilian E. Wyss arrived in Apia from Australia and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Samoa Islands. [BW13:455]
- 1954-01-15 — 'Abdu'l-Rahmán Zarqání, from India, arrived in the Seychelles and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1954-01-18 — Mrs Dulcie Burns Dive arrived in the Cook Islands from Australia and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450, 925]
She passed away in Auckland, New Zealand on the 18th of September, 1962. She served on the Regional Spiritual Assembly of the South Pacific from the time it was formed in 1959 until her death. [BN381 December 1962 p10]
- 1954-01-25 — Stanley P. Bolton, Jr. arrived in Nuku'alofa, on Tongatapu Island, from Australia and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Tonga Islands. [BW13:456, BWNS286]
- 1954-02-00 — Grace Bahovec arrived in the Baranof Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1954-02-00 —
Rahmatu'lláh and Írán Muhájir arrived in Mentawai Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- For the story of their pioneering activity see Muhájir, Dr Muhajir, Hand of the Cause of God, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
- 1954-02-00 — 'Azízu'lláh and Shamsí Navídí with their daughters Vida and Giuilda arrived in Monaco and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
A celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the Bahá'í Faith in the Principality was held on 24-25 April 2004 at the Theatre des Varietes in Monte Carlo, and opened with the reading of a welcoming message from the National Council of the Principality. [Newspaper Archive on BLO] - 1954-02-00 — Joan Powis arrived in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-02-00 — Bernard H. Guhrke arrived on the Kodiak Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1954-02-00 — Gail Avery arrived in the Baranof Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1954-02-00 —
John and Audrey Robarts their son Patrick and young daughter Tina arrived in Mafikeng and the three adults were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Bechuanaland (Botswana). [BW13:449]
- Before the end of the year Dr Molema became the first declarant in the country. He gave the Robarts letters of introduction to six chiefs in the regions which opened many doors for teaching. [KoBp111]
- 1954-02-00 — David Schreiber, an American, arrived in Antigua and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Leeward Islands. [BW13:453]
- 1954-02-00 — Faríburz Rúzbihyán (Feriborz Roozbehyan) arrived in The Gambia and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1954-02-00 — Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir and Irán Muhájir arrived the Mentawai Islands and received the accolade "Knight of Bahá'u'lláh".[BS13p454]
- 1954-02-10 — John Leonard arrived in the Falkland Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1954-02-11 — Elise Schreiber (later Lynelle) arrived on St Thomas Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-02-12 — Husayn Halabi arrived in Hadhramaut and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1954-02-15 —
Charles Duncan (a musician and composer) and Harry Clark, both Americans, arrived in Brunei from Kota Kinabalu (Jesselton) in Sabah, where they had been waiting for several weeks, and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451; PH63]
- Later he pioneered to Thailand where he learned the language. See Servants of the Glory page 19
- 1954-02-21 — Charles ('Chuck') and Mary Dayton from the United States, settled in Charlotte Amalie, on St Thomas, and wre named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Leeward Islands. [BW13:453]
- 1954-03-00 — Greta Jankko arrived in the Marquesas Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1954-03-01 —
Alvin J. Blum (1912-1968) and his wife, Gertrude (née Gewertz) (1909-1993), arrived in Honiara and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for the Solomon Islands. They were accompanied by their eight-year-old daughter Keithie. [BW13:456; BWNS291; KoB151, 194-196, 198, 207]
- See BTSG82 for more information on the Blums.
- 1954-03-03 — Qudratu'lláh Rawhání and Khudárahm Muzhgání arrived in Mahé and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1954-03-04 —
The arrival of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh Elena (Marsella) and Roy Fernie in Kiribati (Gilbert Islands). They had come from the National Spiritual Assembly of Panama. [BWNS301, BW13:452]
- They had left their home in Panama and their service on the National Spiritual Assembly of Panama to pioneer. They arrived on the island of Abaiang (aka Charlotte Island, of the Gilbert Islands), on March 4, 1954 and for this service they were named Knights of Baha'u'llah. About the first of June 1954, former Catholic seminarian and mission teacher Peter Kanere Koru became the first convert on the island.
- Their teaching work brought opposition from the Roman Catholic priest who told his congregation not to attend the Bahá'í meetings. He began to criticize them in the Roman Catholic newsletter and actually contributed to the knowledge of the Faith because the newsletter had a wide distribution.
- The priest persisted in his opposition by informing his bishop who asked the government to send the Fernies away and to send Peter Kanere, a native Bahá'í, back to his native island of Tabiteuea. At the time, to be a registered religious organization required a membership of at least 100 believers so the government-approved sending the Fernies away however, in a single night some 300 people registered. A certificate of registration was issued on the 24th of September, 1955, but not before they managed to exile Roy Fernie. Elena continued the teaching work on her own and was responsible for firmly establishing the Faith on Abaiang.
- Meanwhile, Peter Kanere, back on his home island, managed to teach a Protestant minister who was under discipline of his church at the time. Together they spread the Faith on Tabiteuea.
[Island Churches: Challenge and Change by Makisi Finau page 101]
- For more details on the life of Roy Fernie see Bahaipedia.
- See also The Origins of the Bahá'í Faith in
the Pacific Islands: The Case of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands by Graham Hassall.
- And Bahá'í Faith in the Asia Pacific:
Issues and Prospects also by Graham Hassall.
- Elena Maria Marsella published The Quest for Eden in 1966.
