JoAnne Menking
JoAnne Menking | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | April 29, 1927 Harlan, Indiana, USA |
| Died | May 26, 1988 Dallas, Texas, USA |
| Spouse(s) | Howard Menking |
| Children | Cristina, Clare, Cornell |
JoAnne Lucille Menking, born Kinsey, (April 29, 1927 - May 26, 1988) was an American Bahá'í who was named a Knight of Bahá’u’lláh with her husband for opening Cape Verde to the Faith.
Biography[edit]
JoAnne was born in Harlan, Indiana, to Wylton and Leila Kinsey who were Protestant. She had two brothers. She was unable to complete school due to suffering both scarlet and rheumatic fever when she was seventeen. At the age of eighteen she began working as a secretary at International Harvester, an agricultural machinery manufacturer, in Fort Wayne. She first met Howard Menking on a blind date, however he had to depart before they established a serious relationship as he was in the U.S. Navy and was deployed to the Pacific front. They met again by chance in Fort Wayne after the war and married in May 1948.
JoAnne and Howard went on their honeymoon to Chicago, and she took a photograph of the House of Worship during the trip. After returning to Fort Wayne she continued working for International Harvester. Howard was introduced to the Faith by an elderly woman in Fort Wayne, and in 1949 both JoAnne and Howard declared at a fireside.
The same night as declaring the Menkings immediately decided to pioneer to Brazil and went to New York to sail to Sao Paulo, meeting Juliet Thompson while there. They were unable to find work in Brazil and returned to Indiana. They discussed separating around this time, and wrote to Shoghi Effendi requesting clarification on the year of patience. The reply included an assurance from the Guardian that he would pray for their marriage, and they ultimately remained together.
As of 1951 JoAnne was serving as Secretary of the Fort Wayne Local Spiritual Assembly.[1] In 1953 the Menkings attended the dedication of the House of Worship in Wilmette. With the encouragement of Dorothy Baker they volunteered to pioneer to one of the goal territories of the Ten Year Crusade at the Convention, and set sail for Cape Verde arriving on January 4, 1954.[2] They lived in Praia and considered abandoning their post to assist on the African mainland, but were advised by Shoghi Effendi to remain in the Cape Verde Islands.
JoAnne had surgery while in Praia which enabled her to have children and the Menking's had a daughter in late 1955. In 1956 the Local Spiritual Assembly of Praia was established, and JoAnne and her daughter returned to the United States. Howard joined them some time afterwards and the Menking's second child was born in 1958.
After returning to the United States the Menkings lived in Clarksville and in 1959 they pioneered to the suburb of University Park, Dallas, Texas. In 1963 they attended the World Congress in London. In 1964 they had a son. In her later years JoAnne continued to serve the community of Dallas. She passed away two days before her fortieth wedding anniversary in 1988 due to cancer.[3]
References[edit]
- Obituary published in Bahá'í World, Vol. 20, pp 907-910
Notes[edit]
- ↑ Baha'i News (1951). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 248, Pg(s) 7. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1954). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 276, Pg(s) 3. View as PDF.
- ↑ https://www.ferrell-chambersfuneralhome.com/obituary/howard-menking
