[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4664]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING AUDREY YVONNE WILLSON, WHOSE LIFE JOURNEY LED HER TO BECOME 
                            YVE-I RASTAFARI

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BARBARA LEE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 30, 2006

  Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the extraordinary life of 
Audrey Yvonne Willson, whose spiritual evolution led to her being known 
at the end of her life as Yve-I Rastafari. Yve-I was a beloved mother, 
wife, grandmother, friend, artist, educator and leader in our community 
and our world. She passed away on March 13, 2006 at the age of 63.
  Born Audrey Yvonne Willson, she grew up in the Fort Greene Projects 
of Brooklyn, New York, where she developed the quick wit and savvy 
nature for which she was known throughout her life. Living in New York, 
she met and married Bob Law in 1962. During that period, she became an 
active member of the Congress for Racial Equality, and was at the 
forefront of the Black Cultural/Consciousness movement, identifying 
strongly with her African heritage as an activist of that era and 
throughout her life.
  In the decade that followed, Audrey began a new journey, moving to 
Silver Spring, Maryland and obtaining her Masters Degree in Education 
as well as her Montessori certification. These achievements began her 
lifelong devotion to the education and healthy development of children, 
which included her own young daughters, and ultimately led Audrey to 
create her own educational model.
  Audrey's journey of intellectual, cultural and spiritual discovery 
soon led her to West Africa, where she immediately fell in love with 
the people, their land, and their struggles. Her proficiency in the 
Spanish, Twi, Amharic and Arabic languages allowed her to be a teacher 
and a student of the people she met there, and through her travels she 
forged human and spiritual ties that would last a lifetime.
  In the years that followed, her newfound faith of Islam led her to 
change her name to Ameena, and during her time in Africa she met and 
married her second husband, an American named Daud Malik Watts. Upon 
her return to the United States, she rededicated herself to her life's 
mission of serving our young people by opening, with Daud, the Reston 
Montessori School in Virginia.
  As she continued her spiritual exploration in the 1980s, she was led 
to return to her birth name of Audrey. During that time she also 
traveled frequently to the west coast and split her time between 
working in the non-profit sector and developing her own small business 
selling her delicious homemade apple pies.
  As she neared the conclusion of her spiritual journey, she changed 
her name to Yve-I Rastafari, which was a reflection of her becoming a 
Rastafarian. In the 1990s, when she underwent this transition, she also 
moved to Hawaii, where she started Artists for Orphans, an 
international non-profit dedicated to providing educational, financial, 
physical and emotional support to orphans in Ethiopia.
  After devoting herself to this bold, compassionate work for more than 
a decade, Yve-I left Hawaii to move back northeast to be with her 
ailing father, caring for him until his last day. After his passing, 
she returned to working with young children in Washington, D.C. before 
ultimately moving to California to be with and care for her youngest 
grandchildren.
  Yve-I gave of herself easily and was wonderful with children. I 
witnessed time and time again, as she was the mother-in-law to my son, 
and along with me, was a grandmother to Simone the daughter of my son 
and her daughter. Whether we were together at family gatherings on 
special occasions or simply spending time with our children and 
grandchildren, Yve-I's generous and loving spirit brought a sense of 
comfort and togetherness to our family which has not only nurtured our 
youngest members, but has strengthened the ties between us all.
  Throughout her life, Yve-I was fully dedicated to complete spiritual 
and human development and her devotion to becoming the most complete 
and aware person that she could was evidenced by her constant growth 
and personal evolution. At the end of her life it became her goal to 
return to Ethiopia to live out her days so that she could continue the 
work of Artists for Orphans and practice her religion at an age-old 
founding church of her faith, and that is what she did, being laid to 
rest on March 17, 2006 in Shashamene, Ethiopia, where she was known as 
Mama Love. She is survived by her life partner, Menelek Fitzgerald, her 
children Aisha Patrice, Abina, Yasmina, Memuna, Bilqis, Nasir, Mahmud, 
and Netanya; her siblings Adrienne, Donald and Wayne; thirteen 
grandchildren; her nephews; and numerous cousins, colleagues and 
friends.
  Today the family and friends of the woman who journeyed from Audrey 
to Yve-I come together to celebrate her life and the countless ways in 
which her bright and compassionate spirit touched lives of others, no 
matter what name they knew her by during her lifetime. Her giving 
nature and deep wisdom was known to and cherished by all, and will 
continue to lift up the lives of our young people and all who knew her 
for generations to come. On behalf of California's 9th U.S. 
Congressional District, I am proud to add my voice to the countless 
others who have united in thanks, appreciation, and joy to remember 
this very special, remarkable and loving woman, Yve-I Rastafari.

                          ____________________