- 1954-03-05 —
Olivia Kelsey and Florence Ullrich (later Ullrich-Kelley), a young college graduate, and Olivia Kelsey, an accomplished Bahá'í author and poet, arrived in Monaco from the United States and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454; Collins 4.6 and 7.1359]
A celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the Bahá'í Faith in the Principality was held on 24-25 April 2004 at the Theatre des Varietes in Monte Carlo, and opened with the reading of a welcoming message from the National Council of the Principality. [Newspaper Archive on BLO]
- See Bahá'í Chronicles for the story of the life of Florence Maria Ullrich Kelley (b. November 3, 1932 d. February 17, 2016)
- 1954-03-26 —
Leland Jensen arrived on Réunion Island from the United States and ws named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- He was later declared a Covenant-breaker.
- 1954-04-00 — Suhráb Paymán, together with his five-year old-daughter Ghitty, arrived in San Marino from Tihrán to join his wife. He was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh in April. [BW13:455]
- 1954-04-00 — The arrival of future Knight of Bahá'u'lláh, Mr. Enoch Olinga, in British Cameroon. [BWNS291]
- 1954-04-00 — Dr John Fozdar arrived in Brunei in April 1954 and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450] He was joined by his brother, Minoo Fozdar in 1955. [Bahaipedia]
See Remembering Dr John Fozdar. - 1954-04-00 —
Mrs Mehrangiz Munsiff pioneered to the city of Douala in the French Cameroons (later Cameroon). Both she and Mr Samuel Njiki were honoured as Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for this territory. [Bahá'í Journal UK Vol 20, No 5 Jan/Feb 2004, BW13:451; BWNS249]
- For a photo see Bahá'í Media Bank.
- 1954-04-00 — Edward Tabe, a youth from Cameroon, no older than fourteen, and Albert Buapiah from the Gold Coast arrived in British Togoland and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450; KoB78-79; BWNS249]
- 1954-04-00 — The arrival of Knight Martin Manga to Northern Territories Protectorate (now part of Ghana). [BWNS249; BW13:455]
- 1954-04-00 — Benedict Eballa arrived in Ashanti Protectorate (Now part of Ghana) and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449; BWNS249]
- 1954-04-00 — Habíb Isfahání arrived in Dakar and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for French West Africa. [BW13:452]
- 1954-04-00 — Kay Zinky arrived in the Magdalen Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1954-04-00 — Howard Gilliland arrived in Labrador and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1954-04-00 — Corporal Richard Walters and his wife, Evelyn, and Richard and Mary L. Suhm arrived in Tangier from the United States and were all named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Morocco (International Zone). BW13:454]
- 1954-04-00 — John and Marjorie Kellberg of Oak Park, Illinois, arrived in the Dutch West Indies (Netherlands Antilles) and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1954-04-00 — Robert B. Powers, Jr., a member of the U.S. armed forces at the Navy Air Station, arrived in Guam and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Mariana Islands.
On May 2, 1954, Cynthia R. Olson arrived on Guam in response to the call from Shoghi Effendi; becoming the first permanent Bahá’í Settler in the Mariana Islands.
Antonio Alfonso, the first Filipino national to embrace the Faith, became a Bahá’í on 19 March 1956, and Joe Erie Ilengelkei of Palau, Western Caroline Island became the first Micronesian to accept Bahá’u’lláh when he became a member of the Bahá’í Faith on 7 April 1956.
[BW13:454; Marianas Bahá'í Community website] - 1954-04-09 — Gayle Woolson and her companion, Rebecca Kaufman, arrived in the Galapagos Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
[Heroes of God p59]
- 1954-04-11 — Bula Mott Stewart arrived in Swaziland and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-04-13 — David Tanyi, a tailor, arrived in French Togoland from British Cameroons and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1954-04-18 — John and Valera Allen arrived in Swaziland and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1954-04-19 — John and Valera Allen arrived in Swaziland from the United States and became the second and third Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for that country. Later that summer they were later joined by sons Dale and Kenton and Valera's 82 year old mother, Maude Fisher.
John, Dale, and Valera served on the National Assembly of South and West Africa for several years before the National Spiritual Assembly of Swaziland was formed. [PHBR16; KoB112-114]
For John Allens story see BW18p725.
