Celebrating Our CFU Team Members
In loving memory of Maramis Choufani
10-15-39 – 09-21-26
We would like to dedicate this issue of Behind The Scenes to our beloved team member Maramis Choufani, who unfailingly, and most generously served The Center For Unity, and the faith community, with her time, talents, and resources. Always, Maramis contributed to projects, shared the vision, prayed for our success, and acted to ensure that success happened. Hardly a month goes by that team members don't briefly engage to accomplish a task and then quietly fade back to team emeritus status until the next time their skills are needed. Not Maramis.
A few CFU team members have been active throughout all the past five years, and accompanied Gabriel Rymberg, Diane Labrecque, Rick Lyon, Gaétan Charland, and others on the tour to Israel in 2014, where "The Center For Unity" dream was born. Maramis Choufani was one whose presence graced that tour of the Holy Land, and her beautiful spirit, grounded in compassion, peace, tolerance, goodness, joy, service, love of truth, loyalty and devotion to family and friends has been a shining light among us from the beginning.
Maramis served as our newsletter copy editor, and constant support. Recently she entered into hospice while being lovingly cared for in the comfort of her daughter's home. Her family members were nurturing, supportive, and provided for her daily needs.
Today we received a call that Maramis, our dear 'Earth Angel' passed on early this morning. She leaves behind four children, Frank, Greg, Chris, and daughter, Marilyn, along with their mates, two grandchildren, a sister, other extended family, and many friends in the Urantia community. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
Pending definite celebration of life arrangements, we ask that you join us in a prayer vigil in memory of Maramis until Wednesday at 5:45 AM when we anticipate this beautiful and good, faith-sister will rise to her new life and resurrection morning in the glorious 'mansions' on high as Jesus promised. We bid her a fond adieu and farewell until we meet her again on the eternal shores.
Rick Lyon, in memory of his friend wrote: "I don't remember when I first met my beloved friend and sister, Maramis. That was such a friendship that it seemed to just have always been there. Maramis is one of the most loving and lovely people I know, but she is certainly the most cheerful person I have ever known. She knows the Urantia teachings but most importantly she lived them absolutely. She gave her opinion but never had a cross word to say about anyone. She recognized everyone, even those she disagreed with as fellow children of God. She believed it and lived it.
"In 2014, Maramis and I were on the tour of Israel hosted by Diane Labrecque along with over 30 other students of The Urantia Book. We would play "The Words of Christ" by Pato Banton on the bus as we went from one historical site to another, hearing the words of Jesus spoken at or about the next place we were to visit. It was during this two weeks together that I got to grow from being friends with Maramis (and many others) to being great friends – life-long friends.
"Maramis became a regular at our Wednesday study group. At one of these study group meetings, Maramis, with her great sense of humor, signed off saying, in reference to Star Wars, "May the Source be with you." We immediately recognized that idea as a treasure and made it into a T-shirt design for CosmicCreations, our nonprofit set up to fund the sharing of the revelation. Maramis received the first product, a tote bag, with her "play on words" printed on it.
"Later, with The Center For Unity, we needed a new name for our "Jesus Metaverse" due to the negativity of the word "Meta" at the time. Maramis won the naming contest with her submission "Discover Jesus" which gave her a grand prize gift along with bragging rights. This name has appealed to many non-Urantia students and attracted many to "Discover Jesus" as we know and understand him. Over 150,000 people have visited discoverjesus.com in no small part due to this name.
"Over a period of a couple of years, Susan and I helped Maramis write her life story and published her memoirs in a book that is available on Amazon: My Journey on a Long and Winding Road. We lowered the price to make it more affordable for those who wish to know her story. She was very proud of the cover art by her son Greg, and really enjoyed the process of writing her book. It was a labor of love, and she sought to make it as perfect as possible. Like all mothers, she wanted to tell some untold stories about her life and ensure the precious moments she remembered and cherished would not be forgotten.
"She wrote this book as a legacy gift for her children and we have kept it quiet until now so that it would unfold according to her wishes. Maramis assigned the royalties from her book to The Center For Unity. It was her way of providing for the success of CFU after she was gone. When the text of her book was ready, Susan put it into AI for a book review, and she and Maramis listened to the AI summary of her story, which was recorded and for those who would like to hear her voice and see her reactions to the book review, it is available here.
"Maramis was also an important part of our CFU newsletter team, serving as a professional copy editor, which she had worked at for many years with a local newspaper, along with writing her own regular opinion column. I would have to write a book to share with you all the adventures of Maramis Choufani, but her's was a life lived to the fullest and in service to God, to others, and for her children. Safe travels my friend, as you prepare for your journey. Keep the light on for we shall be reunited soon."