ShelfLife@Texas

It was my honor to meet Elizabeth Warnock Fernea in Oregon in summer 2007. She was a delightful conversationalist, and a considerate person. I am sorry that I was not able to continue our acquaintance longer. I think of her as a pioneer in my field. My condolences to her family. I add my name here to be counted among her many friends and admirers.

December 4, 2008

B.J. was always an inspiration to me. Smart, insistent, politically engaged, and yet always warm and human, she will be missed.

December 4, 2008

I never had the honor of meeting Dr. Fernea in person, but I appreciated her contribution to anthropology. I have introducted my students to her excellent ethnographic work.

December 4, 2008

BJ has been my friend and mentor for the last several years. I wish this relationship had begun long ago. We shared our interest in and our love for the cultures and people of the Middle East, where she and Bob in their professional work and my husband Ed and I in ours lived and worked for a number of years.

In her last illness, she was reading chapters from a manuscript Ed and I are editing and was preparing to write a foreword for the edition. We appreciate her urging and support for this project.

But what I will treaure most are our discussions of my days as a veiled Roman Catholic nun, many years and another lifetime ago. She urged me to write on that time as it kept being recalled to me in various ways as I worked among my hijab-wearing friends, colleagues and students in various countries in the Middle East.

BJ lives in my heart, in my work, and in my fresh and forever memories.

Eileen Lundy

December 4, 2008

deepest condolences to bob, the family and friends.

bj was – and is – many things to many people, but if there is one word that best describes bj and her work, it’s QUALITY.

much peace and love, d.

December 4, 2008

BJ was a faculty member in the Ctr for Middle Eastern Stds when I was first employed at UT in May, 1978. She was the most gracious, warm and engaging person to all members of the Staff and made me feel welcome as a valued member of the MES Staff. She even autographed one of her books for me! A lovely person. My thoughts are with her family and close friends.

December 4, 2008

I met Professor Fernea as a student in one of her comparative literature courses at UT. I will always credit her with teaching me how to write. I felt she put great effort into her comments on papers I wrote. If you were dissatisfied with the grade you received on a paper, she would let you re-work the paper and then re-grade it as many times as you wanted. She was bright, articulate, generous and embodied a calm grace.

December 4, 2008

When I was a small child, my mother was a graduate student at UT. We had moved from Egypt when I was 8 years old and I felt very out of place in Texas.

The Ferneas opened their home to me as if I was a member of the family. I had no greater pleasure at that age than visiting the Ferneas on weekends.

BJ treated me with kindness and fairness, but she was always firm with me. I can think of no finer thing to do for a small child than she did for me.

When we were children, David, Laura Ann, and Laila were like siblings to me. David and I took great pleasure in teasing Laura Ann, as I am sure she took pleasure in pointing out how immature we were.

I still remember that Laura Ann needed to repeatedly bang her head against the pillow before going to sleep.

I have too many more memories to list them all, but I would just like to thank BJ and the rest of the Ferneas for what they did for me.

December 4, 2008

She was my guide and mentor, along with Bob, when I arrived in Austin in 1987 to teach. Bless them both. We all cherish her so much.

December 4, 2008

I’m so grateful to BJ for mentoring me when I was a graduate student. In my very first year at UT, she gave me responsibility for organizing the editing of a book. I had never done anything like that before, but she seemed to assume that I could do it just fine. It wasn’t paid work, but much more valuable — an internship in the scholarly life, about which I knew nothing. She encouraged me to give a talk to her class, my very first lecture. And I copied her menu and organization when I started having my own dinner parties. (I used to come early to her parties and stay afterwards to help clean up and thus got to meet the most fascinating people who were staying with the Ferneas.) She was an incredibly talented and generous person.

Once when I commented on how enormously productive BJ was, despite having to take care of a household and three children, she told me, “You have a choice. You can take a nap, or you can write.”

When I was about to go into the field for the first time, I asked for her advice. She said, “The most important thing is to write down everything. If you’re sitting at a table and there’s something carved in the wood, write that down too.” It was the best fieldwork advice anyone ever gave me.

I am honored to have been counted among BJ’s many friends and lucky to have met her at a time when I was pretty raw clay beneath her steady hand. The world will miss her. My heart and thoughts go out to Bob and Laura Ann, David and Leyla and their families.

