We at HDS and the Center for the Study of World Religions are saddened to learn that Narges Moshiri, MTS '86, who was on the CSWR staff from 1988 through 1996, died at her home in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 2, 2013. She was 54.
While at the Center, Narges served in a number of administrative positions, from administrative assistant, to programs coordinator, to coordinator of educative planning and academic services.
However, none of her job titles could fully describe or accurately measure her aesthetic influence on the cultural and artistic life of the CSWR, her astute contributions to the planning of its intellectual activities, or her gracious and thoughtful attention to the well-being of its resident students and scholars.
A key member of the CSWR staff during the directorships of both John Carman and Lawrence Sullivan, Narges greeted everyone who came through the CSWR doors with her beautiful smile, engaging and humorous conversation, and a ready helping hand.
She seemed to know what was required before others even sensed a need. Quietly, behind the scenes, she took care of a broad range of responsibilities, from facilitating the CSWR fellowship program application process, to ensuring an apartment kitchen was stocked with groceries for an international scholar arriving late at night, to convening the Residential Life Committee.
All that Narges did was imbued with grace and calm. And, always, there were flowers, which she loved so much. Narges made sure flowers were present in all aspects of Center life.
In June 1996, the CSWR hosted a farewell tea for Narges and her husband, Chris Elwood, on the eve of their departure for Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. That tea was the only one of the 85 events listed in the Center’s record for the 1995–96 academic year that Narges did not have some part in planning.