"With the joyful tidings of light I hail thee: rejoice! To the court of holiness I summon thee: abide
Therein that thy may live in peace for evermore. " Baha'u 'llah

Welcome

Ms. Jacquelyn Jones

I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make

them rejoice from their sorrow.

Jeremiah 31:12

Musical Selection: Faith

Cause me to Taste Words from the Writings of the Baha'i

From the Writings of the Baha'i Faith

Mr. David Clayborne

Thou hast asked me concerning the nature of the soul. Know, verily,

that the soul is a sign of God, a heavenly gem whose reality the most

learned of men hath failed to grasp, and whose mystery no mind,

however acute, can ever hope to unravel. It is the first among all

created things to declare His glory, cleave to His truth, and to bow

down in adoration before Him. If it be faithful to God, it will reflect

His light, and will eventually, return unto Him...

Baha 'u 'llah

Verily, I say, the human soul is, in its essence, one of the signs of God, a mystery among His mysteries. It is one of the signs of the Almighty, the harbinger that proclaimeth the reality of all the worlds of God. Within it lieth concealed that which the world is now utterly incapable of apprehending. Ponder in thine heart the revelation of the Soul of God that pervadeth all His Laws...
Baha'u 'llah

Prayer

Ms. Dalen Corazon

The New Testament

Ms. Carol Black

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
I John 2:25

From the Writings of the Baha'i Faith

Mrs. Gwen Clayborne

...(T)he worlds of God are infinite; that though they were deprived of

this existence, they have other opportunities in the life beyond, even

as Christ has said, "In my Father's house are many mansions." They

were called away from the temporary and transferred to the eternal;

they abandoned this material existence and entered the portals of the

spiritual world. Foregoing the pleasures and comforts of the earthly,

they now partake of a joy and happiness far more abiding and real, for

they, have hastened to the Kingdom of God. The mercy of God is

infinite, and it is our duty to remember these departed souls in our

prayers and supplications that they may draw nearer and nearer to the

Source itself.

`Abdu'l-Baha

...(A)fter attaining its new condition the soul is grateful, for it has

been released from the bondage of the limited to enjoy the liberties

of the unlimited. It has been freed from a world of sorrow, grief and

trials to live in a world of unending bliss and joy. The phenomenal and

physical have been abandoned in order that it may attain the

opportunities of the ideal and spiritual. Therefore, the souls of those

who have passed away from earth and completed their span of mortal

pilgrimage...have hastened to a world superior to this. They have

soared away from these conditions of darkness and dim vision into the

realm of light.

`Abdu'l-Baha

Remembrances Musical Selection Closing Prayer
Prayer

Mrs. Gwen Clayborne

My God, My Adored One
Words from the Writings of the Baha'i Faith

Interment Westover Memorial Park
Wheeler Road Augusta, Georgia

Mrs. Jan Perry Ms. Leilani Smith

A Life of Service

Joy Sylvester was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, the eldest of eight children born to Hubert and Maybelle Robinson. Raised in the Pentecostal Church, Joy found in the teachings of the Baha'i Faith the fulfillment of the teachings and promises of Christ. And therefore, in May 1969 she became a member of the Baha'i Faith. She graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in 1976 and became a master math teacher for the Indianapolis School Board. She retired after 28 years of teaching. Her marriage to Scott Sylvester ended amicably in divorce.

Joy dedicated her heart to serving the Baha'i

Faith by teaching, serving on committees, and

hosting Feasts, deepening classes and even a

Winter School in her home. She is best

remembered for her poetry, rich voice with

which she read the Baha'i prayers, and for her

cooking and unmatched hospitality.

She

continued to support the Indianapolis Baha'i

youth and enjoy fellowship with her Baha'i sister,

dalen corazon, who cared for her faithfully as her

health declined over the past six years. Together

they traveled to Broward County, Florida and

made many loving friends. They provided the

Children's Program for the 2008 Vanguard of the

Dawning Conference, and adopted Tamarac as

their community. In 2012 they moved to Augusta,

Georgia and continued to support the Baha'i

community. Joy leaves to mourn her: her father,

Hubert; brothers Hubert (Pam), Phillip (Cheryl),

Jeffrey (Jewel), Michael (Shatawna) and Gary;

sisters Suzanne and Lori (Kevin), and a host of

nieces and nephews; her spiritual family: Leilani

Smith, Dona Farris, Vicki Price; Paulette Trail,

Kay Harvey, Sara Dinkins, Kevin Dinkins, Merilla

Swainey, Rhea, Althea, Christine and Leila, David

Tremaine and many beloved friends.

Leilani Smith