December 5, 2008

I first met BJ on a trip she made to Jordan in the mid 80s and I was at Yarmouk University. We spent a couple of memorable days wandering around villages and neighborhoods. Since that time she was a constant support and inspiration, to myself, my students of anthropology from Yarmouk and to my mother, a writer making forays into publishing in the U.S. BJ made a place for all of us in her edited volumes and helped us become better at what we do.
On behalf of myself and my mother, Janset Berkok Shami, I offer my condolences to Bob and the family – our hearts are with you

December 5, 2008

I keep thinking how BJ was the first to “do it all” of the women I knew of my generation. Family, friends, career, creativity, and travel. It was not always easy for her, but she made it seem so. I’ll always appreciate her example.

December 5, 2008

I was a student of BJ’s from 1990-1998 when I attended UT as a graduate student –MA in Middle East Studies and Ph.D. in Comparative Literature. BJ embodied the idea of “generosity of spirit” –for students, faculty, everyone she met. I am a professor myself now, and I try to emulate what BJ did for me and so many other students–to believe in them, in their ideas, their dreams, and to empower them to learn, to teach and to practice truth and justice. Recently, a student of my own wrote me a moving note in which she described herself as a little bird flying beneath my wings. I realize now that it was BJ who was one of the people at UT who taught me to fly and who taught me how to trust the sky of my own mind and heart. I’ll miss her and I’m grateful for all the ways she taught me.

December 5, 2008

In my 40’s, I returned to UT to learn about the academic side of feminism. My first course was “Intro to Women’s Studies,” taught by BJ. What she had to say, and how she said it, pretty much set my hair on fire. She showed an interest in me, the older female feminist student who was lapping up every word from the front row. She asked me to come to her office hours, which I did, and used her considerable insight to nudge me in the direction I wanted to go. Later, I took a Middle Eastern studies course from her that introduced me to the women writers she loved. She wrote my strongest letter of recommendation for graduate school at UT. I phoned to thank her the week that I defended my dissertation, sort of shyly because I wasn’t sure she’d remember me, but of course she did. BJ had none of the snobbery of the academy and all the knowledge and wisdom, and an extraordinary energy. I am so happy to have known her, and been known by her. My sincerest condolences to her family. We are all better because of her.

December 5, 2008

It is common to hear friends refer to BJ and her tireless energy, but she wearied like all of the rest of us. The difference was BJ’s capacity to drive herself even when she was pooped; all the while without relinquishing her humor or her impatience with silly rules. She did not know the meaning of “can’t” so she was hard to refuse–though you might have ten things on your to-do list, you knew that she had twice as many. BJ inspired people to reach down inside themselves and to do good things that they had never considered doing before. She was a mentor long before the word became a cliche.
I knew BJ, usually from a distance, for about a quarter century. During a brief stint as a visiting professor at UT in the mid-1980s, I spent some long, memorable days with her. At day’s end, I would discover that she had already organized a dinner party that would have her home brimming with delightful people, or that there was a dizzying evening agenda yet to come of meetings, receptions or lectures.
I cherish her memory as a caring, wise friend, an exemplary teacher, and, most of all, as a women who truly loved humanity, and who showed that love through her films, her books and her relentless compassion.

December 5, 2008

I was happy to know B.J. through the Texas Institute of Letters, where I learned about her work and then read GUESTS OF THE SHEIK. She was a brilliant pioneer in women’s studies whose insights helped lay the foundation for the rest of us. The wholeness of her vision of these women stands, timeless and universal.

December 5, 2008

I don’t remember the first time I met Elizabeth (though she soon became BJ), but I think it must have been in the 1970s. She was of course a mentor to me, and she knew it. Always guiding and role-modeling in the gentlest, kindest way. But here are three incidents that are still present in my memory:
September 16, 1982
I had invited BJ to Berkeley to give a lecture and show her film “Women Under Seige” released earlier that same year. It was the film that introduced us to the remarkable, brave women of the Rashadiyah refugee camp in Lebanon. There were easily a hundred people who had turned out for that evening program in the sanctuary of The First Congregational Church of Berkeley. And by the film’s end we were all wanting to know from BJ what happened to “Umm Shivago” one of the films most enchanting women. Her films had a way of connecting us on a personal level to the women who shared their lives with BJ and her film crew, and then finally with us, the audience. It was a remarkable and memorable evening and when it ended we returned home. BJ always stayed at our home in those years, whenever she was in Berkeley.
The next morning we awoke to the news that the massacres at Sabra and Shatila had taken place during those very hours the night before when we had sat spell-bound during BJ’s program.

