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Collection 406 Records of SEND International

 Collection
Identifier: CN 406

Scope and Contents

Correspondence, reports, minutes, promotional materials, prayer letters, incorporation documents, news releases, statistics, newsletters, clippings, photographic prints and negatives, films, organizational charts, financial record, etc., related to the origins, development, and operation of SEND International in Alaska, Japan, Philippines, Taiwan, and U.S. based operations. Documentation begins with the pre-incorporation of the organization and its first iteration as the GI GOSPEL HOUR phase in Japan and the Philippines. Persons prominently featured include Frank Allen, Philip Armstrong, Olan Hendrix, Russell Honeywell, and Charles Hufstetler.

Dates

  • Created: 1943-1989

Conditions Governing Use

There are no restrictions on the use of this collection.

Biographical or Historical Information

SEND International was founded as the Far Eastern Gospel Crusade (FEGC) in 1947. The mission grew out of evangelistic work of American servicemen and women in the Philippines and Japan following World War II. Prior to incorporation, this took the form of two independent evangelistic outreaches, both called the GI Gospel Hour; GI Gospel Hour movements in both countries were closely aligned with Youth for Christ work. Their outreach included evangelistic meetings for fellow servicemen and women, radio broadcasts (the collection includes several of these; see Audio Tape Location Record of this guide), visitation to hospitals, speaking in churches and work with children. Two former military chaplains were the first chairmen for the work in the Philippines (Russell Honeywell) and Japan (Leonard Sweet). Honeywell and his wife, along with Carl and Mrs. Urspringer were the first FEGC missionaries to the Philippines, arriving there in late-1947. Over the course of its history, SEND focused its energy on work in Japan and the Philippines. However, it also established work in Taiwan, beginning in 1966. Work was initiated in Hong Kong during SEND's early history, was continued later through the secunding of one of its missionaries, Mildred Young, to another agency, and in 1985 when the mission established Hong Kong as one of its fields. In 1971, Central Alaskan Missions was merged into FEGC as a division. Work was also started in Spain in 1987. (More detailed information on work in these fields follows.)

Administratively, SEND operated with home councils in both Canada and the United States, and field councils in Japan, the Philippines, Alaska, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. The relative authority of these councils in policy development and decision-making was a debated issue as early as 1952, and an inter-field council (later called international council) was developed to represent the entire mission in planning.

Leon Hawley, a former military chaplain, served as FEGC's first Executive Secretary between 1947 and 1950. Philip Armstrong, first serving FEGC as Home Secretary, replaced him as Acting Executive Secretary in 1950 and shortly thereafter became Executive Secretary. Armstrong worked as FEGC's first director until 1980, when he became the mission's Minister of Missions. Frank Severn replaced Armstrong in directing the mission. Armstrong was killed in 1981 in an airplane accident in Alaska. Other figures who provided administrative leadership in the mission were R.E. Thompson Personnel Secretary during the 1950's and Edwin L. Frizen was the mission's Home Secretary between 1951-1953, after which he went to the Philippines.

Mission headquarters were relocated a number of times. At its founding in 1947, the US office was located in St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1948 headquarters were moved to Seattle, Washington, where they remained through mid-1949. The headquarters was then returned to Minnesota, this time in Minneapolis. In 1962, the headquarters was moved to Detroit, Michigan on Greenfield Road. In 1974, facilities were transferred to the Detroit suburb of Farmington Hills.

FEGC began a process to change its organizational name in 1965, which concluded in 1981. The name "Church Outreach Mission" was approved by a majority of FEGC's membership in 1978, but opposition was strong enough to prevent its implementation. SEND International was accepted as the official name in 1981.

FEGC publications included the quarterly Crusader and monthly Prayer Warrior. In 1971, the Crusader was retitled as Task; in 1975 the title was again changed to Far Eastern Gospel Crusade World; with the change of organizational name in 1981, the publication's title was changed to SEND International's World.

