NRtoday.com: Madhurya Radha devi dasi

suchandra · January 6, 2009

http://www.nrtoday.com/article/20090104/OBITS/901059961/1036&ParentProfile=1060&title=Michele%20Bird

Michele Leanne (Paxton) Bird (aka Madhurya Radha devi dasi), 42, left her material body behind in West Jordan, Utah, during the morning of Monday, December 22, 2008. Michele had a great compassion for all living entities, particularly the vulnerable. Her compassion was the result of her deeply-held religious beliefs that also sustained her through a painful, multi-faceted health condition, which plagued her for the last fourteen years of her life.

Through all her suffering she never felt that God had forsaken her and she took great comfort from the lessons imparted by a great spiritual master, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, who translated and commented on the timeless scripture, Bhagavad-Gita as It Is. It was from this oldest of scriptures that she learned the true nature of the soul, why and how we journey through this difficult world, astray from the Supreme Lord, and what fate awaits us at the time we must depart. Deeply committed to learning these principles, she studied the Gita under the guidance of a teacher and had made great strides in understanding the circumstances of her own situation and the circumstances of the souls in the world around her.

Born on June 6, 1966, in Roseburg, Oregon, to William and Bonnie Paxton, Michele is survived by her husband, best friend, and devoted companion of 24 years, Jerry Bird, of West Jordan, Utah; by her father, Bill (Hope) Paxton and step-sister, Kim (Dave) Smith, all Hillsboro, Oregon; step-brother, Bob (Dorothy) Sims of Bonners Ferry, Idaho; sister, Linda King (Phillip Alden); nephew, Ben (Fawn) King, all of Roseburg; brother, Dwight (Laurie) Coder of Eagle Creek, Oregon; nieces, Heather, Shellsea, Courtney, Savanna, Kindahl, and Mickinzie; brother, Bruce Coder; sister-in-law, Joan Coder, both Salem, Oregon; father-in-law, Stan (Rita) Bird of Oakland, Oregon; mother-in-law, Shirley Bird (Gary Vaughn), of Sweet Home, Oregon; sister-in-law, Lisa (Tom) Daniels; niece, Olivia Daniels, all Portland, Oregon; and by numerous other family members and friends. Her mother, Bonnie, and sister, Victoria predeceased Michele.

Michele loved and always wanted to protect animals, children, the elderly, and anyone who was less fortunate, in need, or in distress. She touched many people in this short lifetime, including co-workers, customers, and clients in the grocery, bakery, and art supply businesses in Roseburg, Springfield, and Eugene, Oregon, and Redding, California; in the insurance business in Albuquerque, New Mexico; and as a hospice-care volunteer in Salt Lake County, Utah. Her enthusiastic participation endeared her to everyone she met, including many of the care-givers she befriended during her long illness. Michele had faith and strength that allowed her to hide her conditions behind a smile through much of her illness, showing great compassion toward others while enduring daily pain.

As the Lord has now seen fit to engage her in a different way, we gratefully entrust our earthly angel to His care and shelter.