Spring of 1984
Carol El-Shaieb and I had been hired by the San Jose Museum of Art in San Jose, California, to do the teacher’s outreach programming for an exhibition ” The Traditional Crafts of Saudi Arabia.” The centerpiece of the work was to be a full-day’s teacher workshop program featuring Elizabeth Fernea, along with Larry Michalak (UC Berkeley) and Ayad Al-Qazzaz (Cal State University, Sacramento), among others. Everything was going smoothly when suddenly the museum’s Board of Directors began putting forth questions and obstacles and finally broke our contract by cancelling the program.
The teacher workshop went forward afterall, in a neighboring building, without the museum’s sponsorship but with the enthusiastic support and collaboration of all our invited speakers, including BJ of course. Participating teachers thoroughly enjoyed their sessions with BJ and their lunchtime trek to the museum which had of course, to admit them. We had garnered much publicity and attendance by calling a press conference and announcing that Carol and I were filing suit against the museum on the grounds of discrimination. . . as the very people whose credentials they were contesting – Fernea’s, Michalak’s, and Al-Qazzaz’s – were the three of the some eight speakers for the day who happened to be on the infamous ADL Blacklist. “Yes” a member of the Board admited during discovery “we were taking directions from the ADL” as delivered to us by a museum Board member who was also on the Board of AIPAC. Our suit was then extended to include both the ADL and AIPAC. The three named defendents – Museum, ADL and AIPAC – made an out of court settlement. The program in the meantime had been a tremendous success!

October of 1986
Daughter Jenan, a high school senior, was invited to Austin to stay with the Ferneas and look at the University as a potential choice. In fact it had been her first choice. BJ arranged for her to sit in on Honor’s Program classes, meet with mutual friends, Caroline and John Williams, and get a feel for what student life would be like at UT Austin. She came away realizing how much she missed Berkeley, her friends (her family?) and how far away Texas was physically. In the end, she chose a school closer to home. But we will never forget the kindness of BJ and Bob and friends in Austin who helped her in that important decision making.

Thank you for indulging me in these reminiscences. Thank you Elizabeth for enriching all of our lives.

December 5, 2008

I remember teaching for many years with BJ in the UT English department and especially remember fondly a program she presented for women’s studies in which we teachers in the program got to try on abayas and other female wearing apparel of Middle Eastern women. I also loved reading her book “Guests of the Sheik”–and have it sitting prominently on my book shelf to this day. She once spoke to the local branch of the American Assocation of University Women, after I twisted her arm to do so. She will be remembered by me and others for her graciousness and goodness. Requiescat in pace! Sue Rodi

December 5, 2008

In the late 70’s, BJ and I enjoyed many adventures together in our quest to start a women’s studies program at U.T. She was passionate, committed, tenacious–and also generous, kind, and full of laughter. I loved her advice, full of enthusiasm and care. For a long time, nepotism rules prevented her from gaining an appointment at U.T. But in her role as an independent scholar, she became a mentor to many of the women faculty and a leader on campus. She truly made her own place in the world and helped so many others find theirs.

December 5, 2008

When I arrived in Austin 13 years ago, BJ went out of her way to welcome me here. She was generous, kind, and provocative. I loved our conversations, and missed her terribly when BJ and Bob moved. The world is a sadder place without BJ.

December 5, 2008

BJ Fernea had a huge impact on my life. I probably wouldn’t have gotten a degree in Middle Eastern Studies or traveled to the Arab World without her presence at the University of Texas Center for Middle Eastern Studies. I will try to continue passing on the lessons she taught me about a multitude of things. I tried to sum up Elizabeth Fernea’s impact on my life in a recently post: Googling My Mother. My condolences to her family and friends. Beth

December 5, 2008

It has been a lopsided relationship for over 30 years. BJ was there with support, laughter, and ideas. She was a wonderful person and role model. I was so lucky to know her.

My deep sympathy and love to Bob, Laura Ann, Leila, David, their spouses and children.