FEGC, particularly during its early years, held annual conferences, sometimes billed as a "Bible and Missionary Conference," which consisted of sessions with Bible teaching, missions emphasis, prayer, and mission business. Included in the conferences was orientation of new candidates. In later years, this candidate orientation became the primary focus of the meetings.

From its beginning in 1947, the mission belonged to the Evangelical Foreign Missions Association (EFMA). In 1951, it joined a second association, the Interdenominational Foreign Mission Association (IFMA), in which it continued to remain as of 1990. It decided in 1972 that it only needed to belong in one association, and therefore withdrew its membership from EFMA.

Japan. Ministry in Japan began immediately following the conclusion of World War II. The work of the mission was concentrated on evangelism (including street and tent preaching), church planting, literature distribution, work among Chinese, and student outreach. Headquarters for the Japan branch was located in Yokohama. Geographic areas of ministry included the prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama, Shizouka, Tochigi, Tokyo-To (which includes Tokyo), and Yamanashi, as well as Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands. The mission developed or supported the following institutions in Japan:

The Christian Academy in Japan (CAJ), founded in 1950 as the Japan Evangelical Christian School (See Folder 2-3), was a shared boarding school for the children of missionaries, to which the mission contributed staff and students. Okinawa Christian School was a second school utilized by SEND staff for the education of their children. The school was established in 1957 to provide an English education in a Christian context for both English and non-English speakers at the elementary and secondary levels. Unlike CAJ, enrollment was not limited to the children of missionaries. Okutama Bible Camp was established by the mission in 1960 to provide a retreat center for use by the mission. Work among students was concentrated in Kofu, where the Kofu Student Center was opened in 1966 to provide a central location from which missionaries could carry out their outreach. The Good News Center, opened in 1967 in Tokyo, was one of two mission bookstores. Its counterpart in Yokohama, the Yokohama Good News Center, was established in 1976. Finally, Nihon Shinyaku Kyodan was the association of indigenous churches developed from FEGC ministry.

Philippines. SEND's work in the Philippines began in 1946, concentrating on church planting, training national leaders, literature distribution, medical work, and student work. Its first venture in the Philippines was the establishment of the Far Eastern Bible Institute and Seminary (founded in 1948, commonly known by its acronym, FEBIAS, which later became its official name) in a suburban area outside Manila; mission headquarters were located on the same site. The mission focused its staff in several language areas: 1. Among the Tagalog-speaking lowland Filipinos of central Luzon; 2. among the Ifugao tribal people of the mountain regions of northern Luzon; 3. among the Bicolanos of southeastern Luzon in the late-1970's; 4. among the Ilocano's of Luzon's northernmost province (in cooperation with the Association of Bible Churches of the Philippines (ABCOP); and 5. among the Maguindanao people of Mindanao (in cooperation with International Christian Fellowship, Overseas Missionary Fellowship and Summer Institute for Linguistics). The mission later established or cooperated in founding other institutions:

Asian Theological Seminary (ATS) was opened in 1969 as a graduate division of Far Eastern Bible Institute and Seminary (FEBIAS), which was then renamed Febias College of Bible. Although FEGC was ATS's developing agency, Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society (CBFMS) and Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) later became official co-sponsors. Faith Academy was jointly formed in 1956 by twelve mission agencies in the Philippines to provide for the education and boarding of their children. The school opened for the 1957-1958 school year, and relocated in 1962 to accommodate the growing student body. FEBIAS (Far Eastern Bible Institute and Seminary) developed out of the concern of American military personnel who had served in the Philippines. Meeting in late 1945 in Manila, they felt the need for an "interdenominational, evangelical school with an evangelistic emphasis" in the Philippines. It was while developing an American board for the school that FEBIAS leaders joined with a similar group working in Japan to incorporate the mission as FEGC. Land for the school was purchased in 1947, and first classes were held in 1948. Russell Honeywell, a former chaplain in the Philippines during the war, became FEBIAS's first president. Located in suburban Manila, the school expanded its facilities while remaining at its original site, adjacent to the studios of Far East Broadcasting Company. FEGC established Good News Clinic in 1956 as a means to evangelize the Ifugao tribal people of the Philippines' northern Luzon area and establish a church among them. The Student Center was opened in 1964 in the heart of Manila's university and college district to give students a location at which to gather or study.

