LiberiaChristianCollege 1972 Liberia PDF

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Buchanan, Liberia, West Africa

Missionaries: Charles Boatman Family
1360 Grandview Drive
Forwarding Agents: Mr. & Mrs, Duane Garren

January, 1972
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Florissant, Mo. 63033
Dear brethren,
Today we had a pleasant reminder of America . About 9:30 a .m ., Air Force One touched down at Roberts International Air port, bringing Mrs. Nixon and her entourage as official representatives of the United States at the inauguration of President Wm. R. Tolbert. We unabashedly confess it brought a tear to the eye to see this tangible reminder of our homeland.
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This is how Debbie described the event in a letter to her grandparents: "I almost got to shake Mrs. Nixon's hand, but we
were on the wrong side of the fence. The plane was real pretty. They had a real nice, red carpeted staircase for her and Billy Graham to come down, and then below that was a big platform with a pink carpet in front of it. After she stood on it while the bond played 'Star-Spangled Banner' and 'All Hail, Liberia, Hail,' President Tolbert led her around the troops
which, were standing at attention. Then the soldiers did some fancy stuff with their guns and turned around a few times.
Then Mrs. Nixon came over and shook hands with the Americans. There were also some Liberion acrobats in weird costumes
with real fancy drummers, costumes, and also fancy drums. You should have seen Mrs. Nixon's face and eyes when she saw
them; she was really pretty!"
Mrs. Nixon is the first wife of an incumbent president to visit the continent of Africa. In the course of the trip she will also
visit the neighboring states of Sierra Leone and Ghana. She was accompanied by Billy Graham, as Debbie mentioned.
Mr. Graham is highly regarded as a Christian spokesman in Africa. He hod been invited to lead a service of prayer this
afternoon in beholF of President Tolbert.
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By mid-December, we had finished the first year of classes of LCC . You may recall that we had six students in grade twelve this past year.
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cient for graduation in Liberia . It is also necessary to pass a national
All of them made passing grades in their classes, but that is notsuffftexam given by the Deportment of Education. The exam grading system strongly weighted to limit the number who pass. Three of our students passed. On December 13, the college's first graduation exercises were held. The first picture in this month's letter is of our three graduates.
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They ore Henry Mehdeh, Thomas Haynes, and Jerry Toepoe, left to right. The fancy ribbon banging from the gown has no significance.
It Is just the standard decoration here in Liberia.
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. The second picture gives you an idea of what we hove done to "amuse"
ourselves since the middle of the month. The Wayne Show family,
formerly of Fllppin, Arkansas, will be coming to assist us in the near future, the Lord willing. By spending on building ma terials what Wayne would otherwise be paying for rent, and by doing the construction work ourselves, we are hoping to hove
for his family a satisfactory dwelling soon after they arrive later this month . To have a local contractor do the work would multiply the cost many times, with no Increase In construction quality. This Is hot to be construed as vanity on our part. It Is simply a realistic analysis of the situation which exists here. "Professionals" in the building trade ore almost non existent in Buchanan . The picture shows the state of construction a few days after Christmas. The house is being built on the college property. The Atlantic Ocean is about a mile behind the palm tree you see, and will be visible from the house.
Construction methods here ore somewhat primitive, OS you will see in the third picture . This is Jerry, one of our graduates. He has carried
the water about 100 yards from the well. Ayoung palm branch is
the next trip from the well, he had found another bucket and was
twisted into a circle as Gcushion For the pole across his head . On
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carrying four full buckets of woterl We have mixed all the concrete by hand, since there no concrete mixer available in Buchonan. About midway through the job of pouring the floor, we were wishing
we could go to the phone and dial for a load of reody-mixed concrete! HH

Fortunotely, Abba Kornga volunteered the services of several of the boys <9/ho live at his house to help us on that job. We used a wheelbarrow to carry the mixed concrete to the spot where it was being poured. However, we have actually seen an office building being
their heads! The concrete for the foundation pilings of that building was also being mixed by hand. We may have overcome
our culture shock, but we still find things to be amazed about in Africa .
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constructed in Monrovia (the capital city) where the workers were carrying the concrete in large (two-foot diameter) basins on
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Again this year, Christmas was an interesting experience.Some of the things which
(a gift of money)?"; "old man beggar" (a child dressed up in funny costume and
impressed us: Strangers approaching you on the street, asking "Where's my Christmas
hailoween mask) and his comrades walling down the street beating on tin can "drums;"
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Christmas carollers boldly asking for money; temperatures in the 80's in a land where
they never see a "whiteChrlstmas," but sing about a "green" one; the sound of drums late in the night on Christmas Eve; the Marlboro cigaret raffle with prizes of several
hundred dollars for the users of their product, advertised on the radio with the musical jingle which went, "Make Christmas mean something this year"(!); and over against
all this, the joy of knowing what Christmas Is really about. On Christmas morning we
with strange, but beautiful melodies. The other high point of the day was a brief conversation with the St. Louis Boatmans through the courtesy of our two favorite "ham"
V k . r - ^ shared in a special service of worship with the Liberians. Many of the carols they song ^ ^ ' had strange words, but the familiar, beloved tunes. Other songs were Basso carols
radio operators Wayne Meece (EL1E) and his forwarding agent, Pat Click (WB0ARO).
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The Lord has blessed us greatly this past year. Please continue to pray for God's Spirit
to guide us as our work develops and grows.. Pray for the Shaw family as they make' final preparations for coming to Liberia. We sincerely thank you for undeigirdjng our work OS you have . May God bless you all.
In Christ,
oCdîiO'
Forwarding Agents: Mr. & Mrs. Duane Garren
February/ 1972
1360 Grondview Drive
Brethren in Chri^^
We invite yoiiô take a trip into the "bush" with us this month. We ore including more pictures than usual so you may have a glimpl^^f^r trip to the village of Grand Kolla, where the Bible Faith Christian Church held its annual conference.
To get to Grand Kollo we drove twenty-five miles southeast from Bucharran. The first two miles of road are paved, the rest
be|^ rocks and dirt (mud in the rainy season). The road stops obruptly at a small village by the edge ofthe Kolla River. A
srhall shop run by a Lebanese man serves as a supply depot for scores of tiny villages further into the interior. The Lebanese are the largest of the foreign national groups in Liberia, and are proprietors of most of the stores.
AI the river's edge we boarded a canoe carved from a log whi<h was about fifteen feet long and no more than thirty inches in
dfameter. It was not a very stable croft. Every movement of the man who paddled it mode us feel we would soon be going
5>vimming. It did not ^ther him, however, as he sat up on the highest point of the canoe more than a foot out of the water,
(Cheerfully encouraging us to sit still. We didi
We began our hike on the other side of the river. This is the way you travel In Liberia, once you hove left the very few motor roo^^ We passed through several small villages. In each, citizens came out to wave a friendly greeting. At one village we stopped for a..brief rest and consumed several bananas. They grow wild and in great profusion here. One very small child who
was broughtt^ to see us retreated in fear. She obviously l^d not seen many white people. We did not blame her, since we
Lamco come here for a winter vacation. Those iare really white peoplel)
are also l>sglfwrT)g to think white people look funnyl Pole skin just doesn't look as healthy as the nice, dark "tan" most people
wear here. (^ôtfciB'this-iespiecially at^his time of the year when relatives of the Swedes and Norwegians who work at
After walking about tw hours, we approached our destination. The last few hundred feet of the trail entering the village were decorated with palm fronds, and all who were attending the conference were lined up on either side of the trail to greet us. It was a very warm welcane, but we becanie tired of shaking hands before we reached the end of the line. (The standard "Liberion handshake consists of a regular handshake which is then completed by "dragging" the thumb and middle finger as you pull the hands apart, to make a loud snop. There is also a Christion handshake which starts in the regular fashion, then the thumbs ore interlocked, the hands are raised so the
fingers wrap around the top of the other person's wrist, then bock to the
Handthensmalerpolesare tiedto hes withvines, fonri ga latice-work.

former position, and then usually the snapping of the fingers. If you hove many people to greet, as in this case, it becomes a lengthy task.)
We arrived on Wednesday, after the conference had been in session for two
days. Upon our arrival, we were taken to the church building, where we wire briefly welcomed, and then taken to the home they had provided for us. The house was of mud and pole construction. Poles are stuck Into the ground,
mud floor was covered with woven mats. Both of these' featunss were extras
was decorated inside and outside with whitewash put on the dark mud walls
meals of "colintry chop," tradltiotxil Liberian food . it usually consists of rice,

to which is added yqripus kinds of soups, stews, and gravies. Sometimes rice
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Itsrepioced by "dumboy," whic iscas va ro t boiledandpounde . When

of both fruits.
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prepared, it has the consistency of bubble gum. One eats it without chewing,
for to do so would result in it sticking to the teeth and the roof of the mouth. Its basic purpose in the diet is to provide a cheap, non-nutritional filler to
fill the stomach when there is nothing better to eat. But the Liberions really like it! A number of chickens made the supreme sacrifice to the missionary
!'i Ther is much more to tel , but it would moke this leter to long to recite it
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effort, as did two goats which Deb and Beverly Meece had befriended and named "Stripe" and "Beasty." We were rather surprised when the girls' appetites did not falter even though they knew "who" they were eating. The Grand Kolla area has the sweetest grapefruit in Liberia, and Liberia is re puted to have the best pineapples in the world, and we enjoyed large quantities
all this month . We will share it with you in our next letter. But we must say
I and a week of family camp, and we enjoyed it immensely! We had ample