December 5, 2008

I think she’s the reason I had the courage to go back to Columbia to finish my PhD after 14 years of raising a family. I went to a conference on Arab women at Georgetown in 1985, where I found myself looking from a distance at friends I had known in school, who were by then professors. When I was at Columbia in the late 1960s, any kind of social history was considered a joke by my professors, and women’s studies was unheard of, so I had nothing to bring to the conference except my curiosity. That’s when I first met BJ. She treated me like a colleague, even inviting me to join her and some of her friends at dinner, and her friends were the leading lights— people whose books sat on my shelves, people who were to become my friends and colleagues too over the years.
In 1985— the year my youngest child went to pre-school— I had begun to long for the opportunity to write my dissertation. I had five years of ethnographic notes on women and the family in Saudi Arabia packed in boxes, and not one clue what to do with them. It was BJ who inspired me to open those boxes and start writing. She gave me guidance throughout the whole dissertation process, and then it was she who got me involved in AMEWS. The most important thing she did for me I watched her do for many other hopeful would-be scholars: she touched our shoulders with her magic wand and said, “Yes, you can.” Because of BJ, we did.

December 5, 2008

My last memories of BJ Fernea are from the MESA meeting in Montreal, November 2007. AMEWS was honoring her because of the reports that she was very ill. After the award dinner, I approached her and told her that one of my junior colleagues was following her lead and moving from ME gender studies to the study of Palestinian youth culture. “Have her contact me”, she said, writing her address on a piece of paper. A pioneer, yet accessible, weak in body but strong of mind, still thinking of how she could help others. She set a high standard for all of us.

Ruth Roded

Jerusalem

December 6, 2008

BJ was the primary reader/thesis advisor for my master’s degree. It is no exaggeration to say that she was a surrogate mother to me, and I will be forever grateful that she found a way into my life.

She was one of the most down to earth and unpretentious people I have ever known. She was gentle, kind, caring, and supportive. Even in that gentleness, there was something about her demeanor that clarified my vision and gave me the confidence to write my thesis.

That being said, there was no confusing her character with timidity. She had a tremendous heart she consistently put into action. When it looked like my thesis was not going to be approved, it was BJ who stepped up to the plate and went to bat for me. I do not think that I could have crossed the finish line with anyone else at the helm.

Rest in peace, BJ. You leave behind a legacy of people who will forever love and cherish your memory .

December 6, 2008

I am saddened to hear of BJ’s death. She and Bob were enormously generous to a young and very confused graduate student years ago in Cairo (1964-65) and at our meetings in later years. Her wonderful energies, writing gifts, imaginative and thoughtful filming lit up what was sometimes a drab field beset by all too many problems external and internal. She and Bob had this huge, lived appreciation of Egyptian, Iraqi and Moroccan worlds among many others and some of their generous understanding rubbed off on the rest of us. I have the warmest memories of BJ. What a contribution she has made!

December 6, 2008

Bob and BJ were among the first professional anthropologists (really, BJ qualifies) I met who specialized in the ME, and both been wonderful mentors and supporters through the years. Not only did I love and teach BJ’s books and films in my courses, I also well remember her warmth, wit, humor, and feisty, no-nonsense approach to many academic issues in the field. She did so much to bring alive and give voice to Middle Eastern women, nurture young scholars, and provide a wise and discerning perspective on the Middle East as a whole. BJ, thanks for all you have contributed. You will be forever appreciated and much missed!

December 6, 2008

BJ, she made me laugh harder, life fuller, think harder, embrace wider. Her mere presence inspired humanity and intelligence. But what I miss most is that sparkle in her eyes. She really had eyes that would light up and ignite all near with passion and warmth. It was a humbling honor to call her “friend.” Our hearts reach out to her beloved family, who lost the lighthouse guiding home. She is in our hearts always.

December 6, 2008

I haven’t felt so sad in a long time. With her passing away BJ leaves so many friends, admirers, former students and many of her faithful readers lasting memories of eternal friendship. Her humanism expressed in her books and films enriched the understanding of the Arab world in the USA and beyond. By focusing on people struggling for a better future BJ. Stood for all the symbols that add to our common humanity and deep longing for justice. BJ had a practical simple optimism that was so empowering to all of those who came to know her. I first met BJ in Austin Texas in 1983 when I arrived with my wife Taghreed at the University of Texas for our PhD program. She oriented us to the University and encouraged us every step of the way. Our friendship and admiration of what she stood for continued over the years. We met many times after graduating in 1987 at the MESA conferences and whenever visiting Austin and contributing to her book “Remembering Childhood in the Middle East.” The last we met was when I gave a workshop at Austin in January 2001 and had the honor of BJ introducing me. It was a highlight to our friendship when she visited us in Kuwait on more that one research trip. We spent during such visits days talking and exchanging ideas and experiences. I would like to convey my deepest sorrow and condolences to my mentor during my PhD program Bob and to Laura Ann, David, and Leyla.

