Darius K. Shahrokh loved the history of the Faith.
The popularity of historical deepenings he offered
in California in the early 1990s led to production
of the 25-tape audio deepening series
Windows to
the Past, which has been distributed
internationally and broadcast on Internet-based
radioNUR.
Darius, a retired physician residing in
Buncombe County, North Carolina -- and formerly a
stalwart among the Wisconsin friends -- passed away
March 20, 2005, during a visit to family in Austin,
Texas.
Born in 1931 and educated in Tehran, Iran, Darius
came to the United States in 1956 to train for a
medical specialty in ear, nose and throat at the
Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He served on
Rochester’s first Spiritual Assembly.
At the request of an isolated, recently enrolled
Bahá’í family in Marshfield, Wisconsin, Darius,
Grace and their infant daughter moved there in 1960.
He helped build that Bahá’í community through his
historical deepenings and teaching activities.
His mother, Katayoon, whose pioneer services
covered several decades, introduced Persian cooking
to the central Wisconsin town on her visits.
Later the family moved to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
He helped form the first Spiritual Assembly there
and served on it for 24 years. He was also
instrumental in the 1980 launch of Wisconsin’s
summer Bahá’í school.
On retirement, the couple moved near Sacramento,
California. Darius served at various times on two
suburban Spiritual Assemblies and the District
Teaching Committee. He helped organize regular
children’s classes that continue to this day.
His lively retelling of historical events led to
a popular series of deepenings in the Sacramento
area. With encouragement and recording equipment
supplied by friends, he embarked on the five-year
project to record the Windows to the Past
tapes.
Later, Darius relocated to Cedar Park, Texas, and
Buncombe County, also serving on their Assemblies.
He spoke at events and Bahá’í schools in Wisconsin,
California, Oregon and Texas and also made teaching
trips to Caribbean islands and to some Southern
states.
He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Grace;
daughters, Roya and Lorraine Nura; son Ross; four
grandchildren, one brother and three sisters.
Information from Grace Shahrokh
