Barbara Anderson is a good friend whom I’ve come to know and love. She is a good and true friend to so many, many, many people She works tirelessly on projects to help people, especially Witnesses and ex-Witnesses, as these are the people she has come to know the best throughout her life. But my affection for Barbara is based less on her activities and more on what I’ve learned from the many long conversations we have had together through the years. These conversations have consistently revealed her personal demeanor and her attitude toward others, and I wish more people were aware of these.
I’m referring to her positive attitude, and obvious love and concern for Jehovah’s Witnesses. She holds no bitterness for having spent half a lifetime as a Witness, and has, in fact, always spoken about how she loved her time as one and loved her friends at Watchtower Headquarters in New York (Bethel). She always conveys fond memories about her Bible studies and witnessing work and association with friends from all over the world and from all “walks of life.” She acknowledges that so much of this was only possible through her life as a Witness. And of course it continued to be possible through her “notoriousness” as an ex-Witness activist and advocate for those Witnesses who have been hurt by fellow Witnesses.
Another part of her activity has addressed the very policies and practices that have produced harm. As a thoughtful person, and a person who truly loves and studies history, she has tried to understand the Witnesses (and ex-Witnesses, too) on a personal level and from a historical and doctrinal perspective, too. She is endearingly self-deprecating and humble, but she is brilliant. And she has learned so much that she is willing to share with her friends.
Barbara has been put in the limelight, not because she has wanted any praise or notoriety, but because it’s a necessary part of helping others. Unfortunately, I have seen others around her who act as if envious of the kind of publicity she has received. She would only wish them well in the same space but it’s sad to see those who thik they can only be successful in this space if she is removed from it. But what others do, and why, is another story. Perhaps for another post.
What I wanted to say here was that I understand Barbara because we have seen many of the same things. I understand her attitude toward her years working at Watchtower Headquarters. I had the same experience at Bethel, although my work was not nearly as “high-profile” as Barbara’s. I worked with some wonderful people, made some wonderful friends for life, and do not look back upon those years with regret.
This is not meant to belittle or discount those who had different experiences. Many have had experiences they wish to forget.But it’s good to know that a person’s activism and advocacy are not based on holding grudges or any kind of vendetta.
So to the real point of making this site. I have started helping Barbara out with her website as she has begun to spend more time on new projects and picking up again on past projects that gave way to other priorities. So because I have this access to her account, I wouldn’t put anything on their of my own but now I have a way that gets close to her site, and gives me a unique opportunity to let some people know how I feel about Barbara.
Also, in appreciation of her site, and the wealth of information buried inside it, I thought I could use a different kind of site to draw attention to things in there that most people would never see. So this site provides a means of just having a lot of those articles pushed in front of you. By just watching the home page giving automatic scrolling of certain articles, it provides several glimpses of many of those inside articles and pages over a just short period of time. With little effort.
From the scrolling topics on the home page, even though these can be ugly and frustrating to most readers, they can still accomplish the point of “animating” the content, at least in summary form.
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