December 7, 2008

I could not help stopping tears rolling when I read the email that Barbara Immroth my friend and advisor forwarded about BJ Fernea’s passing away. Barbara has been my good update for what’s happening in Austin and at UT since my graduation in 1988. BJ’s passing away has brought all beautiful memories of the years of our life since we were graduate students at UT Austin. When my husband Shafeeq, my daughter Haneen and myself arrived to Austin in early 1982, BJ was the first person we met. Over the years, she became my friend, mentor, family and motivator. Her belief in me and in women generally especially Middle Eastern women graduate students, have always provided so many the direction let alone the motivation to excel and accomplish.
My beautiful memories of her are numerous. Our first meeting of the late Edward Said was at a dinner she and Bob hosted for him at their homey house, which was a gathering place for so many who shared their vision of bringing peace to the Middle East. She visited us in Kuwait twice, the first when in 1988 when Bob and her were updating their “ Arab World: Personal Encounters”. The second when she visited in the mid 90s and I had the honor of chauffeuring her all over Kuwait and accompanying her for two weeks. In early 1986, she entrusted me with attending a conference in DC introducing her film” Women under Siege” when I was still a graduate student. She always believed in one and provided the needed conviction and stamina for accomplishing.
When I graduated, BJ hosted a beautiful dinner for me at her own house for friends at UT Austin. I still have BJ’s favorite and best fish recipe, in her own handwriting, which she learned in Iraq when she and Bob were in the 50s. when I visited Austin two years ago, BJ was recovering from surgery. My daughter Zaina, our friend Hassan and myself had tea at Bob and Bj”s house in Austin. That was my last seeing her, yet the memories we are left with, that BJ are part of, are numerous and will always be with us. May God bless you, have mercy on your soul and provide your loved ones, especially Bob, Laura Ann, Laila and David the solace and comfort needed after her passing away. BJ will always live with us all.

December 7, 2008

When I first arrived at UT in 1986, B.J. and Bob were very friendly, encouraging, and supportive, and I’ve always appreciated it. I’m not surprised to find that I’m not the only one who had that experience.

December 7, 2008

Although I came to know B. J. Fernea in other ways through the years, my first encounter with her was the most memorable. I had been a staff member in the University’s Plan II Honors Program long enough to realize that for the most part, staff workers were invisible to faculty. I first met Dr. Fernea in the check out line at Garner & Smith Bookstore where she introduced herself to me. While we stood in line, numerous faculty members passed by, stopping to greet her. She took the time to introduce me to each one of them! I was astounded. I will never forget her for that incredible kindness.

December 8, 2008

I love Bob and BJ so much that a little note here can never express my feelings of loss or my gratitude for so many years through which I benefitted from being counted a friend. My condolences to Bob and family and everyone who knew BJ! BJ will be missed every single day. Whether in the CMES, class, Morocco, the editing room or in their warm and inviting home, BJ was always supportive and caring and loving to me. I hope to dedicate my book to her memory, since she was such a loving mentor and guide. It is hard to imagine life without her, she touched so many, many people including myself. I remember her from my first year working in the CMES in the 70s when she encouraged me to go back to school, all the way through mentoring my dissertation in 1999! Like many here mention, she was always a heartfelt presence, so giving and warm no matter how much of her own work she had to accomplish, there was always time and encouragement for those of us in her orbit. Thank you BJ!

December 9, 2008

B.J. was there when we celebrated my doctoral defense, but she was also there many times before when I turned the corner and chatted with her. She was a great source of strength for all women scholars making their way.
My condolences to Bob, the family, and all who loved her.

