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Programs in 2018
At the Avatar Meher Baba Center of So. California
M e h e r a b o d e
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1214 South Van Ness Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90019
telephone: (323) 731-3737
All Programs open to the Public
All Programs free of charge
(unless otherwise noted)
THIS WEEK
Sunday,
Jan. 21:
"Remembering Jurgis Sapkus: A Meherabode Memorial"
NEXT WEEK
Sunday,
Jan. 28:
"The Quatrains of Rumi & other splendid Lines"
(hosted by Reza Abrahimzadeh)
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AT MEHERABODE
(Los Angeles)
Sunday, Jan. 21:
"Remembering Jurgis Sapkus:
a Meherabode Memorial"
Wednesday, Jan. 24:
Young Adults' Discourses Group
Sunday, Jan. 28:
"The Quatrains of Rumi and
other splendid Lines" (hosted
by Reza Abrahimzadeh)
Tuesday, Jan. 30: AMARTITHI (with special
guest Allan Cohen)
Wednesday, Jan. 31 : Young Adults' Discourses Group
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11:00 am - 11:30 am: Coffee / Tea / Fellowship
11:30 am - 1:30 pm:
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"Remembering Jurgis Sapkus:
a Meherabode Memorial"
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Jurgis Sapkus
b. 4/24/1928
d. 11/26/2017 |
Recently we lost one of the most loved and respected members of our Los Angeles Baba Community: Jurgis Sapkus. He passed away at his home back on November 26, 2017, to join his Beloved Baba.
This coming Sunday at Meherabode we will be celebrating the life of Jurgis the artist and man, and we hope you will be here to share in this fond reflection and look back on his life and especially his creative work.
We here in Los Angeles were fortunate to enjoy Jurgis' presence for several decades as a stalwart member of our Center, going back to the days of Filis Frederick. What follows here is a bio of Jurgis that provides many insights and details about the twists and turns his life took in his journey towards Meher Baba.
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Jurgis' sculpture of Baba and Mohammed (Meherabad, India).
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Jurgis Sapkus was born April 24, 1928 to a Catholic family in Lithuania. Jurgis used to tell of his father, who was something of an artist himself, crafting dioramas from things he found in the forest around his home.
At the age of 14 Jurgis became the youngest performer with a Lithuanian folk music and dance troupe. When the Germans occupied the country during WWII, the company was ordered to perform for the German troops, eventually being transferred to Vienna, and later Berlin. Before the Russians arrived to occupy Berlin, as the Allies were bombing the city, Jurgis made a harrowing escape by train to rural Bavaria. After the war Jurgis remained in Germany as a displaced person and was allowed to attend art school in Freiburg. It was there in 1949 that Jurgis met fellow art student Julia Kiefer, who soon became his wife. Jurgis and Julia spent many hours with Julia's family. Jurgis had a special connection to his father-in-law, who was both a gifted musician and painter.
As a refugee from now Soviet occupied Lithuania, Jurgis was able to immigrate to the US in 1951 with Julia and their newborn son, Marius. They settled in Chicago, though neither of them yet spoke English. Jurgis worked hard in the notorious Chicago stockyards in order to support his family, as well as to save up for tuition to attend the world-renowned Art Institute of Chicago. In 1953 Julia returned to her family in Germany for the birth of their second child, Sylvia. Meanwhile, Jurgis was accepted at the Art Institute and quickly developed as a sculptor. It was in Chicago during these years that Jurgis received his first major commissions.
In 1961 Jurgis heard through an artist friend who had moved from Chicago to Los Angeles, that Mattel Toys was looking for sculptors and designers to help develop new products.
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Part of a patent Jurgis holds for a "sneezing doll." He worked on this while at Mattel. (Courtesy of Anthony Zois)
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Marius remembers Jurgis sitting at their old kitchen table in Chicago, working on a wax doll head to submit as part of his application. Though quickly hired by Mattel, the family chose to take their time in moving to California so that they could see some of the country. Instead of flying directly to Los Angeles they embarked on a cross-country train trip, finally arriving in Hawthorne, California. Several months later they would find what would become their home in Manhattan Beach.
Jurgis went to work for Mattel while Julia, Marius, and Sylvia settled into their new life. Everyday while driving to work Jurgis would notice a woman he recognized from Mattel, waiting for a bus on Rosecrans. One day he decided to stop and offer her a ride. She accepted and thus began a lifetime friendshp with Filis Frederick and his life changing introduction to Meher Baba.
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Detail of painting Jurgis did for 1989 LA Sahavas.
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Come join us this Sunday to celebrate the life of a true lover of the Lord, Jurgis Sapkus.
Jai Baba!
**Lunch will follow the Memorial Program
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Also Happening at Meherabode
Wednesday, January 24
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YOUNG ADULTS' DISCOURSES
Wednesday Nights
The Young Adults' Discourses Group continues its weekly meetings, which are open to younger-generation Baba-lovers & Seekers.
7:00 - 7:30 pm
Fellowship & tea
7:30 - 9:00 pm
Reading & Discussion
The subject of study and discussion is Meher Baba's
Discourses, which are available in print (e.g. at
Meher Baba Books). The
Discourses are also accessible online here:
Each week we chronologically read a Discourse and discuss how it relates to our daily lives. Come join us and delve into Meher Baba's amazing
Discourses like never before!
Here's our Facebook page:
If you have any questions please contact Aaron Hemeon:
Jai Baba!
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MEHER BABA BOOKS has a New Look in 2018!
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Come Visit Our Newly Redesigned and Redecorated Bookstore!
(talk to Behnaz about any special requests or suggestions)
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Meher Baba Books exists both in the brick & mortar real world and also online as a purveyor of books, CDs, DVDs, and specialty items relating to Avatar Meher Baba -- including Baba's major published works, biographies chronicling his life and work, and diverse offerings. The bookstore is a successor to a sequence of Meher Baba Bookstores that have been a feature of Southern California since the late 1960s onward.
This bookstore is a public-service activity of the Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California (AMBCSC). The most essential aim of Meher Baba Books, consistent with AMBCSC's Mission Statement, involves the spread of Meher Baba's message of Love and Truth.
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www.meherbababooks.com
Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California
1214 S. Van Ness Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90019
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| More Southern California Meetings |
Mondays at 7 PM in South Bay (San Pedro)
Call Glenn and Payam Russ: (310) 519-7776
Santa Barbara: Monthly Meetings
Call Donnalyn Karpeles: (805) 682-1877
Irvine: Sat. Jan. 20 from 3-5pm*
Call John and Karina Page (714) 925-2747
*Currently this is planned as a One-Time Meeting, but this could change. Look for more information in future announcements.
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MEHERABODE WEBSITE
DONATION OPPORTUNITY
The Avatar Meher Baba Center gratefully appreciates
donations, large or small, that help sustain our Center and all its activities.
The Avatar Meher Baba Center of Southern California is a nonprofit tax exempt
organization as defined in section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
All donations are acknowledged.
Thank you!
[PayPal / charge card donation interface is
found on Meherabode website home page]
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, click here: (then hit the "like" button)
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