Our Liberian brethren were very appreciative of our presence . They were
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that the week we spent in Grand Kollo was without doubt the highlight of our sojourn here. It was a combination of the best aspects of a revival meeting
I is beginning to bear fruit with these people, as we will tell you next month.
opportunity for teaching sessions, both formal and informal. Our teaching
B' tunitiesit afforded us. It really was a treatfor usl

Here is a description of the pictures in this letter:
pleased that we would bring our families Into the bush to share their humble
manner of life for a week. But we were glad to do this for the teaching oppor-
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1. Pat, Deb, and Beverly Meece on the way across the Kolla River in 2. A "jungle safari" heading through the bush . Insome places the
and bushes will brush against you.
trails are cleared to a width of10 feet, andin others, tal gros
the dugout canoe. The Liberions pronounce it "ka-noo."
1^" 5. The house provide for us. The round pole structure at he right
4. The church building at Grand Kollo. and slapped against the house.
looking at them, tool to advance His kingdom in Liberia . Yours for a Christian Liberia,
3. The scourge of the trail is the driver ant. Here a thousand or more
ore crossing the trail. Theyare small, but have a powerful bite.
After passing through an area like this, you must stomp your feet several times to shake them off your feet and legs.
is a "palaver hut," the African equivalent of an Americon patio. 6. The "tool" with which the decorations were put on the house in pidture 5. This is the blossom of a plant which has been dried. The extremities ore cut off, and this is then dipped in whitevwsh
their time looking in the windov/s of our house to see how we lived.
7. Some of the younger clHzens of Grand Kolla, who sper# much of
! February is the month for entrance examinations and registrations for the 1972
school year. Please pray that God will send to us the students who will help
We were reminded of the proverbial goldfish bowl. But we enjoyed
Xdtniei ^(snLUvM
March, 1972
Missionaries: Charles Boatman Family Forwarding Agents: Mr, & Mrs. Duane Garren
Deer friends.
This month we cortinue our story of our week in the "bush" at the onnuol conference of the Bible Faith Christian Church . Each doy provided us with opportunity for formal teaching in doss, In addition to that which was done in Informal discussions .
Pat had a daily class for the younger children (up to about age twelve). There were sixty or more In this group. Ron Ayers taught the older young people, or "youth children" as the Llberlans say. Both groups met together in the palm-leaf "tent" for on opening session of chorus singing. Following the singing, Ron took his class down the hill about one-eighth of a mile to the lower village, where they gathered In the shade of a large grapefruit tree . Pot's group stayed In the tent. The Llberlans, children and adults alike, have a great appetite for Bible stories. Several adults usually sat in on the children's
sessions to hear the stories.
The adults were divided Into three groups. Women were taught by Greta Meece In the church building . The men In general and leaders In particular formed the other two groups. As It worked out there was considerable overlapping in the latter two groups. Wayne Meece and Chorles taught these groups at different times In the day. We gave them a strong treatment of basic Christian doctrine with particular emphasis on questions which trouble them. The Bible Faith Church Is a rather young group, ond has members who have been free from their various denominational back
grounds for only ten years at the most. Several doctrinal problems continue to "humbug" them, as Llberlans say. It Is easy ' to take it for granted that the traditions In which we have been raised ore based on divine revelation. For proof of this, we need look no further than the divisions which plague our attempts at restoring the church in America. So we are sympathetic with the Llberlans' plodding speed as they come to new understanding of scripture. They do not wish to throw off one denomi national tradition only to find themselves shackled by another. Wa were pleased to see that, like the Bereans In Acts 17, they studiedto see If what we were teaching them was so. In the free time between classes, we would see groups of men clustered together, reading Bible passages we had been discussing earlier. <
In discussing doctrinal problems with our brethren here, we refuse to use the prestige of our position as a weight to force our opinions upon them. There Is a certoln amount of prestige in being a white man and a missionary here. However, the prestige has been badly tarnished by the actions and attitudes of both classes. Because many missionaries have obused their position and forced certain doctrines upon the Liberians as though by pontifical decree, there Is a large group of the latter who have withdrawn from the denominations controlled by foreign mission personnel. Both the Bible Faith Church and the
World-Wide Missions Church (of which our good friend Abba Karnga Is a leader) are among this group. So our approach Is to say (in effect), "We will shore with you our understanding of the Bible, but we will not force our teachings upon you. You know your people and your culture far better than we do. You must study the Bible to see If we are teaching the truth.
If we are, then yours Is the responsibility to accept it and apply It to your situationAs Abraham Lincoln once said, "It may take forever to change a man's mind by persuasion, but that is quicker than you can do It by force."
A matter we discussed at great length is the Lord's Supper. Among the
congregations In the Bible Faith fellowship, none observed the Lord's
leaders of the various congregations announced their collective decision
spread the communion trble at least on a quarterly basis In 1972. That ofl'en as we hoped would be the case, but It a trend In the right
One reason for not observing the memorial more often is thot a complete
service Is given over to that purpose. It could not possibly be done In
such lengthy fashion every Sunday. But the way they do It makes for a
very impressive service. After congregational singing and a sermon
appropriate to the occasion, the emblems are blessed . Asthe choir
sings, the communicants come to the front of the church, where they
are served In groups of about twenty persons. All of the group partakes
together. The song is in the Bassa dialect, but the words translate thus:
"The table is for the Lord (West African idiom to denote possession); all the children of God moy comeIn keeping wth the message of the song,
open communion is practiced.
It is a very meaningful sen/ice, and puts to shame the haphazard and cursory observance we sometimes practice in American churches. We may argue vociferously with our denominational neighbors about the proper frequency of observance, but the shollowness of some of our com munion services gives the lie to our noble protestations. It need not be so, of course, but our time would be better spent Improving our practice than honing our arguments.
Many other matters found their way into our discussions. The Christions here are caught between changing cultures, and it presents them with problems for which they need scriptural answers. The traditional culture has some values, in spite of its being pagan. The Western culture which is taking its place has many foults, in spite of its being "Christian." Many Liberian Christiar are recognizing that the only way out of the
Tiorass is to return to more Biblical faith. We are thankful to be here to
ielp them.
These are the pictures you see in this letter: ]. One of the men's classes in the palm-leaf tent.
2. Pat's class of children.
3. Wayne Meece's class of church leaders.
4. Ron Ayers' class of young people .
5. Children playing while some of the men study the scriptures.

