When Zalene returned from India in February, 1953, she worked briefly at an orphanage in Pennsylvania. As of this
writing (June, 2011), we have been unable to determine how she came to work at this Pennsylvania-based facility. As
soon as we are able to find the actual facility where she was briefly employed, that could provide us with a clue.
We suspect that she may have been led there by a fellow missionary she traveled with when returning from India.
Naomi H. Knapp (Pictured Below), an American Baptist missionary, sailed together with her on the P&O Stratheden
ship from India to London. They were listed together on the ship's passenger manifest. Ms. Knapp (age 60) was from
Shinglehouse, Pennsylvania and served in Bengal-Orissa, India from about 1923 to 1953. It is highly possible that
she helped Zalene make this connection as Zalene had no definite plans for work after leaving India.
writing (June, 2011), we have been unable to determine how she came to work at this Pennsylvania-based facility. As
soon as we are able to find the actual facility where she was briefly employed, that could provide us with a clue.
We suspect that she may have been led there by a fellow missionary she traveled with when returning from India.
Naomi H. Knapp (Pictured Below), an American Baptist missionary, sailed together with her on the P&O Stratheden
ship from India to London. They were listed together on the ship's passenger manifest. Ms. Knapp (age 60) was from
Shinglehouse, Pennsylvania and served in Bengal-Orissa, India from about 1923 to 1953. It is highly possible that
she helped Zalene make this connection as Zalene had no definite plans for work after leaving India.
| Zalene's Work At The FWB Children's Home Middlesex, NC in 1953-54 |
| For a very compelling and unvarnished record of life in a Children's Home, we highly recommend "The Family" by J. Andrews Smith. This collection of firsthand accounts of life as lived by a succession of children in the Free Will Baptist Children’s Home at Middlesex, North Carolina, over a period of nearly 90 years—from the second decade of the 20th century to the first decade of the 21st century—is a most informative and inspiring read. The stories will both break your heart and lift your spirit. Click here to order. |
| The Free Will Baptist Children's Home in Middlesex, NC is still in operation today. If you would like to learn more about the facility or would like to make a monetary or in-kind donation, click here for more information. |
Click the PDF logo to download a PDF file of the 12
photographs in the collection.
photographs in the collection.
In any event, the work in Pennsylvania did not last long. Perhaps she was ready to be close to her family in North
Carolina after being gone to India for five years. She returned to North Carolina and for some time between 1953-1954
she was employed at the Free Will Baptist Orphanage (Now Free Will Baptist Children's Home) in Middlesex, North
Carolina, where she had also worked before attending FWBBC. She traveled around the state of North Carolina
raising funds for the Home as a chaperone for "Concert Class" groups. These groups of children would put on
programs in churches.
On one such trip in August of 1954, they visited the mountains of North Carolina and stopped for a time of swimming in
a mountain stream. Twelve pictures have resided in our family photo archive for years and, until recently, we were
unaware of their subject matter. These pictures are of that swimming trip. Click on the picture below to view the
collection.
Carolina after being gone to India for five years. She returned to North Carolina and for some time between 1953-1954
she was employed at the Free Will Baptist Orphanage (Now Free Will Baptist Children's Home) in Middlesex, North
Carolina, where she had also worked before attending FWBBC. She traveled around the state of North Carolina
raising funds for the Home as a chaperone for "Concert Class" groups. These groups of children would put on
programs in churches.
On one such trip in August of 1954, they visited the mountains of North Carolina and stopped for a time of swimming in
a mountain stream. Twelve pictures have resided in our family photo archive for years and, until recently, we were
unaware of their subject matter. These pictures are of that swimming trip. Click on the picture below to view the
collection.
| Naomi H. Knapp (Younger & Older) |