Nola of Vauxhall, Alberta

Three things of significance occur in the small community of Vauxhall, Alberta. There are two large potatoes, Samantha and Sammy Spud, the town mascots dressed as farmers, perched on the boulevard on Highway 36, the Vauxhall Baseball Academy, exclusive to male players, and Nola, one isolated Baha’i.

She opens the door to her enchanted apartment and welcomes us with hugs and warm greetings. We learn early on in our nearly five-hour conversation, that she had declared her devotion to Baha’u’llah in June 1967. She became intrigued with the young man who expressed himself well and shared her belief in one God. Nola married her new-found friend and together them embarked on a series of pioneer posts including Whitehorse and Watson Lake in Yukon, Canada, and Reunion Island, a French department in the Indian Ocean. Later, she returned to the Yukon a couple of times with a few interruptions in British Columbia, then back again to retire. She is currently living in Vauxhall, Alberta, with a hint of relocating to be nearer one of her daughters.

These days, Nola is very busy as President of the Vauxhall Seniors’ Club, designing cross-stitch, attending the local baseball games in the gigantic stadium located just outside her front door, and supporting the local community in general as often as she is able.

When asked what she thinks about being an isolated Baha’i, she is quick to say that it is a difficult station because the tendency is to receive limited support from the Baha’i community out there. She waves her hand to indicate a location far away.

“There have been promises made by other Bahai’s to visit, but it rarely happens,” she says.

She continues to explain that she’s come to terms with her isolation by preparing a daily prayer session for herself and writing a list of things she is grateful for.

“It keeps me firm and steadfast,” she says. “For the town of Vauxhall, I recite the Tablet of Ahmad daily. I feel that my being a Baha’i is well-known in the community and some while ago a friend at the Seniors’ Club made a point of telling me that she’s seen an advertisement on the Vision television channel that there would be a special on the Baha’i Faith.”

During our visit with Nola, we shared our experiences as Baha’is seeking other isolated believers while we ate a meal and drank freshly brewed coffee.

O Ahmad!  Bear thou witness that verily He is God and there is no God but Him, the King, the Protector, the Incomparable, the Omnipotent.

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