6. Our "safari" preparing to leave Grand Kolla to return to Buchanan,
As we said last month, the week at Grand Kolla was a tremendous
spiritual uplift to us all. Before we left, the people gave Bassa names
to the adults. Pat was called "Tekonbia," which means "the time I went to visit." Every time she thinks of the name, she will remember the time
she visited Grand Kolla . To Charles they gave the name "Phonyeegah,"
which means "something worth struggling for." As if that were not enough to tempt our vanity, they decorated us with beautiful Liberian shirts and dresses. We have since come back down to earth, but we treasure greatly the memory of this conference. The high point of the conference can on Sunday, at down, when fifteen believers were Immersed into Christ in a quiet jungle pool. Forsuch a wonderful week,
we give God thanks.
Yours in His service,
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April, 1972
Dear Christian Friends,
dolUi^
Buchanatiy Liberia, West Africa
The continuing story of Grand Kola can be seen in the two pictures on this page. First there is a great need for leadership trainingamong these people. They have opened the door to us, and hove asked us to help train leaders. Our part in
the conference at Grand Kola wjs just that teaching and training. We con ducted classes all day for everyone: youth and women in the morning,and the men and church leaders in the afternoon. We are still teaching here in Buchananevery week. For the past two months I have taught a class on Christian stewardship at their request every Sunday afternoon. The second challenge is seen through this little girl. She was a happy, healthy touch of beauty in a sometimes drab world, but she poses a greot problem to her parents. It is a problem shared by all the parents of Grand Kola they have no school in the village. The people of the Bible Faith church have asked us to helpestablish schools inGrand Kola and the other mission stations of theirchurch. We believe that this is an opportunity for L.C .C . to show its value to the community here. We have challenged the people of villages like Grand Kola to send us their promising young men and women so that we can train them with the understanding that they go back to their own village to open schools and work in the churches. The possibilities here are almost unlimited for that type of work. For thisand many other reasons, your continued support of L.C .C . is vital. School has started again here in Liberia . This year we opened school on March 6. We had given entrance examinations toall prospective students because we must limit our classes to twenty students each because of classroom space and teachers. Our student body has grown considerably since last year. The Christian Education Foundation has sponsored a junior high program with Liberian teachers and we added another grade to the high school. So, we have twenty students in each of the 7th, 10th, and 11th grades. The college has also grown considerably.
Last year we had three college students. Theyare back with us this year; however, their ranks have beenswelled by twenty-one others. Inaddition to these, we have
class. Two days a week he teaches "Reading the English Bible," and three days a
week I teach the Gospel of John.
an extension class for semi-literate church workers who want tostudy the Bible and improve themselves as church leaders. Mr. Abba Karnga Is helping me teach this
Our faculty has also grown this year. The Wayne Shaw family arrived on March 26, and have taken their place with us. Wayne began teaching on April 5. The Shows are living with us until their new house is finished. Mr. James Moigon (You will remember him from Our Zondotrip last year.) is nowteaching the seventh
grade. Pot Boatman is teaching a class in Principles of Education, and Greta is
teaching a Bible class for the seventh grade. Mr. Herald Kiefer, an employee of
the LAMCO Mining Co., is teaching a class in math. Mr. Kiefer volunteered to
teach OS a contribution to our work. He is of Gennan extraction, a graduate engineer, and a fine math teacher. We now have a total of ten teachers but only
we five missionary men and James Morgan are carrying a full load of classes.
As you can see from the third picture, the classroom building is not yet
complete. The funds for building have been exhausted, and no funds have been
raised recently. The Christian Education Foundation has been raising the funds for
this building, and the going has been slow; however, another fund-raising rally is being planned within the next month. Weare still meeting in the educational wing
of the new World-Wide Church. This year we are occupying five rooms of this facility, which is not being used as a place of worship because the auditorium is still under construction. These facilities ore adequate to our needs, and will be
for sometime to come. In reality they are much handier for both students and
faculty because the new campus is located at the edge of the city and will be much harder for students to reach when we begin to use it. We have been promised that
0 new rood will be built to the site when we move to the new campus. This would
help shorten the walking distance to the school for our students.
In the past few weeks we have been fortunate to meet and talk with most of
the newly appointed leaders of Grand Bassa county as well as some of the elected officials. These include the new county Superintendent (equivalent to governor)
Lawrence Morgan, Representative Harris, and Senator Hannon. We also have a
new Supervisor of Schools for the county, the government official of greatest connection with us, Joseph Gbadyou. This weekCharles and I were theonly white
men invited to an exclusive reception in honor of his induction into office. Also
of great importance to us is the fact that Mr. Gbadyou is a memberof the Christian
Education Foundation, the Liberiansponsor for LiberiaChristianCollege. This man will be of great value to us in promoting the work of the college among the Liberian
people.
Personally, we are in good health. Our family has grown some with the addition of the Shows to our household. They have been able to adjust well, and
Wayne is now carrying a full load of teaching.
School will soon be out forthe children. Theyfol low theAmerican schedule which causes us to have someone in school the year around.
We do hove one problem that we would like to share with you in order that you may pray with us about it. To date our support has beoi adequate, supplying our needs but providing no surplus for return travel or any emergency. However, the recent economic trends are beginning to have their effect upon the situation here. We do not yet know the full extent of the changes that we will see, but it is certain thotthings will get much worse and they maycreate some problems for us.
Perhaps one example will be sufficient to show the trend. When we arrived here
last year, we paid 75^ for five-pound of sugar in the local supermarket; this week the price on the same five-pound bag of sugar is $1.20. The prices on most foods,
especially staples like sugar, flour, etc., have risen about 30% since we arrived
last year, most of that coming in the past two months. At present we are able to meet the rising costs, but in sodoing we are eating into any reserves we might have had. Please keep this matter in your prayers, and we will keep you informed as to
the situation here.
Thank you again for your faithful support and prayers. God keep you and
help you where you work.
Yours in Christ,
The Meeces
Missionaries: Wayne Meece Family
Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G . CMck

10345 Castle Drive
St. Louis, Missouri 63136

HALLS FERRY CHRISTIAN CHURCH
12105 Old Halls Ferry Road

Florissant, Missouri 63033
Wayne's Bible class at Grand Kola
An unknown child at Grand Kola
The college classroom-office building at. present state of construction
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Forwarding Agents: Mr, & Mrs. Duane Garren
April, 1972
Dear friends in Christ,
^goes with a low pupil-teacher ratio. We were also pleased to see that the school won a good reputation
of'limited classroom size, we have only been able to accept twenty students In each,of the high school grades. Avaluable side effect of this limitation, however, is that we can offer the higher quality of education which
March was a busy month for us. On March 6, we began the second year of operation of the school. Because
jrpolicy on school tuition. He said that, starting this year, tuition would no longer be chafed at government \ schools, in order to provide educational opportunities to more young people. This is a mix^d blessing, however. At Bassa High School, for instance, there are now classes with seventy-five students in them, and three students are forced to sit tn desks designed for two. When the president announced the change in policy, we wondered what effect this might have on our school. The consensus of opinion among Liberians is thatindent# who seek the best quality education will still want to attend mission schools. Our enrollment figures confirm i
this assumption. X
|during its first year. The result was that forty-five prospective students took the entrance exam for tenthgrade. jShortly before school opened this year. President Tolbert announced that the government\as changing its
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seven^ grade class. This is the project of the Christian Education.ûndatiop. The man teaching the class is James Moigan, a member of the
bur high school program is augmented this year with the addition of /
C.BCF, and of the World-Wide Missions Church (one ofthe groups with
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which'jjwe are working). Teacher Morgan had been on government salary,
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teaching at a junior high school in the interior, but was given permission to come to Buchanan to take up this new project. This also gives him opportunity to be enrolled in our college program in tKe evening. Mr. Morgan makes a fine addition to our staff and his comit^g is a step toward
We are also pleased with the growth in our college program this year. Last
we only had four high school graduates attending college, and these
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"Liberianizng" ourstaf as o n as pos ible.
arrangelnwt, for we could not really challenge ths' graduates academically. This year, the non-graduates are in a special Bible class taught on their
level by Abba Karnga and Wayne Meece.
was the l^st we could do under the circumstances,
were mixpd with non-graduates who were auditing the BÎe classes. This
it was not a good
There are twenty-three students enrolled in college classes. Some only take one or two classes, but about half
of them are taking a full academic load. Classes being offered this year includef New Testament Survey, Basic Bible Doctrines, Principles of Bible Interpretation, Epistles of Galatians and James, Economics of Africa, Remedial Mathematics, and Principles of Education^ Pat is teaching the last^class in the list. She is the best
qualified among us to teach It, in view of her educational and vocational back-
ground. Since Mark and Debbie are in school this year. It Is no longer necessary for her to devote several hours a day to educating them, so she Is happy for this
opportunity.
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A new Supervisor of Education for Grand Bassa County has recently been commissioned. We are happy to report that he Is one of the charter members of the *
C.E.F. His name Is Joseph CkK^dyu (pronounced "buy-you"). Mr. Gbadyu Is

well qualified for this position, having earned a master's degree at Indiana Uni-
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verslty. His new post is the highest educational position in the county. We anticipate a good working relationship with him. We believe he will be of considerable assistance to us, and we thank the Lord for this development.
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all is the arrival of the Wayne Shaw family as our co-workers. They had been
It seems we have many pleasant things to announce this month . The best news of
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BiilTtir
delayed considerably in coming because of technical delays in obtaining visas. We had to start classes without them, with the other missionaries teaching Wayne's r classes. They finally arrived on Sunday, March 26. The Liberian brethren put t on a fine welcome program for them, Wa)me Is twenty-six years of age. He is
a graduate of Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. His Bible studies were done at Ozark Bible College.
Before hearing the call to preach, and later to become a missionary, he trained himself to be a math and science
teacher. He taught in the high school at Yellville, Arkansas, for a year before being called to the church In
ful that God has caused them to respond to the Liberian call. In our pictures this month you see (1) the new Supervisor of
Flippin, Arkansas. Shows lived in Flippin until they began raising support to come to Liberia. Wayne and Anna have two children: Doug, three years, and Teresa, one year. This Is a fine Christian family, and we are thank
Education, Joseph Gbadyu; (2) the Show family as they

