Angelika Maria Cutts

Angelika Maria Cutts: May 26, 1955 – March 10, 2018 One neighbor said Angelika’s smile radiated across her whole face “and even made her eyes twinkle.” Another couple recalled the day they first met Angelika. She was in the front yard with our youngest son, Atombo, launching water rockets when the couple drove by. One swooshed up several hundred feet, and they just had to turn their car around to meet the “Rocket Mom.” Angelika had a ready smile, enjoyed activities with our children, enjoyed meeting our neighbors, and delighted in discovery and adventure. After a long battle with abdominal cancer, Angelika made a peaceful transition to the Eternal World. She passed away at home with me and three of our four children by her bedside. Our oldest child, Brian, and his wife, Joy, live with their one-year old son, Isaac, in England. They were unable to be at the bedside, but called by telephone from England. Immediately after they spoke words of love and gratitude to Angelika, she took her last breath. The final week of her life was especially difficult, but our Heavenly Parent guided her passing at every turn. Angelika was born in Emsdetten, Germany, to Alois and Rita Grabisch. They were devout Roman Catholics. They were originally from Silesia, which is now in Poland, and were relocated after World War II. Angelika’s father was a tailor. Before Angelika was born, her parents lost two infant sons, one due to a miscarriage and the other died a couple of days after birth. The doctors warned Angelika’s mother not to get pregnant again, but the couple wanted a child so badly that they risked Rita’s life in order to give birth to Angelika. She was a sensitive child, and when she was seven, Angelika made an altar for Mother Mary in her bedroom. She continued to have an active prayer life, eagerly sharing her experiences and concerns with our Heavenly Parent, asking questions, making requests, and seeking God’s guidance. She was also very physically active. As a young girl she enjoyed bicycling and playing outside with her friends. Her mother found it hard to get her to sit down to eat at meal times. Angelika studied languages at the Heidelberg University, wanting to be a translator at the United Nations, though she never completed her degree. In 1974, she met Philip Hill while on campus. He introduced her to the Divine Principle and the Unification Church. After learning about the mission of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Angelika dropped out of school and joined the church. She wanted to help the True Parents usher in God’s Kingdom on earth. Her first assignment was to raise funds for the church, travelling with a team all over Europe. Just before New Year’s Day, 1981, she and hundreds of other European church members boarded planes for New York. They would participate in a matching being conducted by Rev. and Mrs. Moon. Angelika expected to return to Germany after the matching. However, she received a big surprise when Rev. Moon matched her with me, an American. We were Blessed in marriage on July 1, 1982 with 2,075 other couples in a Madison Square Garden ceremony. After the matching she was sent to Alaska to fundraise for the church, while I continued my studies at the Unification Theological Seminary in upstate New York. The whole country lay between us. Angelika had incredible adventures flying into tiny villages across Alaska. She went door to door in subzero weather asking donations in exchange for office pictures and hand puppets. She really enjoyed fundraising with Freddy and Freda, the squeaking frog hand puppets. When Rev. Moon assigned me to Atlanta in 1984, Angelika was sent to Los Angeles to help the local church there. Again we were on opposite sides of the country. Finally in 1986, she was assigned to Georgia. Still, she didn’t come directly to Atlanta. She was first the leader of our local church in Albany, Georgia, and then the leader in Macon, Georgia. Finally in mid-1987, she came to Atlanta, and we started our family. Our first child, Brian SooMinh, arrived on May 5, 1988. Three more children followed, one being born nearly every two years. Daniel SooYoung was born on May 4, 1990. Atombo Michael was born on October 25, 1992, and Rebekah Lan A was born on September 13, 1996. Angelika was a fulltime mom and homemaker. I was frequently out of town and out of the country on church missions, and so Angelika largely raised the children on her own. For over a dozen years, she volunteered at the local elementary school as our four children made their way through the grades. She packed thousands of school lunches, attended hundreds of soccer games, basketball games, track meets, martial arts programs, music lessons, swim meets, Boy Scout Eagle projects, and football games. Rebekah commented, “Mom never missed a swim meet, a football game when we played in the marching band, or a martial arts promotion.” Angelika helped each of our children go door to door selling boxes of Girl Scout cookies, Boy Scout popcorn, school greeting cards, and band candy. Angelika knew all of our neighbors. Angelika and I are very pleased with each of our children. They are intelligent young people, with good character and compassion for others. Brian is studying for a degree in electrical engineering. Daniel is pursuing a career in acting. Atombo is working as a pastry chef, and is also an apprentice potter. Rebekah is pursuing a degree in Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality. Our children appreciate what their mother invested in them so that they could be the people they have become. Angelika not only supported me with my mission, but she was involved with church activities herself. She contributed to the local church, helped with Women’s Federation for World Peace programs, and participated in the women’s registration blessing in Korea. She also received an inheritance from her parents that made it possible for us to make the Living Offering donation. Angelika always loved being outdoors. She enjoyed gardening, hiking and swimming. Her mother was a prize-winning gardener, and Angelika inherited her mother’s green thumb. During her daily 2-mile walk around the neighborhood park, she chatted with the neighbors she met along the way. Six months before her passing, she was still walking two miles every day. She and I enjoyed hikes up nearby Kennesaw Mountain. We traveled together when we could, and enjoyed visiting our infant grandson in England, hiking to the Katerskills Falls in the Hudson River Valley and swimming in the nearby lake, walking along the Southern rim of the Grand Canyon and sightseeing in the historic town of St. Augustine with its nearby beaches. From Angelika and me, our children inherited a love for adventure and travel. As a family we made multiple trips to Germany and to Korea, and spent 40-days in the wilds of the Pantanal in Brazil. What fun we had catching piranha with razor-sharp teeth. Angelika encouraged all four of our children to spend a year doing missions work in the South Pacific. They traveled to Australia, New Zealand, the Solomon Islands, Fiji, and Vanuatu. Angelika was happy that they could meet and help people from different cultures. During the last five months of her life, Angelika was in constant pain, yet she never complained and remained cheerful. We are extremely glad that Brian, his wife, Joy and their one-year old son, Isaac, could visit during Christmas. Angelika was thrilled to spend time with Isaac, whom she loved dearly. Her family and friends will miss her, but all are relieved that she is no longer in pain, and no longer suffering from being confined to an ailing physical body. We are grateful to our Heavenly Parent, and to Angelika, for her love, her life, and the many wonderful things we enjoyed together. She was, and will always be, a much loved daughter, friend, wife, mother and grandmother. The SeongHwa for Angelika will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 3, at Southern Cremations and Funerals located at 1861 Dallas Highway, S.W., Marietta, Georgia 30064. Instead of flowers, friends and family are invited to visit https://www.gofundme.com/vt78g-angelicas-medical-fund. They may also contact us directly at 269 Merrydale Drive, S.W., Marietta, Georgia 30064