Return to India
1955-1962 First Trip to Vellore
"To me the world has grown very small-for I have found home at opposite ends of the earth."
-Newsletter 23
Founding of Family Village Farms
"Come quickly and see", Helen, the woman who takes care of the children in my home, called excitedly, "see the light!" Peering from the doorway, I saw it,--in the flowerbed a few feet away from our wall - a white light radiating a halo about three inches in diameter. "What is it? ", I asked. The story she related was fantastic, yet many whom I have questioned say it is true.
The light comes from a stone which forms over the years in the throat of a 'King Cobra' from the poison which makes his bite so deadly. The King Cobra which harbors the stone will be over one hundred years old and nearly blind. It comes out at night in search of food. The stone is regurgitated to provide light for its search. When the snake finishes the food it swallows the stone and disappears. The stone is worth a fortune to anyone able to snatch it away before the cobra is able to retrieve it. It is told that in ancient times, such stones were sought to adorn the crowns of kings. I've been warned against any attempt to capture the stone. The snake is very dangerous. It is 15-20 feet long and thick as a man's leg. It can leap into the air to strike its prey. Suffice to say, I hardly need the warning. Within the last two months the light has been seen three times. It disappears within half an hour. The son of a man who charms and kills snakes for the skins, comes to search for it but so far has been unsuccessful.
-Newsletter 57
"She loves her baby and does not want to be separated from her. Therein lies our problem. There is no such thing as “Aid to Dependent Children," and Mannamma’s education is almost nil. Any training program requires at least eighth grade education. How can we help Mannamma to lead a healthy moral life and maintain herself and her child? India's streets and slums are full of women who have been thus exposed to moral dangers. Many of the children we take into our Farm and Home for Destitute Children and Aged come out of similar situations."
-Newsletter 39
"Recently a motherless child joined our Village Farm Family. Her name is "Vendaum" which means literally 'not wanted'"
-Newsletter 41
"When I think of the many children at the Family Village Farm, who have grown up and moved on to work and help a widowed mother or grandparent, or to marry and being families of their own, I am deeply grateful to God and to all of the sponsors and others whose faithful giving and prayers has made it possible"
-Newsletter 85
"India is a land of festivals. rich in ritual and tradition they provide the one bright spot in the drab round of daily toil. They are uninhibited and gay. Hunger and pain are forgotten and excitement reaches an emotional pitch experienced only by those as yet untouched by the sobering effect of literacy. Most significantly, the festival is a form of religious expression- and as such, an enigma to the West"
-Newsletter 19
Received the National Award for Public Health Service to India
Retirement and Final trips to India
"The triplets are all boys weighing 2-2.5 pounds at birth. Now, at six weeks, they have doubled their birth-weight, and look like little dolls bundled up in their blankets. What a great but precious responsibility we have been given"
-Newsletter 63