For Maude Fisher's story see BW13p902. - 1954-04-21 — Bruce Matthews arrived at Goose Bay and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Labrador. [BW13:453]
See Bruce Matthews, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Goose Bay, Labrador by Lynn Wright and Susan Gammage. - 1954-05-01 — Elinore Putney arrived in the Aleutian Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1954-05-02 — The arrival of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh Mavis Nymon and Vivian Wesson in French Togoland (now called Togo). [BWNS329 ]
- 1954-05-02 — Cynthia R. Olson of Wilmington, Delaware, settled in Barrigada, the largest village in Guam, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Mariana Islands. [BW13:454; BWNS303]
- 1954-05-04 — Shoghi Effendi closed the Roll of Honour, except for those pioneers who have already left for their posts and those first arriving in the remaining virgin territories inside and outside the Soviet Republics and satellites. [MBW69]
- 1954-05-04 — Elizabeth Stamp, an Irish-American widow from New York City, arrived in St Helena and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456; KoB392]
See her short biography on the St. Helena website. - 1954-05-05 — Sabrí and Fahima (Ra'isa) Elias, an Egyptian couple with four children, arrived in Djibouti and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for French Somaliland. [BW13:451; KoB58-61]
- 1954-05-07 — Mavis Nymon and Vivian Wesson, both Americans, arrived in French Togoland and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:451]
- 1954-05-17 — The arrival of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Elise Lynelle (then Schreiber) in Bata, the capital of Rio Muni, Spanish Guinea, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for a second time, this time for Spanish Guinea. [BW13:456; BWNS330]
- 1954-05-29 —
Haik (Haig) Kevorkian arrived in the Galápagos Islands and settled on the island of Santa Cruz. He was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. Haig had been present in Guayaquil as an itinerant pioneer-teacher in 1945 when the first local Assembly of that city was formed. He returned in 1954 to fill the virgin goal of the Galapagos. [BW13:452; Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p24; 61]
- On March 8, 1955 on the island of Santa Cruz, Señor Moyses Mosquera Zevallos enrolled as the first believer of the Galapagos. He was a school teacher from the mainland of Ecuador working on the island. Later he was dismissed from his job and was forced to leave theGalapagos due to accusations made against him of immoral acts with some of his students in spite of the fact that the teaching space was such that his wife was constantly with him. He had been the victim of an attack by the parish priest[ibid p76]
- Haig returned to his home in Buenos Aires, Argentina in January 1956. His family came from Turkey but he was born in
Syria on October 1, 1916 and came to Argentina as a youth with
his family. He married his fiancée Miss Aurora de Eyto on
October 19, 1957. His wife reported that he had colds continuously after returning from the islands, and on August 3, 1970 Haig passed away at .the age of 54. [ibid p75]
- 1954-06-01 — Harold and Florence Fitzner arrived in Portuguese Timor and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1954-06-02 — Louise Groger arrived on Chiloé Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1954-06-03 — Shawqí Riyád Rawhání (Shoghi Riaz Rouhani), an Iranian from Egypt, arrived in Las Palmas and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Canary Islands. [BW13:450]
- 1954-06-24 —
Shápúr Rawhání and Ardishír Furúdí, Iranian residents of India, arrived in Bhutan by foot and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. They spent about two months in Bhutan. However, circumstances did not permit them to remain longer and they had to return to India. [BW13:449]
- They were accompanied to the Bhutan border by the prime minister of Bhutan, Jigme Dorji.
- In about 1961 Dr. Anayat Soroosh Yaganagi, a Bahá'í of Zoroastrian background from Bangalore pioneered to Bhutan. See the brief history of his family and the development of the Faith in the country in "Bahá'í Recollections" written by one of his daughters, Geeti Yaganegi.
- 1954-07-02 — José Marques arrived in Portuguese Timor and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:455]
- 1954-07-03 — Dr John George Mitchell, an English physician who became a Bahá'í in 1950, arrived in Malta and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1954-07-05 — Violet Hoehnke, an Australian, arrived in Papua New Guinea and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Admiralty Islands. [BW13:449]
- 1954-07-12 — Dudley Moore Blakely, an artist, sculptor and designer, and his wife, Elsa ('Judy'), British citizens living in Maine, arrived on Tongatapu and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for Tonga Islands. [BW13:456] They shared the honour with Dr. Stanley Bolton. [BWNS286]
- 1954-08-07 — Marcia Steward de Matamoros Atwater arrived in the Marshall Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454]
- 1954-08-11 — American librarian Fred Schechter arrived in South Africa by way of Djibouti, Nairobi and Addis Ababa. During his time in South Africa he assisted in the preparations for the election of the Regional Spiritual Assembly which was held at the Sears farm.
In 1958 he and Bill Sears Jr travelled to Uruguay, arriving in 1959. they participated in a campaign to raise up the second Local Spiritual Assembly in the country with Julia Bulling, a pioneer fro Chile. In 1960 Fred and Julia were married.
They were sent to the Dominican Republic in preparation for the election of the first National Spiritual Assembly but were diverted to Ecuador prior to the first elections in that country because Covenant issues had arisen. Their first son was born there.
A few months later the Hands of the Cause requested that they move to Uruguay where they both served on the National Spiritual Assembly. Their second son was born in Uruguay.
In 1965 they had to move back to the USA because of economic conditions. Their daughter was born in the United States.
Fred served on the Auxiliary Board and the the Continental Board of Counsellors from 1993 to 1998 and was a Counsellor at the International Teaching Centre. [KoB50-57]
- 1954-08-28 — Mihribán Suhaylí (Mehraban Sohaili) arrived on the Comoro Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1954-10-01 — Anthony and Mamie Seto arrived in Hong Kong.
- 1954-10-08 — Richard Nolen and his family, (Lois A. (Warner), Linda Jean, Cynthia and John), arrived in the Azores, for which he and his wife were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. Two more children,Christopher Lee and Sylvia Louise, were born to the Nolens during their time there. Due to Richards failing health, the family returned to the United States and settled in Tacoma, Washington in August of 1962. After a prolonged illness Richard passed away on the 5th of May 1964. [Bahaipedia]
- 1954-10-22 — Mr and Mrs Suleimani arrived in Keelung, Taiwan by ship. They spent the rest of their lives there.
