In March 1972 Joseph Crawford and his wife came from Abidjan to Ouagadougou. Their objective was to find a missionary home. No, not for themselves, but for the six Gilead graduates who had been assigned to Upper Volta. The Crawfords were on hand to welcome Wayne and Paula Almost, Bob and Fern Hurd and Jay and Gloria Martin. Arrangements were made for Brother Crawford to give these new missionaries a six-week language course and help them get established in their new assignment.

Brother Martin was appointed home overseer. Resident permits were granted, and the missionaries were well installed in Ouagadougou. For a time the work continued only there in the capital. But special pioneers were soon sent to Bobo-Dioulasso, and then, in 1973, a missionary home was established there. Robert and Lana Oliver and Brian and Jacqueline Pearce, who had previously served in Kenya, were assigned to Bobo-Dioulasso. After the lush, green fertile area of Lake Victoria in Kenya, it was a real contrast for them to come to the savanna of Upper Volta with its dryness for most of the year.

MISSIONARY ROLE IN PREACHING

As each class of Gilead School graduated we were happy to receive news of more workers assigned to Upper Volta. At present there are 25 missionaries in the country, and they have had a prominent share in the expansion of the Kingdom preaching here. Many of them first, though, had to learn French. And one of the best ways to learn is to use the language. This resulted in a number of amusing experiences, especially in a country where newcomers are not always familiar with local customs.

Renée and Philip Alderson are Gilead graduates from the United States. Soon after they arrived in 1974, Renée and Sister Almost were out preaching. Renée, still taking her language course, was prepared to deliver her presentation in French. Plucking up courage she approached the man of the family and valiantly spoke to him. Throughout her presentation of the Kingdom message he gazed raptly at her.

When the ‘sermon’ was over, the man asked if he could buy Renée as a wife and inquired about the dowry. Renée thought that at last she was beginning to get a grasp of what people were saying to her. She decided to risk a direct reply to him. However, she had mistaken the question and thought the man had asked her how long she had been married. So she replied, “I have been married for five ânes (donkeys),” poorly pronouncing the word for “years,” which is ans. To which the man dejectedly replied, “Wives cost a lot where you come from!”