Ralph and Sylvia Rossi were married on  19 June 1961 and enjoyed a happy and fulfilling life together for the succeeding 47 years. They had three children together, Mark, Philip and Giulia, and six grandchildren: Jessica, Lara, Delano, Emily, Ellen and Amber.

Ralph was the son of an Italian immigrant, Jack Rossi, who was the proprietor of the famous ‘Rossi’s Ice Cream Parlour’ on Atlantic Avenue in North Belfast. The Rossi family had fled Italy in the early 1920s to escape Mussolini’s Fascist dictatorship.  Sylvia was born in Ballymena and her father, John Madden, was a member of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) and later, a chief insurance clerk. She was the youngest of the Maddens’ six children (two sons and four daughters).

Ralph and Sylvia met on a blind date, organised by their mutual friends, Peter and Audrey Doyle, and romance blossomed quickly. The 1960s would have been difficult times for people to engage in relationships which spanned the Catholic and Protestant divide in Northern Ireland but it was natural for Ralph and Sylvia because both pairs of parents had crossed the same religious barrier.  Ralph in particular was incredibly lucky to have this wonderful opportunity, having survived a serious gunshot wound on 4 October 1959. While Ralph was working in the ice cream parlour his good friend Dennis Elmore accidently shot him in the leg with a hunting rifle; seconds before the shot was fired, Dennis had been aiming the gun at Ralph’s head!

With the escalation of the Troubles in 1969, Ralph and Sylvia moved the family from Atlantic Avenue to Rathcoole and ultimately to a new home in Burnthill Road, Glengormley, in 1972. It was during the turmoil of the early 1970s that Ralph and Sylvia were introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by their good friend Pat Bailey. The couple had been too busy raising a family to get involved in the political and spiritual awakening that swept through western culture in the late 1960s (the Woodstock Generation) but I distinctly remember my mother introducing me to the ‘protest songs’ of Bob Dylan (Masters of War) and Donovan (The War Drags On).

However, my parents were far too worldly-wise to fall for the simplistic ideology of the ‘hippies’ or the political violence of the radical student movement. I recall my mother’s displeasure when she caught me humming John Lennon’s Power to the People but also her approval when she heard me singing George Harrison’s My Sweet Lord.

It was this background of social and political upheaval in the early 1970s that ultimately led Ralph and Sylvia on their spiritual quest. Continuing Cold War tensions (the nuclear threat), the ongoing war in Vietnam and the escalation of the violence in Northern Ireland after ‘Bloody Sunday’ (30 January 1972), suggested that some kind of new world order was needed. Perhaps it was the simplicity of the Baha’i message, “One Planet One People”, that convinced my parents to ‘declare’ their faith.

Ralph and Sylvia were active members in events organised by the Belfast Bahá’í community throughout the 1970s and they were also founding members of the Newtownabbey Spiritual Assembly in 1978. Guests at the many firesides and feasts held at their family home were usually greeted with Ralph’s humorous catch-phrase, “You’re almost (all most) welcome!”, which was of course contrary to the warmth of the hospitality that they afforded everyone. I remember the solemnity of the prayers, the wisdom of the conversations and the delicious treats, but most of all I remember the laughter of these kindred spirits.

Having relocated to Belfast in 1978, Ralph served as Chairman of the Belfast Spiritual Assembly for many years and he was also a leading member on the Northern Ireland Teaching Committee. He and Sylvia made a pilgrimage to the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel, in 1992, and I know that my parents considered that as one of the most fulfilling experiences of their lifetime, and as always, it was one they experienced together.In their final years they were once again active members of the Newtownabbey Spiritual Assembly, having moved to Hydepark Road, Mallusk in 1991. However, in their final days, members of both the Belfast and the Newtownabbey Spiritual Assemblies provided friendship and consolation to ease their transition to the next part of their personal and spiritual journey.

Ralph and Sylvia are buried in Carmoney Cemetery and their headstone is easily recognisable with the inclusion of Ralph’s beloved Ferrari logo (The Prancing Horse) and the Baha’i prayer, “Blessed is the Spot”.

As the 21^stcentury unfolds and we are faced with even greater global challenges linked to climate change, pandemics and political extremism, it is clear that the message that first attracted my parents to the Baha’i faith still resonates today – “One Planet, One People”.  Unless we begin to act globally, our efforts to save ‘life on earth’ may prove fruitless.

Finally, on a more personal note; in the naivety of youth our greatest fear is that we will become like our parents. However, as we mature, this changes, and our greatest fear is that we won’t!  Lotta Continua (The Struggle Continues).

_________________

 

Philip Rossi (April 2020)

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