December 9, 2008

I spent the morning making plans to return to my old hometown to attend BJ’s memorial and thinking about all she has meant to me and my family. Her son David directed me to this site and I have read each previous post. It does not surprise me at all that BJ had such a profound impact on the people she befriended, mentored and loved over the years. She did the same for me.
I met BJ as a 5 year old boy in Austin. She was raising her children and still had room in her heart and home for 3 more boys. Over the years I kneeded her bread dough just for a taste of her bread, played football in her living room, slept over, ate her meals, wrested with her children and generally became part of her extended family. Her love, council, and respect was most prized and appreciated.
From the start I knew that going to the Fernea’s house would be interesting. There was always a graduate student, scholar, foreign dignitary, musician or belly dancer at the house, and they typcially didn’t mind sharing. In the middle of Central Texas, they were able to introduce me to my Father’s commander from when he was with the British Army in Jordan. The Fernea’s even took me to Morocco as a young man.
BJ was my friend, my surragate mother, the mother of my very good friends, and my contact to a very broad and fascinating world. My heart aches.
Love always…

December 10, 2008

I’m proud to be able to claim BJ as my friend. Reading these notes from so many corners of the world reminds me what a distinguished and beloved person she was to so many people. They reflect how wide she cast her net of friendship.

To this day I have such a clear memory of her and Mrs. Hamilton offering encouragement from the steps of the back porch to me and David as we rolled up our bedrolls before heading off to cowboy in Montana. She smiled knowing we wouldn’t come back as the same two young men that headed north out of her driveway.

I also remember fondly my last visit with her as she was packing the house to move to San Diego. Laura Ann was frantically trying to deal with decades of accumulated research, cabinets that hadn’t been opened since they were filled and deciding what 75% of things should go. BJ sat at the kitchen table in her bathrobe serenely thumbing through a small basket of buttons, old coins and pens, visiting quietly with me, unfazed by the pandamonium piled high all around her. Although Laura Ann may not be able to appreciate it as such, it was an incredibly endearing moment.

But as a son and a father, I think I admire most how incredibly proud BJ was of her children. Laila was always embarassed when BJ would brag on her work in law school. I simply admired a mother that could see so clearly what a wonderful legacy whe was leaving for all of us that are friends to the Ferneas.

I’m sad for those of us left behind, but I’m inspired by and proud to be even a small part of the life BJ lived. She was an extraordinary woman.

Bob, Laila, Laura Ann and David – I’m so very sorry I will miss you on Saturday. I will be with you in spirit and please know how glad I am to claim you all as friends and how honored I am to have known “Mama”.

Sincerely,
John

December 10, 2008

Oh, yes….along with being a great writer and teacher, BJ was fun. Where was the very best MESA meeting ever? San Antonio, of course and who was in charge? BJ Fernea. She had taken over the Texas Historical Musem and there were Mexican musicians outdoors on one side and on the other, western music and dancing and food all around. Great times. And when BJ would visit here in Bethesda, we always had time to shop for clothes for the grandchildren. We loved doing that. We will miss you, kiddo. Love to all. Doris Stoddard , two of many thoughts

December 11, 2008

Dear Bj,
I remember the first time I met you. It was about 20 years ago in Washington DC. I was interning at the Middle East Institute. You had stopped by to meet your soon to be new teaching assistant. You were wearing what you would call an “unfussy” dress and sensible shoes. Behind that rather ordinary facade there turned out to be the most extraordinary woman. I am grateful for the paths that you opened for all of us and for the guidance you provided to us. But it wasn’t just that and it wasn’t just you. It was you and Bob, 3003 Bowman street, and Goliath too. You and Bob opened up your house and gave all of us nomadic graduate students a home and shelter from the ups and downs of graduate school. Your home became a space for intellectual debates, weddings, baby showers, cultural production and much more. I am sorry that I cannot be at your funeral. My children are under the weather as children tend to be in this season. I know you would understand. Tomorrow I will light a candle at our local Catholic church for you and then go home and share a bottle of Merlot with Bjorn and reminisce about all of the adventures I shared with you from Austin to Samarkand. Much love Roberta

December 12, 2008

BJ was a great friend, sometimes mother, teacher, cook, advisor, and always an inspiration. I will miss her but will never forget what I have learned from her. I first met her while working at the Center for Middle East studies in 1975.She shared her love for life and a good meals with so many. I have to give her a lot of credit for my famous salads and a lot more. Thank you and all the Ferneas for being such an important part of my life all these years. Love, Tom Hartwell/Cairo

December 12, 2008

Professor Fernea, as she was known to me as a young student in Austin, encouraged me to work in the Middle East and to also write books. One never knows at any moment in time those special people who influence our lives. But she certainly had a great impact on mine. As I wrote my first book in Cairo, I kept Guest of the Shiekh at my side. It is clearly one of the greatest books written about the Middle East in my lifetime.

I mourn her death and offer my sincere regrets to her family.