Ridvaniyyih Suleimani served on the Auxiliary Board and the National Spiritual Assembly. She passed away in Taiwan on the 18th of March 1981. [BW18p752-754]
Suleiman Suleimani served on the National Spiritual Assembly of Taiwan from its formation in 1967 until 1978. He also served as a deputy of the institution of the Huqúqu'lláh for about two decades. [BW20p889-891]
The Suleimanis, originally from Iran, had lived for about 28 years in Shanghai where Mrs Ridvaniyyih Suleimani's father, Mr Husayn Ouskouli Uskuli (or Uskui) had long resided and conducted a business. Mr and Mrs Suleimani had left Shanghai permanently in 1950 because of the difficult situations for foreigners in China but Mr Ouskouli decided to stay on and won the admiration of the Guardian. He died in Shanghai at the age of 86. [The Taiwan Bahá'í Chronicle by Barbara R. Sims p3; PH39; Video Early history of the Bahá'í Faith in China 7 min 57 sec] - 1955-03-01 — Kamálí Sarvístání arrived on Socotra Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- 1955-06-00 —
Travelling by foot, Udai Narain Singh arrived in Tibet from Gangtok, Sikkim, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh, his second such distinction.
- He was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh in spring 1956. [BW13:456]
- 1955-06-04 — Frank Wyss of Australia arrived on Cocos and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:450]
- 1955-10-00 — Daniel Haumont arrived in the Loyalty Islands and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:453]
- 1956-05-00 — Mary Zabolotny (later Mrs Ken McCulloch), of Ukrainian background, arrived on Anticosti Island, Canada, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:449]
- 1957-05-01 — Pouva Murday of Mauritius arrived in the Chagos Archipelago and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
- 1957-07-00 — Margaret Bates and her daughter Jean Frankel of the United States arrived in the Nicobar Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:454; PH63]
- 1958-04-26 — The passing of Dr M Khodad Fozdar in Singapore.
He was the first Indian Parsi to accept the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. In 1950 he and his wife Shirin moved to Singapore. He pioneered to the Andaman Islands and became a Knight of Baha'u'lláh in response to the Indian seven-year plan.
[BW13p892] - 1958-06-26 —
Paul Adams, from Reading, England, having obtained permission to accompany Svalbard's chief hunter on a fishing tour in the summer and to spend the winter with him in Sassen Fjord, arrived in Spitzbergen and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:456]
- See also Adams, Arctic Island Hunter published by George Ronald in 1961. iiiii
- 1959-08-00 — John Z. T. Chang arrived in Hainan Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- 1959-08-18 —
Cheong Siu Choi (John Z. T. Chang), the Chinese headmaster of the Leng Nam Middle School and a highly respected leader in Macau, arrived with his family on Hainan Island and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [BW13:452]
- PH75 says this was August 1958.
- 1959-08-19 — John Chang, his wife and child visited Hainan Island, just off China. He thought someone with a family would attract less attention than a single man but he was asked to leave by authorities after only 14 days. [KoB 3,171]
- 1959-09-00 — Clifford and Catherine Huxtable arrived in the Gulf Islands and were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh (albeit on 14 September 1969 see LNW101). [BW13:457]
- 1962-04-01 — Virginia Breaks, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for the Caroline Islands, moved to Saipan, the largest Island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a territory of the United States. She was the first pioneer to the area.
She remained in the Caroline Islands for fifty years, serving as an Auxiliary Board member for twenty. [BW22p320] - 1967-12-25 —
The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Charles Dunning (b.27 March, 1885 need Leeds). [BW14p305-308]
- See Bahaipedia
- See a story about Charles as told by Marion Hofman.
- See Bahá'í Blogspot for a photo of Charles with Ted Cardell and a story from a talk by Ian Semple.
- See the Bahá'ís of Orkney website.
- 1968-11-00 — Fereidun Khazrai arrived in Romana and was designated a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
[KoB 395-397]
- 1970-08-03 — The passing of Haik (Haig) Kevorkian (b.1 October 1916 in Aleppo, Syria) in Lomas de Zamora, Buenos Aires province of Argentina at the age of 54. He was buried in the British Cemetery beside his parents and his infant son.
Haik had learned of the Faith from his father who had embraced the Faith in his birthplace, Gaziantep Aintab, Turkey. In 1937 the family emigrated from Aleppo, Syria to Argentina and they stopped on the way to visit the Holy Land where they spoke with the Guardian about pioneering. They arrived in Buenos Aires on the 29th of March after a another stop in Bahia to visit Leonora Holsapple.
On February 29th, 1940 May Maxwell, accompanied by her niece Jeanne Bolles arrived in Buenos Aires and it was from Haik that she received the a telephone call to welcome her. The following morning when the Kevorkian family called at the City Hotel they learned that May Maxwell had passed during the night. Haik and Wilfrid Barton searched for a befitting spot for her interment and Haik spent the rest of his life honouring and caring for her resting place.
Haik taught the Faith in the interior of Argentina and make international trips to Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Chile Brazil and Ecuador. He assisted in the formation of the first spiritual assembly in Guayaquil and won the honour of being named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh when he settled in the Galapolos Islands in May 1954. A record of his service there can be found in Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 by Helen Bassett Hornby.
Upon his return from the Galapolos to Buenos Aires he married Aurora de Eyto and they had one surviving son, Daniel Claudio (b.1960).
[BW15p483-485] - 1972-12-17 —
The passing of Matthew Washington Bullock (b. 11 September, 1881 in Dabney, North Carolina) in Detroit, Michigan. His place of burial is unknown.
- He was a singer, a talented athlete, a football coach, a teacher, a soldier, a war hero, a civic leader, a church leader.