arrived at Roberts International Airport; and (3) the flr^t
meal being eaten in Shows' new home. The house is still un
completed, and on the day the picture was taken, the women
V W
brought out a picnic lunch to the work-site so the men could put In a full day of work.
the college at this address: Lamco-Buchar>an, Roberts International Airport, Liberia, W, Africa .
May God bless you richly.
to God that He might supply this need? We would be happy to correspond with anyone who feels the Lord might be leading him to share personally in this work. Write to
1 We hove a prayer request this month. We anticipate a coni there shall expansion of the college program, which will mean be a need for more workers. There will be definite
early part of 1973. Will you pray
iotv
The first year of Liberia Christian College is history. The first high school seniors have been graduated December 13. They were three of our students from the evening high school extension. This year we have had to stop the evening high school because of the expanding college program, so there will be no more 7raduates until the class of '73 (last year's morning
tenth grade). The first possible college graduates will be in '74.
With theschool year finished, we have been keeping ourselves busy with other jobs. The first of these has been the building of a house for our new recruits, the Wayne Shaw family,
who are due to arrive on the field by the end of February. At this writing we have the house to
the point where the concrete block walls are about two-thirds finished. This has turned out to
be some of the most muscle-stretching, blister-raising work we have done in a long time. How ever, the exercise and sunshine are good for us, and the change of pace in work is refreshing.
After three weeks of work onthe house,, we had to stop to make oneof the most interesting
and inspiring trips we have made since we arrived in Liberia. We were invited to attend the
annual conference of the Bible Faith Christian Church. The conference was held at a village called Grand Kola, a forty-mile drive by carand a two-hour walkintothe jungle from Buchanan.
We left on December 5, drove to the end of the road, left our cars in the care of the village at the river, crossed the Little Kola River in canoes, and walked for two hours before
arriving at Grand Kola. All our group took the trip except George Wacaser who had to stay behind with his basketball team. (He is the basketball coach for Bassa County, and the National
Games were the same week.) The walk was much smoother and less tiresome than the ten-mile
walk to Zondo last April.
Our reception at Grand Kola was something we will never forget. They had decorated the path to the village. They built an arch of greenery and lined the path with palm branches
and banana stalks. All the people of the villageand those who hadcome toattend the conference
were lined up along the path as a reception committee. There must have been 300 people along the path. They were singing, some shouted praises to God, while a few even danced for joy as
we came along. Everyone had a warm smile and handshake. Those who knew us from Buchanan embraced us. It was a touching moment. There was a brief formal welcome in the little church
building, and then wewere quickly ushered to our quarters so wecould rest and refresh ourselves.
Ourhomefor the nextfive days was six-room mud house with a thatch roof and dirt floor. The floor wascovered with a split-bamboo matting. It makesa nice rug. There was one bedroom for each family and one for Ron Ayres. The house had been completely redecorated for our use.
It was clean and comfortable (beds for everyone), and our every need had been prepared for.
We were given what I wouldcall the "royal treatment." They assigned three mento cook
and work for us. We wereto donothing but teach our classes. We felt a little embarrassed by it; we are not used to having servants, but it is the African way of hospitality. We would have insulted them if we had refused. The men were good cooks. We asked them to cook "country chop," not "whee-poo food" (white man's food). This pleased them and they prepared some of the best food we have eaten in Liberia. Grand Kola is also noted for having the bst grapefruit in Liberia. They are; and we had plenty of them. I have tasted none sweeter anywhere.
Most of the businessof the conference had beenconducted before wearrived (Wednesday); therefore, the remainder of the week was turned over to us for teaching and preaching. In the mornings there were classes for the women and the children. Greta taught the women while Pat Boatman and Ron Ayres divided the youth into two classes and taught them. In the afternoon there was a men's Bible class and a class for the "ministers." Charles Boatman taught the men,
and I taught the ministers (these included elders, deacons, evangelists, and preachers). All these classes were at least two hours long each day. We found them eager to learn,a joyto teach.
The more we work with these people the more we are convinced that they are trying to
live up to their name "Bible Faith" Christians. They have shown a willingness to be taught and
to accept new truth so long as it comes from the Bible. They have told us that they have refused help from some mission boards because the doctrines they hold are not Biblical.
One illustration of this has been in relation to the Lord's Supper. Previously they had
no planned observance of the Lord's Supper except during the conference. Each station had the
Lord's Supper one or two times a year if at all. We have spent considerable time discussing this with them and the Scriptures that relate to the Lord's Supper. At the conference this year they decided to have the Lord's Supper quarterly. We would "have preferred weekly, but we did not come here to force our will on anyone; the change must come through more patient teaching.
There is another factor that also limits the number of times a congregation can have the Lord's
Supper during the year.
We noticed this situation almost immediately upon our arrival in Liberia. The Lord's Supper is a veryspecial matter to the African Christian. Perhaps a description of a typical service will help. The Lord's Supper isreserved foraspecial programall its own. At Grand Kola we had the regular morning worship service (about two hours). Following this we were to havethe Lord's Supper. The program'for the Lord's Supper was almost os long as the first service . I was asked to preach a sermon in both services. To add thd" kind of service onto an already long morning
worship and Sunday School program would create problems. It would mean one hour Sunday School, twD hours worship service, and at least another hour for the Lord's Stjpper.
One other factor complicates the matter and lengthens the time involved in taking the Lord's Supper; the method of serving the emblems to the people. Each church has onlyone small communion set. To serve a large crowd, it must be refilled many times. The people come to the front of the church, line up along the "altar" in groups of ten to twenty, there is a prayer for
has been served. We Americans can see easy quick solutions to these problems, but they are not so easy or clear to the Africon. Ashorter, more simple service would degrade the Lord's Supper
and a large enough communion set to serve everybody at once seems a waste of the church's
each group, and they partake in unison. This process is repeated until the entire congregation
money. We must trust the Spirit of the Lord to lead us aj] to His will.
While these people do not take the Lord's Supper as often as we do, I am sure that it means much more to them than to the person who pinches a crumb of bread and swallows a few drops of grape juice between yawns and glances at his watch to see If the preacher Is going to preach so long that he will be late for the Sunday afternoon football game on TV. What we are
trying to say is that both the African and American need to improve in this matter. The people of Bible Faith Christian Church show that they are willing to move in the right direction. How
about You?
Eoch night of the conference there was an evangelistic service . Charles and I were in
vited to preach one night each. There were mony responses to the invitation, and on Sunday
morning dt sunrise, Charles and a native evangelist buried fifteen people with Christ in the baptismal waters of a jungle pool.
The most surprising program was the Faith-Promise program on Saturday night. These people have learned the faith-promise principle from an American Negro missionary (who or from
where we have not yet been told). Thebasic principle isthe same as wesee in the U .S. without all the frills. The people ore asked to make a faith-promise, believing that God will help them meet it. It is to be above regular tithes and offerings. Man)? must sell or bring to the church goats, chickens, rice, palm nuts, etc ., to meet their faith-promise. They have a year to fulfil!
the promise.
The service In which the promlsesare made is simple . After a fewsongsandan appropriate
sermon, pieces of paper are passed out to everyone in the audience. Each person is to write his rrame, home congregation, and the amount of the promise on the paper. Those who cannot write are assisted by others who can; everyone took part. Thepapers are placedln aspeciol box at the
front of the church. The total promised was over $200. The money will be used to build up one of the outlying mission stations of the church. That figure maysound small to you but the average
Sunday morning offering in most churches here is less than $5.00.
We are running out of space before we get to the end of the story, so more about Grand Kola at another time. God bless and keep you. Your faithful support gives us courage.
The Meeces
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The Bible Faith Christian Church In Buchanan
Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G , Click

10345 Castle Drive
i:


Our first high school graduotes: (left to right) Henry Mehdeh, Thomas Hoynes, and Jerry
Toepoe . (Thorn and Jerry will attend college

classes with us this year.)
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Our house at Grand Kola. The decoration on
the walls is from whitewosh put on with a dried weed making a flower design.
jHêncO' ^(tnLUieui
Forwarding Agents: Mr, & Mrs. Duane Garren
May, 1972
De^êhds in Christ,
school year is now well into tlie second six weeks grading period. All is well, except that the professors fare a bit frustrated about not covering as much material in class as they wish to. You would find the reasons
/ for this to be interesting. One Is that we have averaged one national holiday per week since school began, C plus Easter vacation! In spite of this, we have had much more school than others. Bassa High School had.
^ started when they should have.
only four days of school before Easter vacation, rather than the three weeks they should have hod! They were running on what the local people call "Liberian Standard Time," and just found it too hard to get
A second problem has to do with the English language, which is Liberia's official tongue. For most of our \$tudents, English Is learned as a second language, and many of them are hindered in theirability to read and
write. Another problem involves learning techniques. The traditional method of teaching here has been for thei teacher to give the students a list of data to be mepriorized. There Is usually little attempt made to cor-
rel6te^^||information with old, or to develop the thinking processes.

