More than 120 Sedona and Verde Valley residents turned out Sept. 6 for the memorial service for Sophia Tarila, coordinator of the Osher Life Long Learning Institute, who died Aug. 8.
Larson Newspapers
More than 120 Sedona and Verde Valley residents turned out Sept. 6 for the memorial service for Sophia Tarila, coordinator of the Osher Life Long Learning Institute, who died Aug. 8.
Held in the conference room at the Sedona Center for Arts & Technology at Yavapai College, Sue Samarco, Tarila’s friend and colleague, conducted a service and an afternoon of activities to celebrate the life and work of Tarila.
OLLI Director Dennis Garvey spoke in honor of his former employee’s dedication and love for OLLI and its mission.
“She had the love of life long learning, was able to recognize that love in others and was able to encourage them to share their talents and skills,” Garvey said.
At the memorial service, Samarco performed readings, and Tom Augustino, a local musician, performed musical selections. Uqualla, a Havasupai medicine man, spoke of the connections between Tarila and the many lives she touched.
After several ceremonies, the group went outside to plant a tree in her honor.
One reason for the big turn out was the combination of intellectual and social programs that OLLI offers, Garvey speculated.
“It is a peer-directed, peer-supported educational program,” he said.
As such, it has a strong social component that communicates a “we-are-all-in-this-together atmosphere,” Garvey said.
Former business associate, Christine Lazo-Bryson spoke of Tarila’s impact on the marketing of new age products and services.
“Sophia [Tarlia] specialized in new age marketing since the early 1990s,” Lazo-Bryson said.
“If you bought her book, you could market your product,” she said.
The book, “New Marketing Opportunities: The Business and Trade Directory for the New Age – Metaphysical Marketplace,” is still in print.
Tarila came to Sedona in 1982 to work at the Southwestern Academy, a private school near Beaver Creek also known as Beaver Creek Ranch.
She discovered spiritual teachers while in Sedona and participated in a variety of metaphysical activities.
She also helped start the Sedona Creative Life Center, according to a press release.
“She was an inspiration to me. She pushed and shoved me when I needed it. She was a great leader,” Judy Christian, an instructor at OLLI who worked with Tarlia for many years, said.
If more people had known about the memorial, three times as many people would have been there, Christian said.
Mike Cosentino can be reached at 282-7795, Ext. 128, or e-mail to mcosentino@larsonnewspapers.com