- See this newspaper clipping which implies that he may have been subjected to rough treatment by the opposing Princeton team.
- Lawyer-graduated from Harvard Law School in 1907.
- Found the Faith in 1940 after many years of careful investigation.
- Husband to Katherine Wright, (d. 1945), father to Matthew W. Bullock Jr (a judge) and Julia Gaddy (librarian).
- Chairman of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Boston.
- Travel teacher to Haiti, Costa Rica, Mexico, Belgian Congo, Liberia.
- Elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of the the United States in 1952.
- Represented the NSA at the first Intercontinental Bahá'í Conference in Uganda, East and received permission to visit the Holy Land on pilgrimage prior to attending the Conference.
- Became a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh in 1953 for Dutch West Indies when he and four other members of the NSA resigned to take up pioneer posts.
- He received an honorary degree from Harvard in recognition of the lifetime of achievements.
- He spent his last years in Detroit in the care of his daughter. [BW15p535-539]
- Find a grave
- See a biographical article in the Evertt Independent.
- 1974-09-11 —
Annemarie Krüger, a German citizen and a granddaughter of Dr Auguste Forel, arrived in Moldavia (then the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, a part of USSR) on the first of her teaching trips to Chisinau (Kishinev) as a tourist.
- In 1985 she was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by the Universal House of Justice, although she never lived in the country. [Candle9 28 July, 2008]
- 1978-12-23 — Helmut Winkelbach, a German Bahá'í, arrived in Bobrujsk, in what was then called the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh. [Ela-D Committee of Germany Records; BW95-96p48]
- 1979-09-16 —
Enoch Olinga—Hand of the Cause of God and Knight of Bahá'u'lláh—his wife and three of his children were murdered in Kampala, Uganda. (b.24 June 1926) [BBD 172; BW18:633; LoF471-472]
- He was buried near the grave of Hand of the Cause Mr Banání with the graves of his wife and children nearby. [CG132]
- Shoghi Effendi had appointed him among the third contingent on the 2nd of October, 1957. [MoCxxiii]
- For his obituary see BW18:618–35.
- See Bahá'í Blog for a tribute to his life.
- Early in May soldiers had invaded his home and thoroughly sacked it. The president of Uganda was a Nilotic and a native of northern Uganda as were a majority of his army. After taking control of the country they began to take reprisals from rival tribes and those who they thought had supported Idi Amin. [CG127]
- On the morning of the murders Mr. Olinga and his family had participated in a work detail at the Temple grounds. After the evening meal, a group of soldiers entered their compound and murdered him as well as his wife Elizabeth the children Táhirih and Lennie. [CG130-132]
- Claire Gung, the "Mother of Africa", had had an extraordinarily accurate dream and had warned Mr. Olinga of his danger. [CG163]
- See Enoch Olinga, Knight of Baha'u'llah, Father of Victories and Hand of the Cause of God, Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3 and
Part 4
- See as well Glimpse of the life of Enoch Olinga as told by 'Ali Nakhjavani.
- 1979-12-29 —
Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir, Hand of the Cause of God and Knight of Bahá'u'lláh, passed away in Quito, Ecuador. (b. 4 April 1923 in 'Abdu'l-'Azím) [BW18:486, 651]
- Shoghi Effendi had appointed him among the third contingent on the 2nd of October, 1957. [MoCxxiii]
- For his obituary see BW18:651–9.
- See BWNS353 for news of the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of his passing in Quito.
- See also Dr Muhajir: Hand of the Cause of God, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by Írán Furútan Muhájir.
- See Bahá'í Chronicles.
- For stories about Dr Mahájir see Bahá'í Memories.
- See Academic Wikipedia.
- See Rahmatu'llah Muhajir: Hand of the Cause of God the Treasure of All Humanity
by Richard Francis.
- A photo.
- See as well LoF455-461.
- The 25th anniversary of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir's death was marked in Ecuador by a Growth and Victories conference and graveside ceremony, including a talk by his daughter Gisu Mohadjer Cook. BWNS353]
- 1981-05-23 — Helmut Winkelbach, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Belarus, married Olga Grigorevna Dolganova, a Russian, their wedding ceremony was the first Bahá'í wedding in the Soviet Union.
- 1981-08-15 — The passing of Muhamad Mustafá (b.1898 in El Dhahriya, Egypt), stalwart servant and mainstay of the Egyptian and Northern African communities. He was buried in the Bahá'í Cemetery in Cairo.
The follow cable was received from the Universal House of Justice:
15th AUGUST 1981. DEEPLY GRIEVED PASSING EMINENT DISTINGUISHED
SERVANT BLESSED BEAUTY MEMBER BOARD COUNSELLORS AFRICA
KNIGHT BAHA'ULLAH DEARLY LOVED MUḤAMMAD MUSṬAFÁ HIS LONG
RECORD DEDICATED SERVICES IN ADMINISTRATIVE TEACHING FIELDS HIS
SELF-SACRIFICING AUDACIOUS EFFORTS IN PROMOTION DEFENSE BELOVED
FAITH UNFORGETTABLE CONVEY BEREAVED FAMILY FRIENDS LOVING
SYMPATHY PRAYING HOLY SHRINES FURTHER UNFOLDMENT PROGRESS HIS
NOBLE SOUL ABHA KINGDOM UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE. [BW18p768-771]
- 1983-06-25 —
The passing of Reginald "Rex" Collison (b. 3 May 1884 in Ohio). He was buried in Oak Mound Cemetery, Healdsburg, Sonoma County, California, USA. [BW19p595-596]
- Rex accepted a position in plant research on the staff of Cornell University and held this post for thirty-three years, retiring in 1945 as Chief of Research and Professor Emeritus.