One moi^ôblem probably should not be considered a problem. Our students have many questions about
Bible facts and doctrine. There is a reason, and our Bible college stoff members In America would be pleased
to shore a bit of It if they could. Our students are well-read in the Bible, much more so than students enter ing our Bible colleges in America. As a result, they are capable of osking more asfute questions than the average American freshman. The missionaries have done a better job in this regard than the churches which
sent them out hove done with their own children!
As we mentioned last month, Joseph Gbadyu, a fellowmember of the Christian Education Foundation recently be
came Supervisor of Education here. He invited us to attend
his induction ceremony early in April. There we met Dr. Joseph Morris, the national government's Assistant Minister of Education. Dr. Morris became keenly interested in our work. He visited our school, and was visibly pleased with
what he saw.
Two weeks prior to that event, we had an interview with the Superintendent of Bassa County, Lawrence Moi^n, and the national Minister of Education, G. Flamma Sherman. We discussed the present status and future plans for the college, and have reason to believe that the good-will we have enjoyed thus for will not
only continue, but increase. When men In high places are interested in the Lord's work (for whatever rea
sons), the opportunities for the work to be multiplied are advanced .
Our policy of assuming that the Liberian brethren are capable of governing their own
affairs and making their own decisions about the truth (or lack of it) of various teachings is having some interesting repercussions among some of the missionaries whc
have been here for several years. Abba Karnga recently said that missionaries from
two denominations had called him "on the carpet." In a three-hour exchange, they
charged Bro. Karnga with "bringing those Christian College people In here and con fusing people." He explained that our approach was simply to teach the Bible, and that we were trying to eliminate all denominational doctrines. He closed the discus* sion by saying "these professors are only doing what you should have been doing all along 1"
In addition to teaching unscriptural doctrines, the above missionaries have hurt them* ^ ; vH, 13jRy H selves by a tactical mistake. When these missionaries first came, the Bassa people C ^ K
were ignorant and uneducated. The missionaries provided schools through the ele#r:
r-
mentary grades. When men like Abba Karnga ond Joseph Gbadyu wished to con-* tinue their education past eighth grade, they were discouraged by these missionaries, who sold that further education would harm their folthl Karnga, Gbadyu, and others (who were grown men by that time), continued their education in spite of the advice. ^ They began thinking for themselves, and have come to question some of the denomi national teachings on which they were reared. The missionaries have been unable to admit to themselves that Africa is changing, and cannot much longer be shepherded by paternalistic missionaries. The African church will survive only if it has independent, trained national leaders. We are thankful we hove been able to have
a part In this taski
The pictures this month show three different "tools" in common use in Liberia. Number one shows a portable
dry goods store . The proprietor pushes his wheelbarrow to the market each morning. Cardboard or wood stuck in the sides increases its capacity two or three-fold. A piece of plastic is thrown over It In case of rain. Merchandise ranges from yard goods to cosmetics to shoes to canned tomato paste.
Our family will soon be leaving Liberia . Our target date for departure is July 14, which is at the end of the first semester of school here. Charles' two-year leave of absence from St. Louis Christian College will expire in August. We shall continue to be involved in the work of the mission, especially in the area of recruitment of new workers. We shall be available for mission rallies and other services, and will be happy to share with you the work of Liberia Christian College and/or St. Louis Christian College, as you desire.
Thankfully yours in Christ,

June, 1972
Dear ChrisHan Friends,
The last month has been a busy one for all of us. School is now near the
end of the tenth week with six-weeks tests due again. The rains are beginning
again earlier this year, it seems. The cool weather has brought a rash of colds and flu. All of us have been hit by one kind of bug or another in the past few weeks. Greta seems to have gotten the worst of it. She was in bed for the most
of a week with what the doctor diagnosed as malaria . She had a headache, high fever, and some stomach discomfort, but the doctor found no trace of malaria in her blood. She has been taking the malaria medicine and is feeling much better now, and should be at full strength again soon.
The weekend of April 30 we took our first "vacation" since coming to Liberia . We rented a cottage by the ocean on the grounds of EIWA radio mission near Monrovia and spent four days resting and shopping. Our cottage was about
fifty yards from theAtlantic Oceananda quarter of a mile from a beautiful beach.
We enjoyed ourselves and were able to return to the work-with renewed vigor.
The Shows arriving at Robertsfield.
Timothy's birthday with James, Debbie

Boatman, and Teresa Shaw.
ELWA is the powerful voice of the Sudan Interior Mission broadcasting
the Gospel to most of Africa north of the equator and reaching even farther by
short wave. ivjdio time is for sale to missionsof all denominations which presents
a great challenge to us who foster New Testament Christianity.

Liberia now has a new Vice President, the Hon. James E. Green, elected
without opposition in a special election in January and installed into office April 24. The Liberian Vice President serves basically the same function as our own. This is only one of the indications of a stable government following the
death of President Tubman. The new president. Dr. Tolbert, has instituted many needed reforms in the government, reducing graft, inefficiency, and dishonesty.
He has also started many public works programs such.as roads, rice development, and hospitals. We do feel that he has taken many decisive steps in the right
direction.
From all we can find out about him. President Tolbertis a deeply religious man. He is a Baptist, President of the Liberian Baptist Mission Association, and the pastor of two churches near Monrovia. When he became president, he gave up all his other offices and responsibilities except his church work. Some of our Baptist missionary friends know him personally and testify that he is sincere in his faith (he doesn't drink in apolitical situation where liquor flows freely), and has a great passion for souls. We have been promised that Dr. Tolbert will visit our school for a special program when he comes to Bassa County in the near future. We are all very excited about this and do ask for your prayers for us as we make preparation for his coming. The Wayne Shaw family is still living with us because their house is not finished; however, their house should be ready for occupancy within the next few weeks. Wayne and Anna are in the full swing of the work here, in good health,
and working hard.
The Boatmans are getting ready to return home in July. It hardly seems possible that it should be time for them to go home yet, but Charles is scheduled to begin teaching at St. Louis Christian College when school opens this fall. We are going to miss them here, but do realize that they have obligations at
St. Louis.
We are much concerned about new recruits to the work here now that some
are returning home. George and Ron are due to return home in December, creating a further need for recruits. Wedo want you folk to be praying with us that others will see the need here, and accept the challenge to give themselves to the work here. We especially need someone who can help with the high school teaching
in math and science . The expanding college program and our own approaching return to the states emphasizes the need for more help with the college program.
Since we have mentioned closing our term, here are some of the factors we will be considering as we plan: (1) the need of the work here as compared to
the need back home, (2) new recruits to replace us, (3) the ability of the Liberians to enter into the teaching, and (4) the educational opportunity available to our
own children. We have alreadynotedconsiderable progressin the first area, and the Liberians are already helping with the teaching; however, the supportof these teachers by their own people is lagging far behind . Ideas about self-help and regularly committed support have not yet taken hold partly because the people are reluctant to accept new ideas, and I am afraid that foreign missionaries have carried the heaviest load of financial and leadership responsibility for so long that it is hard for the people to stand on their own two feet. In the last area, our children will finish their first year at the Lamco International School on June 10. To the best of our knowledge, we can enroll them again next term. Response to our report about support and needed return travel funds has been encouraging. We have already received news of new funds toward return travel expenses. We thankthose who have responded, and request your continued prayers and support. Cost of living continues to rise in response to recent world economic changes causing some concern about future needs. At the present, our support is adequate for our on-the-field needs; however, the matter of emergency funds and especially travel funds continues to need attention. Our family is all a year older now. Ail of our birthdays are bunched between January and May. Timothy is now twelve, Beverly ten, James eight, and Greta and I are almost old enough to stop having birthdays (thirty-four; I had to stop and figure it out). We are happy in our work here and do appreciate all that you 'are doing for us. God be with you until we see you in the next
letter.
The Meeces
Our landlord, Mr. Dro, and his wife

in front of our house.
FINANCIAL REPORT
11/22/71 to 6/1/72
Travel Fund
Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G . Click

10345 Castle Drive
MacGomery Chrlitlon Man'sFtllowihtp
Uvlng-Link Support
$ 25.00

Holli Ferry Chriitlan Church

Alverdo Christian Church
12105 Old Halls Ferry Rood

Anonymous Givers M/M Boswell

B. Bender
2950.69 50.00 40.00 5.00 1.00

50.00
First Chriilan Church (HovreDeGraea, Md.) First Chriilon Church (Florlisant, Mo.)
First Chritflon Church (Gillesple, III.) First Chrliion Church (Holyoke, Colorado)
D. Bunee
130.00 150.00
25.00
100.00
25.00 5.00
Dolly Field M/M Grimier
JenningsChurch of Christ (Million Study Group)

Modesto Chrlitior) Church Memorial Christian Church North Tacoma Chrlitlon Church
15.00 640.57 20.00 185.00

5.00
M/M Plckens
Pontoon Beach Church of Christ
160.00
100.00 120.00
M/M Porker
Pine Plots Christian Church
Pleosont Hill Christian Church (Young Aduit Clais) M/M Rector
25.00
5.00 80.00 247.20 50.00
Slote Valley Christian Church Sponlih Lake Church of Chriit

Wolltown Christian Church (Mission Fund)
Wotion Chopel Christian Church

Westwood Christian Church
100.00 200.00
Special Gifts, Chriitmoi 1971

M/M Ham
75.00
10.00 15.00 35.00 5627.85
M/M Aubrey M/M Click M/M McDonald

TOTAL RECEIVED DISBURSEMENTS
BALANCE
4335.20 1292.65
10.70
INTEREST
Corrected Savings Balance (June 1, 1972) (Forchildren's education, rent, ond dally
llvir>g expenses
$1303.35
. ".ît-
High school and junior high school

student body.
Jld&UO'
Missionaries: Charles Boatman Family Forwarding Agents: Mr. & Mrs. Duane Garren
June, 1972
1360 Grandvtew Drive
Florissant, Mo, 63033