Geneive Abdo/Washington DC

December 13, 2008

I am deeply saddened by BJ Fernea’s passing, and offer my condolences to Bob and other members of her family. BJ reached out to me and other faculty as a mentor, and she offered praise and encourgement consistently through the sometimes difficult academic process. But I will also remember her fondly in another way. Many years ago, when I visited with BJ and Bob, she introduced me to her beloved Greyhounds and informed me about abuses they suffered after years on the race track. Simply put, in addition to her many scholarly accomplishments, BJ was a staunch advocate who emoted warmth and serenity.

December 13, 2008

I had the privilege to know B.J. for several decades. She was a remarkable scholar, teacher and, even more importantly, person.

December 15, 2008

MESA meetings will never be the same without the warm presence of BJ Some of us always made it a point to get together with her from year to year even for a few fleeting moments between panels,and presentations. BJ was genuinely interested in the people she met, followed closely their progress, publications, promotions. She opened doors , used her connections to help budding scholars, introduced them to publishers, in short a real mentor and role model. She will be sorely missed.

December 16, 2008

Condolences to the Fernea family and may God bless BJ. It was actually one of BJ’s films – Veiled Revolution – that made me take my dissertation and book, meant really to be a study of the Ikhwan, into the direction that I did.
I met BJ first at the Baltimore MESA and was rather terrified by her. Our small AMEWS group was disagreeing over whehter or not to support childcare – but she was exceedingly pleasant to me when I met her somewhat later with Lenny Binder at a lunch at UCLA.
Her book on the Family in the Middle East, and the volume on Children, were exceedingly useful to me as a teacher with mutidisciplinary interests. I felt a little additional connection with her about Egypt, and its strange echos in the southwest and Texas, and when I finally was able to visit Morocco where BJ’s very interesting discussions about revisiting the interlocuters that we connect with over the years made so much sense to me.

December 16, 2008

BJ was a Board Member of AMIDEAST, where I was working with Arab students and developing materials for their American host institutions, 30 years ago. She gave so generously of her time and was such a wonderful mentor— full of plain good sense as well as her genuine affection for and deep understanding of people in this region. She welcomed everyone to the task of improving understanding between Americans and peoples of the MENA. There was no stuffiness about her.–just lots of energy and practical approaches to making things happen. We kept in touch over the years as my husband and I moved to Cairo and Amman. It was a great pleasure to renew our friendship during her and Bob’s visits to Jordan over the past 15 years. As they overcame accidents and illness, their mythic stature increased. I guess we believe such elders must be immortal – and they are, through their children, students, colleagues and friends all around the world. Dear BJ – I will miss you, ya sheikha!

December 17, 2008

I learned of B.J.’s death only on Dec. 15. I really can’t believe she’s gone. She was always such a fixture at UT’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, where I met her many years ago, when I was a teen-aged undergraduate. She was always unfailingly kind and generous to me. I remember her at a CMES reception for some important visiting speaker during those days. Rather than ignoring me, she introduced me to the speaker as “one of our better students.” This was typical of her down-to-earth personality; she was never overawed by rank or hierarchy.

My deepest condolences to her family. Her contributions to the field and her personal warmth and generosity will always be remembered.

December 19, 2008

I too am learning late about the loss of such an inspriational friend. BJ was both a wonderful teacher and mentor for me as I worked at the Center for Middle East Studies in the mid 1980s. She helped inspire a love for the Arab world that has never faded. Her visits when I was working on development projects in Egypt and Jerusalem in the 90s were cherished times, and she will be sorely missed. Fortunately her books help keep her memory alive and vivid and will be an important legacy for generations of students.

January 1, 2009

Though I only knew her through her writing, Professor Fernea was a very special woman. I came across Street in Marrakesh while studying Morocco, my wife’s home country. She gentle spirit shone through. My condolences to her family.

February 17, 2009

I too, did not know Mrs. Fernea personally, but I was emotionally and academically touched by her ethnography Guests of the Sheik. Reading it for the first time in 1994, I found myself continually returning to it while exploring women’s issues in the Middle East. In 2004, I finally did enroll in a graduate program much to the chagrin of my husband, who was established in a career and fearful of travel in the Middle East. Last Valentine’s Day I presented him with a copy of Guests, and I believe it saved our marriage. Her work has touched my in ways I never thought possible. My condolences to her family.

