Raga S. Elim

Raga S. Elim, 86, of Williamsburg, VA, passed away at his home on Friday, February 21. He is survived by his wife Martha, sons Raga Jr. (Lori) and Marc (Kirsten) and daughter Tamra/Serenity. He is also mourned by his grandchildren Sean, Reese, Allegra, Autumn, Merrick, McKenzie, and Max and by his first wife Kathleen and his former son-in-law Chris Durden. Born in Egypt, he received a law degree from Ain Shams University in Cairo before coming to the United States in 1957. While in Egypt, he served for two years as legal attaché in the Islamic Congress, an organization founded by the governments of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan to promote social, cultural, and economic development in the Moslem world. In the United States, he received an M.A. from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. from the School of International Service of the American University in Washington D.C. He taught on the faculty at the Inter-American University of Puerto Rico, State University of New York at Binghamton, and Kent State University and served as Dean of International and Special Programs at Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage, Alaska. Following his teaching career, he joined the federal government, serving in the Department of State and the Department of Justice, where he received merit promotions for outstanding service. He retired in 2004 and moved from northern Virginia to Williamsburg. In 1962 Dr. Elim founded an international organization, Universities and the Quest for Peace, whose members included universities worldwide. The aim was to promote the teaching of conflict resolution and the requirements for world peace. This organization contributed significantly to establishing the United Nations University, with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. A memorial service will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 9 2020, at the Williamsburg Unitarian Universalists, 3051 Ironbound Road, Williamsburg, VA 23185. Memorial gifts to the Williamsburg Unitarian Universalists or the Kiwanis Club of Toano (P.O. Box 745, Norge, VA 23127) would be greatly appreciated.