Dear fellow-laborers.
Those of you who have been interested in our work from the beginning are fomiliar with the name of Byron Tarr. Byron was the Liberian student at the University of Illinois whom Bro. Gibson befriended in late 1968. It was through him that we became acquainted with the Christian Education Foundation and received the Invitation to
come to Lliêria . i
Byron, now Dr. Tarr, returned to Liberia this past month, after completing his doctor's degree in economics. He
had received a very attractive job offer from one of the foreign-owned concessions in Liberia . He could have thus profited financiolly to a great degree. But the spirit of the man Is shown in the fact that he rejected this offer, to accept a position in government at a 6C% sacrifice in salary. He is now on the job as Assistant Minister
of Finance for Taxation. His Immediate superior Is a member of the Cabinet, as well as being the President's brother. Brother Tarr accepted this position because of what it will enable him to do for his people.
The tribal people of Liberia hove been shut out of government almost completely by the Americo-Llberians. For f
a tribal man such as Byron to receive such a high-level appointment In national government is a tremendous honor
and testimony to his characterYet, In spite of this, he remains the humble servant of Christ we have known him
to be since we first met. In a recent church service soon after his return, he spoke with great humility of his movement here In ways'we could never have dreamed of four years ago. We request your prayers for Joseph Gbadyu, one of our co-
important position and asked the people for prayers in his behalf. We urge you to pray for him also, as he can have a powerful Influence on the Lord's work in Liberia. Once again, we are reminded that God is blessing the
'
workers and County Supervisor of Education. He was seriously Injured In an auto accident last month. He was thrown
l
i
through the windshield as the car overtyped, receiving a

concussion and severe lacerations of the'face, narrowly
A*
^
2S ^
Ijjfl
^ I
avoiding damage to one eye. He Is recovering speedily and
should be back to work in a few weeks. Liberian highways
are extremely dangerous. There are no more than 20,000 cars

prohibits proper maintenance of vehicles. Standards for licensing drivers are low. Hardly a month goes by without a
in the country, but the accident rote is very high. Poverty
' 1^. /i:

to the list.
.QvvH
m m
serious accident on the road to Monrovia . Taxis and trucks
stop in the middle of the road to pick up passengers and
freight, and sometimes park on the road at night without lights.
If you have a vacant spot on your prayer list, the tjravel safety of the missionaries would make a worthy addition
Life is Interesting in Liberia Department: 1) One morning recently we stepped out the front door of the house to see a three-foot-long black cobra looking at us. Since we did not have the proverbial mongoose to fight him, we went into battle with what Is known locally as a cutlass. Residents of the U.S. Com Belt would recognize It as a "corn knife." The snake went the way of all flesh. 2) The rainy season has come early this year. May brought us fifty inches of rain. One night It rained nineteen inches! All is well, however, we have not yet needed to trade in
the car for a motorboat.
Charles and Pat have both been teaching classes at Bible Faith Christian Church and World-Wide Missions Church this month . The eagerness with which these people approach the study of the Bible is a delight to behold. Mark and Deb have just completed the school year at the Lamco International School. They received several awards at the closing program. Both children were given a new pen For their good penmanship. They did not believe their father's explanation that they have inherited that skill
"""* _
jjr^ 1
f
sixth grade, beat even the ninth graders in becoming the champion speller K
of the whole school. Mark tied with three other students for second place .
from him! Mark received the highest grades In his class. Deb, who is in
It Is only excessive humility that keeps the parents from disclosing their pride in their children!
How about a short lesson in Liberlan English? In the following list, the first term is Liberian, and the second is its meaning in American idiom. "Again," as In "I am ready again." "now" "For you," as in "Is this book for you?" "Is it yours?" "Carry," as In "Please carry me." "Give me a ride."
"Cartoon," (although It is spelled carton) as In "Put it In a cartoon" "In a box." "Nevermind," in response to bad news "I'm sorry."
"Book," as in "He knows book." ."He is literate."
"Born-town," as In "Zorzor is my born-town." "birthplace"

"Chunk," as in "Don't chunk that rock." "throw"
"Come," as in "I'm coming to go." "I am leaving now." "Onetime," as In "He did it one time "immediately" "Ever since," as in "I have lived here ever since." "for a longtime." "Myself," as when one person says "I feel great today," his friend replies, "Myself." "Me, too." In addition to many other such expressions, there are many other English words which are spoken with such a strong accent thwt It is very confusing the first time you hear them. One of the best examples: We often see a boy walking down the street with a box on his head, crying out, "Boyay/ boy ay!" He is speaking in the common pattern.
Pictures this month show some scenes from school.
Number
one is Charles in one of the evening classes. Principles of the Basic Bible Doctrine class. Number three Is the morning
assembly for devotions and announcements. The students are
gathered inside the unfinished auditorium of the new Worldwere seated out of the picture to the right. Since there are
no permanent seats in the auditorium yet, the boys all stand

during this session.
As we close for this month, we request again that you be In prayer for workers. There will be need for several
more missionaries by this time next year. God has promised to raise up the workers If we will pray for them.
Please place this burden on your heart.
Yours In His service.

July, 1972
We have just passed what has probably been our most trying time in Liberia, but the Lord has been with us and helped us through. Some of you know that James and Beverly were bitten bya rabid dog. This happened justafter our last newsletter
was mai led.
At that trme, we were uncertain about whether or not the dog actually had
rabies, so we had to begin giving the children the shots to be safe. Because there are no testing facilities here, the dog's head had to be sent to Sweden. This took several days, and the children had taken tenof the shotsbefore the test came back. The test was positive; the dog had rabies.
This gave us quite a shock as you can imagine, but the doctor assured us that we had begun the shots in plenty of time and that there was no great danger. The children had taken enough of the shots for ys.tp be.sure, that they were not allergic to the vaccine. He also said that to be doubly safe, the series of shots should be
extended to twenty-one rather than the normal fourteen.
To make a long story short, Beverly and James have finished all the twentyone shots three weeks ago with little ill effect. The shots, taken in the abdomen,
are somewhat painful but not nearly somuch asthey were a few years ago. We are proud of the children; they were bravethrough the whole ordeal, hardlywhimpering and usually came away laughing after a sometimes painful stick.
The doctor explained that the vaccine is given in a mercurochrome base caus ing a burning sensation in the area of the injection not unlike putting a mild antiseptic on a cut. The shot caused a red blotch about the size of a quarter, and sometimes caused a slight itching. This was the only uncomfortable effect the children complained of, and it soon went away.
I am sorry if this sounds like a medical lecture, but when it gets close to
you, you feel a need to know all you can about it. Now that it is over, we feel
fortunate and thankful that God was with us.
We are not alone in our trouble. Manyof our American Peace Corps friends have been in the same situation. The doctor told us that he had given the shots to
over one hundred people in the last year. He also said that in his estimation rabies
was the most serious threat to life in this area of the world. Three Liberians have
died of rabies since we came eighteen months ago. I'll take lions, elephants, and snakes any day; you can shoot them.
As if thiswasn't enough trouble, Greta comedown with Malaria in the middle of all this. It took two trips to the doctor and two series of blood tests to discover the problem. Then she took one series of medicine, had a relapse and hod to take another. She was in and out of bed for almost a month. At this writing she has
fully recovered but has learned that she must take it easier here in the heat.
As I said in the beginning, this has been a difficult time, but we are thankful that the Lx>rd has seen us through and allowed us to returnto being a normal family
again.
The Wayne Show family has moved into their new house, leaving us alone again. They do not have electricity or running water and will not have for some weeks. The house is nice and roomy and will make a comfortable home.
The Boatmans are to leave for the States on July 17. They will spend some time in Europe on the way. Besides some tourism, Charles will spend some time at UAbri Fellowship in Switzerland studying Philosophy under the well-known Fransis A. Schawffer. To say the least, we are going to miss them. The biggest news here now is the impending visit of the President of Liberia to Basso County. While in the county. President William R. Tolbert will visit our school and take part in a special programon July 19. Asyou can imagine, we are all excited about his visit and are looking forward to it with just a bit of fear and trembling; we are not used to rubbing shoulders with presidents.
We are not sure what the visit of the president will mean to Liberia Christian
College or how it will affect its future, but the Liberians feel that the government will be able to help the school in some (iiysical way, perhaps by supplying funds for the juniorand senior high school. If so, this would be a great blessing to us,
because it would leave us free to develop the college more fully. Whatever the result, it will be a "Big Day" for us. We do ask that you pray especially for us during that day. In our next letter we hope to have pictures and a full report of
the event.
Weare thankful that oursupport continues to be regular and that it isgrowing. We cannotthankyou enough for your support and prayers for us. We praythat God will bless you as He has blessed us.
Pictures in this issue:
1. Beverly watching our neighbor children eating "fufu." The Liberians, especially children, eat out of the same pot with their fingers. 2. James drawing water fromour well. The building behind is the neighbor's kitchen. The water drawing is only for the picture; we now have a hand pump and a water tower, giving us running water in the house. 3. Timothy and Douglas Shaw helping gather coconuts.
Your Christian servants in Liberia,