- Rex and Mary were married in 1920 and in 1924 learned of the Faith from Howard and Mabel Ives.
- In 1952 he and Mary pioneered to Uganda. When the Ten Year Crusade was launched in 1953, the Collisons were the first American believers to arise. Accompanied by Mr. Dunduzu Chisiza, a young Nyasaland African who served as their interpreter and shared their home for over a year, they settled in Ruanda-Urundi. (Today,known as Rwanda and Burundi.) For their service in opening Ruanda-Urundi to the Faith the trio were named by Shoghi Effendi Knights of Baha'u'llah. Returning to Kampala in 1955, the Collisons were later appointed custodians of the Mother Temple of Africa and they served the Faith in this capacity with great devotion until 1966 when they found it necessary to return home to Geyserville.
- See CG66-67 for their services while in Uganda.
- Find a grave.
- On August 11, 1970, Rex lost his wife Mary (b. 13 Nov 1892 in Adelaide, Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada). [BW15p486]
- Find a grave.
- 1985-00-00 — Annemarie Krüger, who began travelling to Moldavia to teach the Bahá'í Faith in 1974, was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by the Universal House of Justice, although she never lived in the country. [Candle9 28 July, 2008]
- 1985-02-06 —
The passing of Claire Gung (b. 3 November, 1904, Gladbeck, Ruhrgebeit, Germany, d. Kampala, Uganda). She was buried in The National Bahá'í Cemetery of Uganda. [BW19p653-657]
- She had worked as a children's nurse or housekeeper in Germany, switzerland, Austria, the Italian tyrol, Belgium, Holland and finally settled in England in 1930. She became a Bahá'í in Torquay and after a time in Eastleigh, Dovon, later joined the small Bahá'í group in Cheltenham in 1940. She moved to the Manchester area and later pioneered to Northampton in November 1946 to become member of the first Spiritual Assembly there. In 1948 she again pioneered to help form the first Spiritual Assembly in the "Pivotal Centre" of Cardiff then to Brighton and to Belfast. In 1947 she became a naturalized British subject. In 1950, during the "Year of Respite", Claire became the first pioneer to actually move from the British community to settle in Africa when Shoghi Effendi called for Bahá'ís to open Africa. She sailed on the "Warwick Castle" on 4 (or 25) January, 1951 and landed in Tanzania where she obtained a post as assistant matron in a school in Lushoto,150 miles from Dar-es-Salaam. [CG158-159]
-
She became a "Knight" for Rhodesia. Mr. Zahrai was actually the first Bahá'í to come to Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) during a Ten Year Crusade. He was followed soon after by Claire Gung, Eyneddin and Tahirih Ala'i, Kenneth and Roberta Christian and Joan Powis. All seven received the accolade of Knight of Baha'u'llah from Shoghi Effendi. Subsequently the Guardian gave her the title, "Mother of Africa".
- Later she moved to Uganda where she started a Kindergarten school. She was affectionately known as "Auntie Claire".
- After being in the country since 1957 Auntie Claire was granted he certificate of residence for life from the Republic of Uganda date the 11th of May, 1978. [CG118]
[BWNS275; Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Historical Dictionary of the Bahá'í Faith p.209; UD211, 482]
- Also see Claire Gung Mother of Africa by Adrienne Morgan and published by the National Spiritual Assembly of Baha'is of South Africa; (1997).
- 1987-07-01 — The passing of Dr Aziz Navidi (b. 9 September 1913 in Hamadan, Iran) in London. He was buried at the Great Northern Cemetery near the Resting Place of Shoghi Effendi.
He studied law and started his legal practice in Iran at the age of 24. The National Spiritual Assembly asked him to defend the oppressed Bahá'ís of Sháhrúd, where, on 8 August 1944, three friends had been martyred and 17 Bahá'í homes had been plundered and set on fire. 'Aziz defended them with great eloquence and undaunted courage, braving the vicious opposition of the clergy. Later he was asked to defend the Bahá'ís of Shiraz and still later those in Yazd. His unceasing endeavours won him the praise of the beloved Guardian who later designated him the "Shield of the Cause of God" and predicted that future historians would study his achievements.
In 1953 he and his wife Shamsi pioneered to Monte Carlo in Monaco to replace Mrs French who had passed away. While at this post he studied international law at the University of Paris-Sorbonne. In 1955 the Guardian appointed him to the Commission that appealed to the United Nations in Geneva and New York about the Iranian attempt to exterminate the Bahá'í community. In 1962 he became involved with the imprisoned Bahá'ís in Algeria and Morocco.
In 1968 Dr. Navidi became a representative of the Iranian Oil Company for its operations in the Indian Ocean and the family made their new home in Mauritius from where he worked to secure legal recognition of several of the new National Assemblies in the Indian Ocean region as he did with various African states. He fearlessly visited countries hostile to the Bahá'ís with no protection except his faith and his credentials as official lawyer to the Universal House of Justice with special status at the United Nations. His missions took him to Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Congo, Gabon, the Gambia, Kenya, Madagascar, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Zaire, and many, many other countries throughout the world. He was successful time and again in persuading democratic governments and dictators alike to alter their laws and constitutions and to officially recognize the Bahá'í Faith.