March 2, 2009

I was very saddened to hear of BJ’s death. She was on the Editorial Board of The Maghreb Review, and was always a great supporter and the last I saw her was at the 50th anniversary of AMIDEAST in Marrakech. She will be greatly missed.

Mohamed Ben-Madani.

April 7, 2009

I just read “Buests of the Sheik” and wondered what became of all the families since Hussain and then the war. I looked up BJ and found she has died, so sad. Did she share with friends/family what became of her many friends in Iraq?

February 18, 2010

I just finished reading GUESTS of the SHEIK, and hopefully looked up Elizabeth Warnock Fernea on Facebook. Was SO disappointed to discover that she had passed away 2 years ago, so I do not have a chance to tell her how much I enjoyed her book. On the other hand, I am pleased to learn that she lived a long life, has children and grandchildren, and has left many writings and films that are surely rich. I too lived among Arabic women. My experience was differnt from hers in that it was in Tunisia 1969 – 1975. My Arabic women friends did not wear a veil, and were very “modern” in many ways. However, they still had the wonderful spirit that “B.J.” discovered in the Iraqi women. My condolences to “Bob” (I feel like I know you, from the book), and the rest of the family. You certainly have reason to be very proud of B.J.’s – and your own – rich “pioneering” work! I plan to read more of her books, and hopefully see some of her films.
Thank you for your lives. Dorothy Mack, Indianapolis IN.

June 29, 2010

I took a class from Professor Elizabeth Fernea in 1999 called Middle Eastern Feminisms. It was a spontaneous decision born of not being able to get the fiction writing class I needed, but how grateful I am for the stroke of fate. During the class, Prof. Fernea influenced me to permanently change how I approached the world and peoples I once imagined were different from me. She modeled bravery, intellectual rigor, and compassion. I have thought about her so often over the years. I am sorry to learn she is gone from us, but acutely aware of how much of her lives on.

July 25, 2010

Dear Family members of Late Professor Elizabeth Fernea

It is with deep regret that I read about Professor Fernea’s passing away.
I had the privilege of being in her class in 1987, when I was an undegraduate student at U.T. Austin. My memories still go back to the days in her class when a young student challenged her, and her reaction was a tender smile and listening to him with such grace and patience.
This helps me when I face my class today teaching at a University in Hong Kong and to know how much we can learn from such an eminent and gracious person.
In 1998, I was browsing through the shelves at Chinese University in Hong Kong and came across her book, “Guests of the Sheik” written about her life in Iraq Having taught in the Middle East – Oman, I could relate to what she experienced about the women in the Arab world. I was so excited and wanted to write to her. I wish I had.
Dear Professor Fernea, I wish I had written to her to tell her what a Dear person she was and how she has influenced me in my life. She has been in my thoughts in all these many years and just two days ago I searched for her name in the U.T. website to write to her. It was then I learned that she had passed away. I was very saddened when I read her obituary.
Before it is too late I want to let her family know what impact she has had on my life. I will long remember her. It has been 24 years since she touched my life. Dear Professor Fernea, she truly did care- a precious gem.

May she rest in eternal Peace.

May God bless you all.

January 12, 2011

January 13, 2011

That I only found out today that BJ passed away 2.5 years ago leaves a horrible lump in my throat. Why did I not hear of it when it happened?

BJ supervised my dissertation in 1996, and I couldn’t have had a more nurturing yet intellectually sharp mind to engage me in refining my work. She was more than a mentor. She loved us, her students.

Before becoming my supervisor, BJ made my graduate school life infinitely more enjoyable , not to mention giving me my first summer job on her research project in 1992.

The last time I met her was in 1999 in Morocco at the African Literature Association conference where we had tons of fun laughing between munching delicious Moroccan pastries at a coffee shop.

I regret not having kept touch much over the subsequent decade. I will miss that melting smile of yours BJ. I miss you very much.

Rest in Blissful Peace BJ, Rest My Friend.

June 5, 2011

i was a student of professor Warnock Fernea in 1984 ,she was kind enough to write a letter of recommendation in my name,and in 1985 she asked me to convey one of her books to Ms. Leila Abouzeid in Morocco. Truly Mrs. Fernea was the Arab World ambassador to America for she had spent decades introducing Arab and Islamic cultures to Americans. I wish she is still with us to witness the ongoing Arab Spring and the transformation of arab societies.She will be greatly missed,may God bless her soul in eternal peace.
Karim from Amman,Jordan.

February 5, 2013