10345 Castle Drive


tMdenca^ C'(vUAtUui
August. 1972
a mountain of iron ore and transporting it by rail to Buchanan for treat ment and shipment to the U. S., Europe, and Japan, We came here for a
the Liberia - Guinea border where the Lamco Mining Company is excavating
I am "writing this in Nimba, about I65 miles inland from Buchanan on
with all the rabies shots and boosters, and this being the only time in the whole year (except Christmas) that we have a common school vacation,
we decided to take a short pleasure trip.
all." e are all back in good health now, the children have finished
short vacation between school semesters to relax and "get away from it
We are staying in the Baptist Mission guest house, a nice three bedroan house rented to missionaries on a short-term basis for about $5,00 per day. We came here on the Lamco rail-bus which is free; so we thought
we couldn't miss.
have a safe and enjoyable trip home. They are due to arrive in St. Louis
on August 17.
us not a little lonesome and scamewhat shorthanded. We pray that they will
We saw the Boatmans off for home by way of Europe on July I7, leaving
to the two morning and one evening class, I will now teach two more evening
classes. All of us will be sixteen or seventeen class hours each week. It requires at least twice as much time for preparation and grading of papers outside of class as the actual classroom time. We are going to be
rest of us will have to assume a much heavier teaching load.
Plans are pretty well made for next semester. By the time you receive this, we will be in full swing. Because the Boatmans have gone hone, the
In addition
busy.
Tolbert s visit to Bassa County was the big event it presnised three-ri^ circus, and a political rally. There were parades, clowns' dancing in the streets, public demonstrations, and lots of speeches.
to be. The whole affaar turned out as a oanbination of a county faiTT'

On Wednesday afternoon. July 19, at five oliclock, President
Morgan, Senator Harmon, Supervisor of Schools Gbadyu, and Abba Karnea

the leader of the Christian Education Foundation,
Tolbert cê to Lêria Christian College for the "offical" opening of the school. The President was acccaipanied by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, The Resident pro tempore of the Senate, the Minister of Education, and ôut forty other important people fran Monrovia, Also on the iôgr^ from Bassa County were: County Superintendent (governor)
'
Tthe was made up of the speeches by the Joseph andprogram Abba Kamga presented program and various needs ofofficals. the school to the President and his party. The President's speech was a short congratulatory message and a thank-you to the missionaries. He made a donation of- $2,000 to the school on behalf of himself and those who were vath him. He did promise continued interest and support for
the school in the future, ^
^ . H? us that perhaps government willby beproviding able to help the school, especially the junior high school program, sane teachers. The visit of the President will draw attention to the^
school and its needs,
thanlcs to us for what we were doing for his country and his people
^ 4.^ the President, his hand and talk vnth him briefly. He was kind and gracious in hisshake personal
Throughout the program he showed a lively interest in what wS beiîg said.
spGch he had been listening. webe know at least we , have the ear showed of the that President; how valuable thatSo, will in the future
IS known only to the Lord.
^ Before we close this letter, we want to thank everyone for the interest
prayer and concern which helped pull us through. expressing School ope^ August ^ for registration, and classes start on the 7th givxng us plenty to keep us busy. With our increased work load we continue
Until next time, irre remain yours for Christ in Liberia,
The Meeces
rents r^xes shots. We received a large number of leuSs eês^nf
prayers,^d concern shown during Cretans bout with M Jsîa Sd tL cMld
C^c^vPictures in this issue:
v\-c^
1, Dr, William R, Tolbert speaking to the

'offical" opening of Liberia Christian
2. The President and his party. Supt, Morgan and llrs, Victoria Tolbert dressed
in white, Mrs. Morgan at the left of the
picture,
College,
3 The Hon. Joseph Gbadyu, Supervisor of

The Boatman*s and all their African
Schools for Grand Bassa county, speaking

finery on Sunday before departing from Liberia the following day.
at the farewell program for the Boatmans,
i"-
, '

10345 Castle Drive


jUdenia
September, 1972
The second semester of school has settled down to the regular routine, the children are
settled into the Lamco International School for another year, and the rainy season is beginning
to wind down toward our third dry season in Liberia.
Our life here continues to provide a continuousvariety of work, challenge, and problems. Within the past few weeks we have had to cope with a "plague" of conjunctivitis (pink eye), a small riot at the local theater when we went to see the "Ten Commandments" (thankfully no one was hurt), and a rogue (thief) tried to break into our house but made enough noise to wake us up and I scared him off before he took anything So, as you can see, life goes on as normal.
For some time I have wanted to feature some of our work with the local churches in the
newsletter. This seemed a good time to do that. I trustthatyou willenjoy the following report.
From the time we arrived, we have attempted to cultivate a good working relationship with the churches in Buchanan, especially those that are members of the Christian Education Foundationand supportthe college. Ourwork with two of these churcheshas been encouraging
the World-Wide Missions of Liberia and the Bible Faith Christian Church.
Among the churches that support the college, the World-Wide Church has been the most faithful. Bro. Abba Kamga is the leading figure in the World-Wide Church and is Chairman of the Christian Education Foundation. When we first arrived in January of 1971, Bro. Karnga came
by each Sunday (we had no car then) and took us all to worship with the World-Wide Church.
We were often called upon to preach or teach a class. Since then both Charles Boatman and I have taught several extended series of classes on such subjects as the church, salvation, and worship. In addition to this, Greta has been teaching d sewing class in the World-Wide adult evening school for over a year. Recently Anna Shaw has been helping with the class. We con tinue to worship with this congregation regularly and are still called upon to preach and teach.
The World-Wide Church is an independent, indigenous group that is strongly Biblical in both doctrine and practice. Many ofthe leaders, including Bro. Kamga, have brokenaway from
a particularly "hard shelled" Baptist group because they were not given Biblical answers to
questionable doctrines and practices.
They have established several mission and preaching stations in Monrovia, along major highways, and in the interior. At the present thieyare building a beautiful building to house the
Buchanan congregation. From the beginning Liberia Christian College has held classes in one wingof the yet unfinished building. Some financial aid for this building hascome from the States,
but much of the work has been done by the local congregation. Plctureswe are Including in this issue will illustrate the need of the World-Wide Church for this new building.
Perhaps our most encouraging and fruitful work among the local churches has been with
the Bible Faith Christian Church which you will remember from previous stories we hove featured
in our letter. We thought you would enjoy hearing more.
> MM*
X**
contact with the
Bible
Faith
S - C h r i s t i a n Church was a few months after we had
been here, but our relationship with them has
111 in
grown since then. Many of you will remember frhe story of our visit with these people at their
m^^SsSl
1^ _ .
annual conference this post January. That conference ot Grand Kola was probably our most
The spirit of Christian fellowship, the love for
the word of the Lord, and the zeal forthe winning
""
ij
Jt'
'HsS^^Ki enjoyable working experience here In Liberia.

"~
of the lost displayed there Impressed us and en couraged us to work more closely with them.
Since then we have been worshiping with them as regularly as we can and hove conducted several classes with the leaders of the congregation on such subjects as church leaders, worship,
the Lord's Supper, stewardship, the plan of salvation, and theChrlstianhome . While the Boatmans were still here, Pot began teaching a Sunday School class for the young people at Bible Faith
every Sunday afternoon. Recently Greta and Anna have been working together with this class, teoching about fifty youngsters every week. They hove been using some of the old Sunday School
material people hove been sending us to a great advantage in this class. The children love to
listen toBiblestories, sing, andespecially appreciate a small paperor Bible picture to take home with them . Many have never had a Sunday School paper to take home before . Just before the
Boatmans left, this group put on oneof the finest programs of songs, plays, recitations, readings, etc., that I have seen In a long time.
From the beginning we have found the Bible FaithChurch more closely related to the New
Testament pattern than most others here. There are only two matters that we have questioned
about their faith and practice the Infrequent observanceof the Lord's Supper, anda tendency
to delay unduly the baptism of new converts. Through patient teaching we hove seen some
Supper which is now observed more frequently. Ijl jT" ,

To the best of our knowledge, these people
progress, especially In relation to the Lord's
'
T-
mgnPfct
are completely indigenous, having no denomi

national ties and receiving no outside help whatever in the work they are doing. In fact,
they told us that they had refused help from
several sources because it would involve a compromising of their faith. They have established several new congregations near Buchanan, in the interior, and recently in Monrovia. Their building, which they built on their own, is one of the nicest in town. The Bible Faith people have asked us to become "their missionaries," which we consider to be a compliment, but we told them of our obligations to the college and encouraged them to send their people to us so we could train them to do the needed work. They have done this, and at this time two of their leaders are faithfullyattending the Church Leaders Extension Class where I am teaching the book of Acts this semester and taught the Gospel of John last semester. We feel that we can do them more good by training them to do their own work than if we actually becarfie ''their missionary" and did the work for them. Thus, we have seen themgrowslowly, but is, is a growth that will last.
We have done some work with other churches in town, the Apostolic Faith Church, the
African Gospel League, and the United Methodist Church "B," but all of these have strong de nominational ties and have been lesscooperative. However, we have always been free to preach the truth as revealed in the Scriptures, which often goes contrary to the traditions of their de nomination. Forinstance, last Easter I gave a sermon on "Baptismasa Picture of the Resurrection" after several people had been sprinkled in the Methodistchurch. The pastorcame to me later and apologetically explained that he sprinkled the people because they had no other facilities for
baptism. (The Atlantic is less than a half mile from the church.) I have been invited to speak
there several times since then which would never happen back home. Our present burden of work with the college is so great that we have too liltle time to work with the churches as we would like. Our greatest present need is more teachers to help lighten the work load we now have so that we can all doa better jobof teachingand be morefree to help
the churches. Pray for us and ask the Lord of the harvest to send more laborers into the field.
Pictures in this issue:
1. The new building for the World-Wide Church, still under construction. The college meets in
the wing to the left. 2. World-Wide's present building.
3. The Bible Faith Christian Church.
4. Wayne preaching at a recent Bible Faith service.

