Births

To Pauline and Charles Ndigirwa - a daughter Grace Kemilembe on 20th March

To Clare and Rob Miles - a daughter Zoe Clare on 10th June

Obituaries

Janet Whitmore

Janet, with Edward and their two young daughters Elizabeth and Hazel, went out to Tanzania in 1967.  She had great musical gifts and studied at the Royal Academy of Music before teaching music at Wadhurst.  Whilst Edward was teaching at St Philip's Theological College Kongwa, she was able to work with the students on their music.  They produced a book at 20 African hymns and this was used to promote local music in churches throughout the country.

When the Whitmores moved to Dodoma so that Edward could pioneer Theological Education by Extension, Janet taught music at Stockley School. Together with Barbara Wigg she trained choirs and continued to encourage the use of African hymns and tunes. The family returned to the UK in 1976 and Janet died on 24th May 2002.

Jessie Scudder

Jessie Scudder went to Kenya in 1932 to join her future husband, who had gone there two years earlier. The whole of her missionary career was spent in Samburu - 39 years in all.  In 1941 her husband died in tragic circumstances and Jessie was left with two small boys, one of whom died in childhood.

Nevertheless, she gave herself wholeheartedly to the task of winning the Samburu people for Christ.  She mastered the Masai language, as spoken by the Samburu, and was soon able to share the Good News with the people in their own language and, while doing so, she won their respect, affection and confidence.  Throughout her missionary career in Samburu her principal work was direct primary evangelism, but the Samburu are a nomadic cattle people, always moving from place to place in search of grazing.  This made the work of the missionary most difficult, for it was not easy to follow previous contacts, there being no settled villages.

In the early days the Scudders, like their colleagues, lived in tents, but later settled at Sirata Oirobi, the first Samburu mission station.  Many young Samburu warriors were won for Christ, and some went on to become church leaders.  By the time of her retirement from the field she had the great satisfaction of seeing the church under Samburu pastoral leadership.

She died in Derby on 28th April 2002.  Her funeral was taken by Bishop Bob Beak who also represented Crosslinks.

Crosslinks magazine August 2002 index