09 Mar On This Day in UB History: March 9

On March 9, 1841, the US Supreme Court handed down a ruling in favor of some slaves from Sierra Leone. The story was told in Steven Spielberg’s 1997 movie, “Amistad.” The case directly influenced our decision, 15 years later, to begin mission work in Sierra Leone.

In 1839, a Spanish slave ship left the island of Sherbro in Sierra Leone with a load of Mende and Sherbro slaves—perhaps several hundred in all. After the ship reached Cuba, 53 of them were bought and placed on a smaller ship, the Amistad, and sent to plantations in Cuba.

During the journey, Joseph Cinque led an attack on the ship’s crew, killing all but two crew members. They ordered that the ship be directed to Africa, but the crafty Spaniards sailed a zigzag course, and the Amistad drifted northward for two months. Finally, in August 1839, an American ship seized the Amistad off the coast of New York. By that time, only 39 of the original 53 Africans remained alive.

The Sierra Leoneans were taken to Connecticut, where slavery was still legal. But anti-slavery activists came to their defense. A Connecticut court declared that the Africans were not truly slaves. The case continued to the Supreme Court, which also sided with the Africans, declaring that they had been illegally transported and held as slaves, and had rebelled in self-defense. It ordered them freed.

News of the slave ship landing in New England spread quickly. Christians rallied around the Africans, providing food, clothing, and other support. The case also drew attention to their homeland. The sad case of the Amistad created much interest in missions.

The Sierra Leoneans returned to Sierra Leone in January 1842, accompanied by missionaries who started what became the Mende Mission. When United Brethren decided to begin work in Sierra Leone, missionaries from the Mende Mission helped us get settled. Then, in 1882, all assets of the Mende Mission were transferred to the United Brethren church, greatly expanding the scope of our work in Sierra Leone.

08 Mar On This Day in UB History: March 8

Hazel McCray served 16 years as Executive Secretary of the Women’s Missionary Fellowship, 1977-1993. She was diagnosed with cancer in 1992, and passed away March 8, 1993.

Hazel was born and raised on a farm in Northern Illinois. She married Robert McCray, and they farmed for 31 years near Claytonville, Ill. They were key laypersons in the Claytonville UB church.

Over the years, Hazel held pretty much every position in the Women’s Missionary Association at the local and branch levels. She joined the WMA’s leadership board in 1961, and served as its president for 14 years, a position which also put her on the executive committee of the Board of Missions.

In December 1977, Hazel was elected Executive Secretary of the WMA, and began her work the following spring. She simultaneously held the title of Associate Director of Missions. During her years in the national office, she visited the United Brethren work in Honduras, Jamaica, Sierra Leone, Hong Kong, Macau, and India.

Hazel was not only gifted in administration, but was a talented speaker who was much in demand. She was as an unflinchingly strong advocate for the WMA (which, during her years, changed its name to Women’s Missionary Fellowship). She loved the WMA, and loved United Brethren missions.

07 Mar On This Day in UB History: March 7

Throughout 2017, as we celebrate the United Brethren denomination’s 250th anniversary, we are looking at events throughout our history.

About 2 am on March 7, 1992, armed thieves broke into the United Brethren mission house in Freetown, Sierra Leone. They took $4000 in currency and $4000 in personal items—and left behind some badly-shaken UB missionaries.

Eight missionaries were present at the time:

• Stan and Sherry McCammon, along with children Rachel (9) and John (6), were in their first term as missionaries. Stan was the UB Business Manager.
• Sara Banter, 22, a nurse from Dillman UB church (Warren, Ind.), had arrived just two days before to begin her first term as a nurse at Mattru Hospital.
• Tom and Kim Datema, along with their young son, Ben. The Datemas had come to Freetown on business with the government and to pick up Sara. They were involved with development work in Sierra Leone.

Two Sierra Leonean watchmen were on duty when the thieves broke through the gate in the wall surrounding the mission house. Both watchmen were beaten; one suffered a broken wrist. One of them screamed, alerting Stan that something was wrong. He gathered everyone upstairs in their bedroom. They had heard a gun cock, and were all scared.

It took 15 minutes for the thieves to gain entry to the house. They came directly to the bedroom and kicked open the door. Five men entered and demanded rings, watches, bracelets, and other items. The missionaries complied. Kim, probably because she was pregnant, couldn’t remove her rings. They let it go, but later returned and held a gun on Ben, threatening to hurt the infant unless she removed her rings. With Tom’s help, she did.

The thieves took Stan to the office to get money. Stan opened the safe and gave them dollars, along with five bundles of leones from a desk drawer. They seemed satisfied. They also picked up tape players, a camera, a calculator, and other items, and then returned with Stan to the bedroom.

One of the men shined his flashlight at Sara and told her to come with him.

“No,” Stan said in a firm voice. The man left Sara alone.

A few minutes later they took Stan back to the office. They were mad that he hadn’t shown them the big safe, and threatened to kill him. Stan opened the big safe, and they helped themselves to the money inside. They tied him up and fire bullets into the ceiling.

Finally, the bandits took the mission van and fled. It was found later that morning in good condition.

The Missions board offered to bring back to the States any of the missionaries involved in the break-in. The McCammons cut their term short a couple months and returned to the States in late April 1992. The Datemas and Sara Banter left May 2, after the US State Department ordered all Americans to evacuate the country after a military coup.

04 Mar On This Day in UB History: March 4

Guillermo Martinez with his wife Linda and two young children.

On March 4, 1970, Guillermo Martinez was taken under guard to the airport in La Ceiba, Honduras, and put on a plane to Nicaragua. It was not his choice, but it was God’s plan for what, today, is a very strong Nicaragua Conference.

Guillermo Martinez was born in El Salvador. A Honduran couple adopted him when he was seven years old and raised him in Honduras, but he kept his citizenship in El Salvador. Guillermo moved to La Ceiba in 1950 and became involved with the United Brethren church. He went on to become a highly respected pastor in Honduras Conference.

Missionary Archie Cameron said of Guillermo, “He was a people’s pastor. He really went out after people, helping people, and continually visiting, visiting, visiting.” Fellow pastor William Smith-Hinds said, “He was tireless—always busy, friendly, outgoing, involved with people.”

In June 1969, El Salvador invaded Honduras in what is called the Soccer War, because it came after a soccer match between the two countries. In La Ceiba, far from the fighting, Guillermo was among the hundreds of Salvadorans detained for two months amidst terrible conditions. He held evangelistic services among the detainees, and many became Christians. However, it became clear that he couldn’t remain in the country, nor could he take his Honduran wife to El Salvador.

How about Nicaragua? A Honduran pastor had moved to Nicaragua in 1967 to start churches. He could use some help. So he was flown to Nicaragua, where his wife and three children joined him a month later. The Martinez family settled on the outskirts of Masaya, where he started a church. Within a year, 60 persons had found Christ.

Guillermo became superintendent of Nicaragua Conference, and led those churches for many years, including through the difficult years after the Sandinistas took power. He continued as superintendent until 1997, and passed away in September 2009.