Amelie Willard Bodmer

Amelie (sometimes Amelia) Willard Bodmer (February 18, 1880, Brooklyn, NY - May 17, 1955, Pasadena, CA) was an heiress of New York Banker/Stock Market Exchange member D. Seymour Willard. She married and divorced three men and the family lost much of its wealth such that by the 1930s she was living in trailer parks and sought to reposition her servants with other situations. She was listed with the Miami Bahá'í community in 1936 at the age of 56 and became a visible advocate of the religion. Perhaps no sign of the difference the Faith made in her life is greater than she was able to bring all the children from three marriages, step and birth children, together for a family vacation in 1938 after she had lost the vast majority of her wealth and the death of her eldest child in 1928. Amidst these events she put her life to service to promoting the religion in South Carolina and North Carolina for some five years during the First Seven Year Plan one of who's goals was raising an assembly in every state by living in trailer park after trailer park meeting people and giving them published materials on the religion and was praised for it by Louis Gregory, suggesting she was good at reaching across the color line amidst the conditions of Jim Crow segregation in the South. She settled back into more of a retired lifestyle in 1944 in Florida, and then she and her last husband, now remarried, moved to Pasadena, California, leading a comparatively quiet life. She recovered some wealth later in life and then made memorial donations to the national Bahá'í Fund in the name of her father and aunt across many months of 1950-51 when the crunch was on for finishing the House of Worship on time for the Holy Year anniversary of the centenary of the descent of revelation on Bahá'u'lláh, (such that even Bahá'í Schools were closed to ensure the funds were focused on the goal.)

Biography

Born and raised

Amelie (sometimes Amelia) Willard was born to D. Seymour and Amelia Willard in Brooklyn, New York, February 18, 1880. They had married in September 1878. Father Willard joined a stock trading company in 1880 was a member of the Stock Exchange by 1897 and socially connected to hosted people watching the April Grant parade. In 1894 father Willard was co-executor of a will one of who's beneficiaries was his sister Mary Livingston Willard. By 1900 Willard was still living at the home of D. S. & Amelia Willard with brother and number of servants in Manhattan. She also attended a wedding that year. In 1905 the family house in Manhattan on W. 81st St. was robbed during spree of robberies for an estimated $20,000, (over $500,000 in 2021 dollars.) In 1907 her father sold his membership in the Stock Exchange.

Marriages and custody battle

Willard married Robert Peck October 1901, but it was not to last because by May 1908 she married Robert White Conrow. In 1910 the US Census had the couple with children Amelie, Robert and Hoyt Peck, and servants, living on Claremont Place in Cranford, New Jersey. Robert Conrow was working as a foundry agent. Her brother Howard died in June 1917 probably during service in WWI. Her parents were living on Fishers Island, New York, by 1918.

From being in the situation of high wealth one could expect financial complications - so in November-December 1920 came a contest of custody and care of the children. She had divorced Conrow in Patterson, NJ, and was now married to Rudolph Bodmer. The coverage mentioned she had written some novels and Rudolph was a publisher. The year closes with an article Bodmer had sold to the about a boy who looses faith in Santa Claus but hears whispers it is really about the love of Christ in mothers, fathers, kin, and service to humanity.

In 1924 the Bodmers produced a book First book of wonders: gives plain and simple answers to the thousands of everyday questions that are asked and which all should be able to but cannot answer.

Miami

Finally the Bodmers were living in Miami area though the first news of them there was not good - in April 1928 Amelie's eldest child, her 18 year old daughter, died living while on a yacht of uncontrolled diabetes. By January 1929 the news deepened with the death of her father, passing an in heritance of some $27,800 to his wife, Bodmer's mother, living on Fishers Island, (some $430,000 in 2021 dollars.)

In 1930 and 1925 the Peck son visited with his family. Between which Bodmer had some news with her birds in 1932, and was known living in Los Angeles, California in April 1935, was back in Hollywood Florida by October known as a "Christian Science healer” of Granada apartments and in bank contested concerns on financial holdings land/homes in New York, Maine, boats, and inheritance from Mary Willard Livingston, amidst beginning of the Great Depression in the United States. Upon the visiting of her son in 1935 Bodmer also advertised she was not responsible for debts and it was soon apparent she was divorcing Rudolph too which came to pass in January 1936.

Bahá'í Faith

Miami, South, and North Carolina

By Spring 1936 Bodmer was a member of the Miami Bahá'í community at the age of 56 and noted later as a pioneer who left Miami to California and Arizona. However, before going west, Bahá'í scholar Louis Venters mentions of Bodmer in 1936-1937 teamed up with another Bahá'í traveling in a trailer in South Carolina visiting several cities, amidst the restrictions of Jim Crow conditions. This was with the newly initiated First Seven Year Plan which had a goal of founding at least one Local Spiritual Assembly in every state. That summer in June and July 1937 Bodmer was home in Miami writing letters to the editor in defense of the religion saying:

"I must join Alba Earl in supporting the Baha'i faith(sic). Having personally cast off the poke bonnet and hoop skirts of my ancestors, and having found the great spiritual revelation given to the world by the founder of the Baha'i teachings, Baha'u'llah. …

Later that month Bodmer was seeking placement of her colored servants in other positions, and received a letter from the Guardian October 14, 1937 that was echoed in the Baha'i News in August, 1938:

You have asked whether our prayers go beyond Bahá'u'lláh: It all depends whether we pray to Him directly or through Him to God. We may do both, and also can pray directly to God, but our prayers would certainly be more effective and illuminating if they are addressed to Him through His Manifestation, Bahá'u'lláh.
Under no circumstances, however, can we, while repeating the prayers, insert the name Bahá'u'lláh where the word 'God' is used. This would be tantamount to a blasphemy.

In January 1938 Bodmer and Mrs. Hoagg pioneered to Charleston, South Carolina, determined to raise an assembly. In May she went fishing with a collection of Bodmer, Conrow, & Peck step and birth children.

In April 1940 Bodmer owned a home in the trailer park at Ocean Drive and Jefferson in Hollywood Florida back with Rudolph. She owned the home worth about $3000 in 1940, (about $56000 in 2021 dollars.) Venter's picks up Bodmer back in South Carolina moving to aid the Greenville community to raise an assembly. By later June Bodmer went on to the Asheville, North Carolina, area handing out Bahá'í materials to some 68 people, 8 of whom were inside Asheville proper, still in the situations of Jim Crow laws there; by now she had been living or working in a trailer for some three-to-four years as a Bahá'í. By the fall Bodmer was giving out materials and reaching out to people back in Hollywood Florida from a trailer park.

Retired life

Florida

By Feburary 1944 Bodmer re-married Rudolph and they lived in Delray Beach, near Fort Lauderdale. In 1945 the Bodmers were living in Palm Beach and her occupation was listed as "Baha'i Teacher". In 1947 the Bodmers hosted Bahá'í Charlotte Gillen pioneer & conference attendee in their home.

California

Amelie, her father David Seymour Willard, brother Henry Bowars Willard and aunt Mary Livingston Willard, were part of memorial contributions to the national fund across many months of 1950-1. This was the year of not holding Bahá'í school sessions to prioritize finishing the Bahá'í House of Worship.

Rudolph died in Pasadena leaving Bodmer and kin in March 1952. Bodmer died May 17, 1955 in Pasadena/Los Angeles.