[BW20p866; Navidi, Dr. Aziz (1913-1987): Intrepid Pioneer, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by Graham Walker; KoB341-344] - 1988-12-28 —
Sean Hinton, a British Bahá'í youth of 22 years, arrived in Ulaan Baator, Mongolia, as an official research scholar in ethnomusicology from the University of Cambridge, the first Bahá'í to reside in Mongolia. [VV101]
- Seven months later he was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by the Universal House of Justice.
- See VV101 for a picture.
- 1989-07-04 — Sean Hinton, the first Bahá'í to reside in Mongolia, was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh by the Universal House of Justice.
- 1990-03-24 — Abbas and Rezvanieh Katirai opened the Sakhalin Islands and became a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh after 35 years of pioneering in Japan. This last goal was achieved 37 years after the Guardian had designated it as a goal of the Ten Year Crusade. [DM345; AWH73; VV112; Russia by Moojan Momen]
- 1991-06-18 —
The passing of Hand of the Cause of God, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh, John Aldham Robarts at Rawdon, Quebec. He was born in Waterloo, Ontario 2nd of November, 1901. [VV124]
- Shoghi Effendi had appointed him among the third contingent on the 2nd of October, 1957. [MoCxxiii]
- See BW20p801-809.
- For his obituary see BINS250:10.
- For picture see VV124.
- For the story of how he came to learn of the Faith see SBR137.
- See LoF473-495.
- A 50-minute film entitledRetrospective, a Ciné Bahá'í production, was made as a tribute to the Hand of the Cause John A. Robarts on the occasion of his 40th anniversary as a member of the Bahá'r' community.
- 1992-05-27 —
Three thousand Bahá'ís representing approximately 200 countries and territories, gathered at the Bahá'í World Centre to mark the Centenary of the Ascension of Bahá'u'lláh. [BINS271:1–2; BW92–3, 96–8, 121]
On the 27th (or 28th) of May...the gathering of one hundred thirteen Knights of Bahá'u'lláh along with 19 representatives of every National Spiritual Assembly (165) and 9 representatives of every territory without a National Spiritual Assembly (40-50) at Bahjí in commemoration of the ascension of Bahá'u'lláh (some 3,000 persons). The original scroll bearing the Roll of Honour of the Knights of Bahá'u'lláh was placed by Hand of the Cause Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum in a chamber at the entrance door of the inner sanctuary of the Most Holy Shrine. [AWH90, 105; VV128; BW92-3p98; BINS271:1; Message 7 June 1992]
- See the Roll of Honour online at Knights of Bahá'u'lláh.
- For pictures see VV127-8, BINS271:9-10, BW92–3:97.
- 1993-04-15 — The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Stanley Theodore Bagley, (b.2 February, 1912 in Bertrand, Missouri). He had been a pioneer to Belgium, France, Guadeloupe, Martinique, the United States as well as Sicily where he and his family, wife Florence, son Gerry and daughters Susan and Carol, received the Knighthood for their service. [BW93-94p319; BWIM63-65]
- 2000-08-22 —
The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Audrey Robarts (née FitzGerald) in her 96th year. She was buried with her husband, Hand of the Cause of God John Robarts, in the Ecumenical Cemetery in Rawdon. He had predeceased her on the 18th of June, 1991. [BW00-01p272]
- After the passing of her husband she travelled to four countries in southern Africa in response to a request from the National Spiritual Assembly of Botswana where she was known as the "beloved mother of our country".
- 2003-03-09 — The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Una Dean, née Townshend, in Edmonton, Canada. Una lived a full life of Bahá'í service. In 1946 she was the first Bahá'í in Dublin and was later a member of the first spiritual assembly. She also helped to form the first spiritual assembly in Liverpool. In October 1953 she was the first Bahá'i in Malta, a goal of the Ten Year Crusade. In 1954 she returned to Ireland to tend to her ailing father and to assist him in writing Christ and Bahá'u'lláh. After his passing in 1957 she moved to America, met and married her husband, Dick Dean, and moved to Edmonton where she served on the Local Assembly until 1987. [BW02-03p269]
- 2004-04-02 —
The passing of Ola Pawlowska (b. Ola Clemens 14 February, 1910 in Lakta, outside Cacow, Poland) in Newfoundland, Canada. Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for St. Pierre and Miquelon, translator of the Writings (into Polish), pioneer to Poland, Luxembourg and Congo (30 years), Auxiliary Board Member. [BW'03-'04pg236, BWNS248]
- For her biography see Legacy of Courage: The Life of Ola Pawlowska, Knight of Bahá'u'lláh" by Suzanne Schuurman, published by George Ronald in 2008.
- 2004-10-26 —
The passing of Dr. Helen Elsie Austin (b. 10 May 1908 in Alabama) in San Antonio, Texas. She was a pioneer and Knight of Bahá'u'lláh in Morocco. She also served on the National Spiritual Assemblies of the United States and North West Africa. By profession, she was an attorney, she received a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1930 from the University of Cincinnati, becoming the first black woman to graduate from the law school. In 1937 she served as an assistant attorney general for Ohio. She later opened her own law office in Cincinnati. She was secretary of the Cincinnati branch of the NAACP and chair of the legal committee of Colored Women Federated Clubs. In addition, she was a US Foreign Service Officer.