5. United Methodist Church "B"
God bless each of you for your continued faithful prayers and support of our work.
Yours for Christ in Liberia,
4- %

10345 Castle Drive

i! II !i i! !i li

JldeniA
November, 1972
THE MEECE REPORT
The Meeces: Wayne, Greta, Timothy, Beverly, and James.
The Work In Buchanan, Liberia
Jli
di
The Shows: Wayne, Anna,

Douqias, and Teresa.
Dear ChnsMan Friends,
George WacaserandRon Ayers.
and praying for a satisfactory answer to that question. We have finally reached a decision which we believe
Recently people have beenasking us, "Whenare youcomtng home?" We havebeenwaiting, studying,
is in-line with our purpose and in keeping with the Lord's will. We will be staying in Liberia an additional six months. Our original plans were to return in December, 1972, but now we will return to the States in
either July or August, 1973. The reasons for this decision fall into two general groups: the increasing amount
of work to be done here, and the need of personnel to do the work.
Our teoching program at Liberia Christian College is divided into four divisions: junior high, high school, college, and extension school. In the first three divisions, anew class is being addedeach year until
school has been added to benefit the semi-literate church leaders who cannot qualify for the college classes.
result, our teaching load was almost doubled, and next year the same additions must be made. An extension
man college class. This year we added eleventh grade and sophomore college plus the seventh grade. Asa
we have all the grades from seventh grade through college. We started last year with tenth grade and a fresh
The workcontinuestogrow far beyond what we hod dreamedit would be when we started. We can see progress from all these programs, and we just cannot see ourselves dropping such a work after only beginning.
The problem of increased workisfurthercomplicated by a lackof people to do the work. TheBoatmans
fulMlme and one part-time Liberian teacher. James Morgan is teaching the seventh grade, and Abba Komga
is helping me with the extension class.
for Geoige or the Meeces. Ron Ayers has agreed to stay with us for another year. Should we return home in December as planned, all the work would fall on the Shaws and Ron Ayers, an Impossible task. We have one
have returned to their teaching duties in the States, and George Wacaser will complete his two-year term in December and olso return home. TheShawscame last March to help fill the gap, but there is no replacement
We are hoping for some relief in the |uniorhigh-high school progrom through the Liberian government, but there have been noftrm promises as yet. When school begins next year we will need on eighth grade teacher and a^high school French teacher. At this time we do not know how these will be provided. Such a burden has been placed upon us; such a need faces us; we cannot abandon our job when it is not finished. The elders of the Halls Ferry Christian Church, Florissant, Missouri, our sponsors in this work,
have given their permission and blessing for six months additional time spent in the work here.
Only one thing remains to make our plans possible we need the continued support and prayers of churches and Individuals v4io have helped make these first two yeors possible. We are requesting that each
only oshort way; we cannot turn back until we seethe end of the matter is possible. When Igoto myeleventh grade English class each day Isee Bruce, who wept as the Boatmans were leaving, Daniel, Isaac, Ousley,
and Samuel, all good students, I can help them only If 1 stay. In my extension class there is Brother Peter
of you continue your support during this additional time. A door has been opened, we have walked inside
Vah, a Methodist pastor who con hardly understand English. Every few days he begs me to help him learn to
read (Mr. Kamga is now trying to help with this need). Each student hos his own need; our hearts must go
The local churches also need our help. We have plans to take part in camps, conferences, andnallies
out to them.
OS much as time and opportunity will allow us this year during the school vacation. We have already been Invited to the Bible Faith Christian Church Conference in January and a large youth rally the same month. We Would like to make several trips into the interior visiting as many churches as we can. Only time will
tell how this will work out.
The only problem is that while the Liberian schools are having vacation (December to early March), our children are still attending the Internotional School at Lomco. This limits our ability to be away from home
for any long period of time.
We are all in good health and getting ready for the dry season and school vacation which Is at hand.
By the time you receive this letter we will have enjoyed one more new experience that our work here has allowed. On November 11, we will go toMonrovia with Abba Kamga, leader of the Christion Education Foundation, and Joseph Gbodyu, Supervisor of Schools for Bassa County, for an interview about Liberia
Christian College on ELTV, the Liberian rrational TV station.
We do thank each one for your continued, faithful support. God has continued to meet our needs through your generous spirit. We praise Him os we express our thanks to you.
Your servants in Liberia, i
0

10345 Castle Driv^ St. Louis, Missouri 63136
U(;)erlan Christian College Financial Report

Jyne to November^ 1972
Alvprda Christian Church Anonyrnous Christvlew Christian Church

Colchester Christian Church
50.00 40.00 30.00

75.00 67.50 125.00

IstChrlstion Ch, HovrePeGrace# Md.
1st Chpist|an Ch, Gillespie, III. tst CJhristlan Ch/ Florissant, Mo. Halts FerryChristian Church M/M H. Hamm
50.00 2497.15 50.00 25.00 25.00 12.00 450.00 37.03 160.00 120.00 108.00 150.00 125.00
^/M J. Hendrix
PersofKil Gift
Memorial Christian Church
Modesto Christian Church Nctionpl Missionary ConventionPontoon Beach Church of Christ Pine Flats Christian Church
Spanish Loke Church of Christ Travel Fund (MqcGomery Christian Men's Fellowship)
Walltown Christian Church
As BrotherMeece statedinthis newsletter, your prayers and support are very much needed. Forthose whoare not regularly supporting this important mission work, a orie-timegift to the travel fund would be a great help.
o
>0
OS 9
S"
In Hi service.
cx>
2
f
a
Potrick G . Click, Sr. Forwarding Agent
a
9

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JldenUi^

Buchanan, Liberia, West Africa

Forwarding Agents: Mr. & Mrs, Duane Garren

Florissant, Mo. 63033

cient for graduation in Liberia . It is also necessary to pass a national

we could go to the phone and dial for a load of reody-mixed concrete! HH

Florissant, Mo. 63033

Handthensmalerpolesare tiedto hes withvines, fonri ga latice-work.

meals of "colintry chop," tradltiotxil Liberian food . it usually consists of rice,

'i. ;v. 'r

- ': c'----'iijr '

Itsrepioced by "dumboy," whic iscas va ro t boiledandpounde . When

I and a week of family camp, and we enjoyed it immensely! We had ample

B' tunitiesit afforded us. It really was a treatfor usl

7. Some of the younger clHzens of Grand Kolla, who sper# much of

We were reminded of the proverbial goldfish bowl. But we enjoyed

Florissant, Mo. 63033

A matter we discussed at great length is the Lord's Supper. Among the

congregations In the Bible Faith fellowship, none observed the Lord's

leaders of the various congregations announced their collective decision

3. Wayne Meece's class of church leaders.

4. Ron Ayers' class of young people .

5. Children playing while some of the men study the scriptures.

Yours in His service,

Buchanatiy Liberia, West Africa

Missionaries: Wayne Meece Family

Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G . CMck

St. Louis, Missouri 63136

12105 Old Halls Ferry Road

Wayne's Bible class at Grand Kola

An unknown child at Grand Kola

The college classroom-office building at. present state of construction

Florissant, Mo. 63033

Dear friends in Christ,

which'jjwe are working). Teacher Morgan had been on government salary,

"Liberianizng" ourstaf as o n as pos ible.

was the l^st we could do under the circumstances,

it was not a good

C.E.F. His name Is Joseph CkK^dyu (pronounced "buy-you"). Mr. Gbadyu Is

Education, Joseph Gbadyu; (2) the Show family as they

early part of 1973. Will you pray

walk to Zondo last April.

The Bible Faith Christian Church In Buchanan

Missionaries: Wayne Meece Family

Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G , Click

St. Louis, Missouri 63136

12105 Old Halls Ferry Road

Toepoe . (Thorn and Jerry will attend college

Our house at Grand Kola. The decoration on

Florissant, Mo. 63033

^ started when they should have.

rel6te^^||information with old, or to develop the thinking processes.

Buchanan, Liberia, West Africa

The Shows arriving at Robertsfield.

Timothy's birthday with James, Debbie

ELWA is the powerful voice of the Sudan Interior Mission broadcasting

a great challenge to us who foster New Testament Christianity.

Our landlord, Mr. Dro, and his wife

Missionaries: Wayne Meece Family

Forwarding Agents: M/M Patrick G . Click

St. Louis, Missouri 63136

Holli Ferry Chriitlan Church

12105 Old Halls Ferry Rood