Showcasing 100 years of Western Australia’s community-building efforts 

More than 80 guests have attended a celebration in Melville, Perth to mark 100 years of the Baha’i Faith in Western Australia.  

The gathering included representatives from various faith groups as well as federal, state and local government representatives including Mr. Sam Lim, Dr. Jags Krishnan, the Mayor for Melville, Katy Mair, Deputy Mayor and Councillor Glynis Barber, Councillor Terry Lee and the Mayor of East Fremantle, Jim O’Neill.  

Representatives from the Department of Home Affairs were also in attendance with the guest list also including faculty members from the University of Western Australia as well as several members from Australia’s governing Baha’i bodies. Other guests at the event included many Baha’i friends who had served the Faith’s community-building efforts in various capacities.

The program started with a selection of Baha’i Writings and included a brief introduction to the Faith followed by its history in Western Australia, highlighting the community-building activities taking place across the state. The Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment program and children’s classes were given a special focus during the presentation. Music was also a special feature of the celebration with song and live piano enhancing the atmosphere. 

The social portion of the program provided an opportunity for guests to further explore ideas presented by the speakers. One perspective that was particularly thought-provoking was the imperative to work together irrespective of differing backgrounds to “build an ever-advancing community”. This proved to be food for thought for many who were interested to know more about Baha’i youth and their community-building activities in Western Australia.

The Melville event was just one in a series of celebrations taking place across the state to mark 100 years of the Faith in Western Australia. The Faith arrived there in 1924 when American Baha’is John Henry Hyde Dunn and Clara Dunn visited Perth along with the first Australian Baha’i woman, Effie Baker. Spending four months in the Western Australian capital, they presented Baha’i talks and attracted a small number of friends to the teachings of the Faith.