Fiona MacNeil              9/15/76 – 8/3/15

On the evening of Monday, August 3, 2015, Fiona MacNeil quietly stopped breathing as her parents, Malama and Hasan MacNeil, sat at her bedside at home.  The MacNeils are long-time members of Subud, currently residing in Chico (Subud CA @ Butte County). Fiona was the middle of five siblings; she is survived by sisters, Flora MacNeil and Daniela Gutierrez, and brothers Sjarif MacNeil, and Jamie Lasher.

Diagnosed in 1987 with Neuronal Ceroid Lipofucinosis, a rare genetic neurodegenerative disease, Fiona became increasingly disabled over the years, though she far outlived the original prognosis of “death in the second decade.” She was almost 39 when her life ended.  She was opened in Subud in 1992, and though unable to move freely,  she received deeply, and often accompanied Malama and others who came to share the latihan with her.

Her family gathered at her death and accompanied her body to the local mortuary; her ashes will be scattered at sea near Santa Cruz, CA, in October.

Prayers and latihan expressing gratitude and celebration for her long and loving presence as a model of surrender and humility are welcomed, as are messages of condolence to the family c/o malama.macneil@gmail.com.  Memorial contributions may be made to the Batten Disease Support and Research Assoc. http://bdsra.org or Susila Dharma USAhttp://susiladharmausa.org.