It was in 1949 that Demetrius Atzemis, a Gilead graduate from Egypt, came to the Sudan for the first time. As in Egypt, the riverbanks in the Khartoum area were colored green with cultivated fields of cucumbers, leeks, and onions. Some avenues near the water provided welcome oases of shade under huge banyan trees. But these narrow areas of luxuriant green soon gave way to the bleak desert. The dominant color was brown. The sky was brown. The ground was brown. The mud brick houses were brown. And even many clothes were brown.

Then there was the searing heat. Temperatures at night reach 102° F. [39° C.] In the sun the thermometer soars to 140° F. [60° C.] Since water pipes were exposed to the sunshine, a “cold” shower could burn you if you didn’t first let the water run for a while.

In this setting, Brother Atzemis got busy. He preached mainly in Omdurman, obtaining 600 subscriptions. Then he went on to a smaller industrial town named Wad Medani, before returning to Egypt.

In 1953, Brother Atzemis returned from Cairo, this time for five months, and organized systematic coverage of territory in Khartoum. He was rewarded when the three Orphanides brothers came into the truth.

Brother Atzemis still returned for periodic visits, and in 1955 it was possible for the Society to send another missionary to Khartoum, Emmanuel Paterakis, who was able to stay for ten months.