Margot Worley
Margot Worley | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | April 25, 1910 Bahia, Brazil |
| Died | June 21, 1997 Brazil |
| NSA member | South America 1951 - 1957 B.P.C.E.V. 1957 - 1961 Brazil 1961 - 1963 |
| ABM | Americas 1954 - 1968 |
Marguerite 'Margot' Worley (April 25, 1910 - June 21, 1997) was a Brazilian Bahá’í who assisted with the development of the Bahá’í Faith in South America serving as a National Spiritual Assembly and Auxiliary Board member.
Biography[edit]
Worley was born Marguerite Gleig in Bahia, Brazil, in 1910. Her family moved to England in 1915 and she was raised there until 1921 when they returned to Brazil. She was introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by Leonora Holsapple in the 1920's.[1]
In the 1930's Worley met Roy Lee Worley in Bahia who was the American vice-consul to Brazil and she accompanied him to the United States to meet his family. They visited the Wilmette Temple during their trip and met May Maxwell and Stanwood Cobb both declaring in Cobb's home. In March 1939 they married and returned to Brazil where they had three children.[1]
The Worley's were active members of the early Bahá’í community of Brazil and Worley was was instrumental to the establishment of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Salvador, Brazil, in 1947. When a Regional Spiritual Assembly for South America was established in 1951 she was elected to the body and she served on it and its successor Regional Assembly for the northern countries of South America until 1961.[1] She was also appointed as an Auxiliary Board member for the Americas in 1954 when the institution was first established.[2]
In 1961 Brazil established an independent National Spiritual Assembly and Worley was elected to the body as its first chairman.[3] She also continued to serve as Auxiliary Board member until 1968 opting to remain on the Auxiliary Board rather than the Assembly when the Universal House of Justice ruled that Bahá’ís could only serve on one of the institutions in 1964.[1]
In 1968 Worley's husband retired and they moved to the United States settling in California and she was appointed to the Regional Teaching Committee of Southern California serving on the body until 1976. She also made international teaching trips from the United States visiting Mexico, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname assisting with the establishment of the Regional Spiritual Assembly of Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. In 1976 the Worley's returned to Brazil and Roy passed away there in 1978.[1]
In the 1980's Worley established a Bahá’í children's school she named the Flower Garden and she taught at the school up until a few days before her passing. She passed away in Brazil in June 1997.[1]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1999). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 26 (1997-1998), Pg(s) 278. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1954). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 280, Pg(s) 6. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1961). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 365, Pg(s) 3. View as PDF.
