The Ohio Independent Baptist, February 1970

• • ares ur en by Ben Kendricks Ba ptist Mid-Missions Missionary To Central Afri<:an Republ jc ..Plea e don't leave n1e mon1n1y nd dadd). Plea e don't go.' ' With uch a cr) ing and obbing plea from ur little · even year old daughter, "e had to pu h her off and drive \\'a\ lea\ ing her among trange • hildren and adult whom he did 1ot kno~. I hall never forget the ir t time we Jeft our Pam at the ~i 1onary children, chool at Cram– eJ here in the Central African Re- >ublic. I can till ee her tanding here. alone and •"'obbing a though ner little heart would break. We Jidn·t know her thought at the time out he told u later on, that he houghr that he would never ee u again. that th1 wa the end of the road for her a far a her mommy nd daddy were concerned. And u . Ho\.\ did we feel leaving our little girl and driving off to our \.\'Ork at a mall bur'.' h tation know– ing that we would not ee her again 1or at lea t two month and knowing that we would not be able to bring her home for her first chool vacation i or four month ? Our heart were broken for we realized that thi wa just the beginning of a erie of long · eparation from th1 preciou · men1- ber of our family. The tear flowed and the lump in our throats seemed to cut off our breath but we knew that lh i i what we had to do. From now on, \\e would ha\e Pam with u f:or only four month~ of each year and the other time , he V¥Ottld be a\\ ay at school. Btt t ~ e ~ ere not alone in thi·~ ituat1on and Pan1 wa,"' not the only child at the dormitory with thi proble1n for the other children too had to ay good-bye to mom and dad. The old.er one realized that the eparation wa only for a few month but many of the younger children, like ottr daughter thought that momn1y and daddy were ju t walking out of their live and leav– ing them forever. I can hear you ay now, · uch a thing i not norn1- al . ., R ight you are. I t i n t normal to be eparated a,.. a family like thi but thi i exactly what mo t mi - "' ionary parent face and thi i a problem in which victory must be won. I remen1ber o well how I u ed to go out on the hi ll ide in the evening and with tear treanung down my face, look off in the di– rection of rampel and pray for n1y little girl. he wa con tantly in our thought and alway in our prayer . Education for every mi ionary child i a nece ity and thi.:- i why a chool t1ch a the Milner Memorial chool at Cran1pel wa tarted. l n– tead of eparation for year at a time, if the child wa , in America, we are eparated only for n1onth.:-. A much a it hurt to leave ot1r children like thi , each parent fully realize that thi i the b t olution for a very diffict1lt problen1. od ha. gracioL1 ly uppl 1ed a dorn1i tor,' and ,1 ·:'.)chool. He ha called qualified teachcr5 to thi field to pecifically 111eet tht\ teaching need. But 0L1r C rampel \chool prO\'ide cdttcatton only throt1gh eighth grade \\ hat happens after that? Where doe the young tudent go no\.\? Tht~ ha been a real problem here in the Central f rican Republic and Chad field and many of u believe that the only an wer 1 a high chool for our children. long with thi article come an urgent reque t for pra 1 er for uch a chool. We def1nitely need a high choo1. Our teen-age children have tried variou way to get their high ·-- chool ' tudie . ome have en– rolled in chool in other countrie . Other have taken corre pondence tudie while other have tayed in America. Our mi ionary rank have been depleted becau~e of the lack of choo] f acilitie . on1e parent ju t can' t ee leavi ng their children in America \.\ ith friend or boardino 0 the111 out in hon1e and chool for year at a time. They have good . rea on1ng to upport their po· -- ition. A of thi writing. our entral African Republic field ha come face to face with thi ituation and ~ e have committed our elve , under the hand of God. to build a high chool on our mi ion , .. tation at Bangui the capital of the entral African Re– public. We have been told over and over again that one of the fir t que - tion that many new n1i ionary candi– date .. a k i , ..What cho 1 facilitie do yoLt have for our children"? How n1uch better it i for the children to know that mon1 and dad are only a day', .. drive away. H \.\ thrilling it i to c unt da,' and week in tead of ye,lr , before the)' can be tog ther again a a famil) . Parent.. t , ca11 (I their \.\ ork n1uch better kno\\ ing that on or dat1ghter i not i\. th tis– ancl n1ilc a,vay and ~epar, t <l b) ) ear., bLtl on I, a fe\\ ht111dred n1tle a\.\ a), and parated by \\ t;;t.:k.~ ~t /1, .\ C /1oc>l f 01 111i\' 1<>1101 ) ' cl1iltl- 1 e 11 ? D c> I 11 ee < I 1 (> H r 11 c , 111) r I 1111 ~ 111c1re? 1h f irst l>loc s for our new school Just a few of our ~11gh Schoolers FEBRUAR 1970 I TH OHIO It D P ND NT BAPTIST I