[BWNS338; Bahaipedia]
- In 1955 Dr. Austin wrote Above All Barriers: The Story of Louis G. Gregory It was reprinted in 1964, 1965,1969, and 1976. [Collins7.82]
- Find a grave.
- 2006-09-12 —
The passing of Annemarie Kruger, (b. 13 February 1918 Germany d. 12 September 2006 Plovdiv, Bulgaria) Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Moldov and pioneer to Bulgaria from 1984 until the end of her life. [KoB397-399; Find a grave; Bulgarian Nation Website; the 9th candle]
- Her autobiography, Life for the Faith is available on the Bulgarian national site. It comes in a zip file with a picture of the cover, all of the illustrations, and the text of the book in Word format.
- 2007-06-01 —
The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Jameson (Jamie) Bond (b. 6 November, 1917 Toronto, ON) in Duncan, BC. [SDSC262, 387-388, 406]
- For a biography see Sole Desire Service Cause An Odyssey of Bahá'í Service: Gale and Jameson Bond by Don Brown published by George Ronald.
- 2009-04-14 —
The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Gale Bond, née Keass (b. 13 November, 1919 in Emod, Hungary) in Cowichan, BC. [SDSC397]
- See Sole Desire Service Cause An Odyssey of Bahá'í Service: Gale and Jameson Bond by Don Brown published by George Ronald for a biography.
- 2011-05-30 — The passing of Knight of Bahá'u'lláh Gayle Wollson (b. 2 June 1913 Crookston MN) in Wilmette, IL. She was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery and Crematorium, Skokie, Illinois [Find a grave]
Born in the USA to Muslim, Arab-speaking parents of Syrian origin she learned of the Faith through her father. Mr Abas had been introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by a Syrian friend. As a youth she taught children's classes and was one of the very first youth travelling teachers in the US accompanying Marguerite Reimer (later Sears) and Mable Ives.
She had already been pioneering in Latin America for fourteen years when in early 1954 she opened the Galápagos Islands to the Bahá'í Faith, thus earning the title 'Knight of Bahá'u'lláh'. Although her time there was brief, the story of her rich and varied life, dedicated to building up Bahá'í communities throughout Latin America, serving and empowering others, makes fascinating and inspiring reading. Her work with children's education, particularly through the Children's Public Speaking Project where she taught children to memorize passages from the Bahá'í Writings, to present them in public, and to express what they learned in service, was a precursor of the process of learning and practice now finding systematized expression in the worldwide Bahá'í community.
She was appointed to the Auxillary Board and served for 14 years in Ecuador. In 1961 sh was elected to the National Assembly.
From 1970 she served for five years at the World Centre where she did translation work.
'Future generations will extol your labours, follow in your footsteps, and derive inspiration from your pioneer activities.' Shoghi Effendi to Gayle Woolson in Costa Rica, 1942
[KoG224-225]
In 1971 her book, Divine Symphony was published by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust of New Delhi. The book was reprinted in 1976 and 1977. [Collins7.2771; p156]
For her biography see The Art of Empowering Others – A Biography of Knight of Baha'u'llah Gayle Woolson by Juliet Gentzkow and published by George Ronald. - 2013-07-28 —
The passing of Amin Banani (b. 23 September 1926 in Tehran) in Santa Monica. He was survived by his wife Sheila Wolcott (m. 1951)and daughters Sussane and Laila. Find a grave.
- During World War II, like a number of other young Persian men, Amin was sent to study in the United States. He graduated with a BA, majoring in history from Stanford University in 1947. During his study at Stanford he became familiar with western music and read philosophy and world literature. He obtained his MA from Columbia University in 1949 and returned to Stanford for his PhD degree, which he received in 1959.
- In 1953 Amin and Sheila became Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for being among the first Bahá'ís to settle in Greece. In Athens Dr. Banani taught history at the Overseas Program of the University of Maryland in Athens until 1958 when his work permit expired and they were obligated to leave the country.
- A list of some of his publications can be found on Bahá'í Library.
- A tribute to Dr Banani Professor Amin Banani, 1926–2013: A Prominent Scholar of Iranian Studies by Ehsan Yarshater.
- His three-part lecture on Shoghi Effendi's letters entitled The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh can be found on Soundcloud. Another talk The Writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha can be found at "Bahá'í Talks".
- In the late 1940s he accepted assignments to represent the Bahá'í community at a UN conference of nongovernmental organizations and a human rights commission. In the early 1950s he also served the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly on its National Youth Committee. For more complete biographical information see his eulogy on the US Bahá'í site and another in the Lights of Irfan.
- 2016-05-07 — The passing of Jenabe Esslemont Caldwell, 89 in Wailuku, Hawaii. (b. August 7, 1926 in Butte, Montana). He and his wife Elaine were named Knights of Bahá'u'lláh for pioneering to the Aleutian Islands in July, 1953 where they started a king crab and salmon cannery. They sponsored the Bahá'í singing group Windflower that toured Europe, including the United Kingdom, in the 1980s. He was the author of the books: The Story of the Báb & Bahá'u'lláh, From Night to Knight, Follow the Instructions and Reflections. He is well-known for his mass teaching successes. [Bahaipedia]
- 2017-01-27 — The passing of Fred Schechter (b. 27 June 1927 Brooklyn, NY, d. 27 January 2017 Orange County, California). [BW35p408; Bahaipedia; BWNS1149; Find a grave]
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