Anita Henkel
Anita Henkel was a national lecturer for the Theosophical Society in America during the 1930s and 1940s.
Early life and career
Theosophical Society involvement
Theosophical Society lecturer Max Wardall and Anita's brother Frederick E. Henkel sponsored her for membership in the Oklahoma City Lodge on October 5, 1916.[1]
In 1933, Miss Henkel was recruited to work with Dr. Pieter K. Roest in the Greater America Plan. That name was derived from the concept that the Theosophical Society could contribute to developing a "greater America" by working at the local level, in a local circle of influence, to bring blessing, nobility, and unity to the United States.[2] Practical suggestions for lodge improvement were to be disseminated throughout the nation by means of lectures, workshops, and written materials. For three years the two coworkers traveled across the United States to work with branches [lodges] of the Society that were depleted financially and energetically from the Great Depression and its social upheavals.[3] Other national lecturers who assisted them included L. W. Rogers, Dr. Nina E. Pickett, Bishop Charles Hampton, and Fred Werth. Setting up the Florida Federation in 1934 was one of Miss Henkel's most useful contributions. Even after the Greater America Plan was discontinued, she was still one of the most prominent and popular lecturers in the American Section.
Travel to Adyar headquarters
In 1938 Miss Henkel visited the international headquarters of the Theosophical Society in Adyar, Chennai [then Madras], India. She sent a long letter to friends in the lodge in Baltimore, Maryland, describing her travels:
Marriage and later years
In late 1940 or early 1941, Miss Henkel married Dr. Henry Douglas Wild. He had joined the Ann Arbor, Michigan lodge on March 7, 1926, and served as president for two years. Born on November 19, 1893, ..................He completed his Docctor of Philosophy degree in Chicago In September 1934 he changed his membership to the New York Theosophical Society. Ge became a Professor at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. He was well-known in the Theosophical Society, and chaired a national committee for interpretation of Theosophy through literature. He wrote Brotherhood and Beauty, Shakespeare, Prophet for Our Time, and other works.
Writings
Notes
- ↑ Membership Ledger Cards Roll 8. Theosophical Society in America Archives.
- ↑ Pieter K. Roest, "The 'Greater America Plan'" The American Theosophist 21.9 (September 1933), 194.
- ↑ "Dr. Pieter K. Roest – Field Director," The American Theosophist 21.9 (September 1933), 194, 212).
- ↑ Anita Henkel letter to Maryland Lodge. December 20, 1938. Copy in Theosophical Society in America Archives.