Alaska. Central Alaskan Mission (CAM) was founded in 1936, and in 1937 its first missionaries, Vincent and Becky Joy, arrived to implement the mission's church planting work with a ministry focus on reaching rural inhabitants, both "whites and natives," of Alaska's Copper River Basin. In 1956, Faith Hospital was established, although Joy had provided limited medical care until 1950, when a trained missionary doctor arrived in Alaska. Physical additions were later made to the facility to meet the medical needs of the growing population in the Basin. Radio station KCAM was established in 1964, providing a combination of general and Christian programming. Alaska Bible College was formed in 1966 to provide the first "Christian college level training school" in Alaska. In 1971, CAM merged with FEGC to become one of its divisions; the hospital, radio station and college were included in the merger package and therefore came under FEGC administration. At the same time as the merger, a survey was conducted in the Canada's Yukon Territory to determine whether it would be possible to establish work there; in 1978 the mission officially did so. In 1982, SEND expanded it work into southeastern Alaska by establishing a second radio station, KRSA.

Taiwan. Work was initiated in 1966 when Philip Lam was transferred from the Japan field to Taiwan to study Mandarin for use in ministry in Japan's Chinese community. While developing his Chinese fluency, Lam spoke in churches and worked with young people. Several other families joined Lam in 1966 and continued there (with an emphasis on church planting and training of national leaders) after his departure in early 1968. While FEGC maintained missionaries in Taiwan after Lam's departure, it expanded its work there in 1980 when Lam returned as the new field director and the personnel force was increased. Emphasis on reaching unreached people groups and ministry to Taiwan's city dwellers was added in the early 1980's.

Hong Kong. The mission was first present in Hong Kong in the person of Mildred Young, serving first (1958) on loan to the Fellowship of Evangelical Students, and in 1970 as a member of the faculty of Evangel Theological College. SEND officially established itself in Hong Kong in 1985, with Frank Allen serving as Field Director.

Spain. SEND began work in Spain in 1987 when it sent its first missionary family there. With extensive experience among the nominal Catholics of the Philippines, the mission emphasized church planting and training national leadership in the predominantly Catholic Spain.

Extent

19 Cubic Feet (56 Boxes (55 DC, 1 ODC), Audio Tapes, Books, Films, Negatives, Oversize Material, Pamphlets, Periodicals, Phonograph Records, Photo Albums, Photographs, Video Tapes )

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement of Material

[NOTE: In the Arrangement description, the notation "folder 2-5" means box 2, "folder 5. ]

The records of SEND International consist of correspondence, reports, minutes promotional materials, incorporation documents, news releases, handbooks, statistics, newsletters, prayer letters, newspaper and magazine clippings, photographic prints and negatives, films and videotape, organizational charts, financial records, etc., related to the origins, development and operation of the mission. The documentation of work in Japan and the Philippines is far more extensive than that in other areas, due to SEND's long history of work in both these countries. Some of the materials, principally those in the Japan series, include the notation "CHQ"; this is presumed to mean "Crusade Headquarters".

Note on organizational names: During the time period covered by most of the records (until 1982), SEND International or SEND was called Far Eastern Gospel Crusade (FEGC). When referring to the mission in its entirety, this guide will use its latest title, SEND International or SEND. When focused on events in a time period, the guide will use the title appropriate when the events occurred.

Notes on arrangement: The arrangement of the collection has been largely retained as received from SEND International. Most material was refoldered, while folder titles were retained almost entirely as received; some adjustments were been made by the archivist for purposes of uniformity. Duplicates were removed from the collection and returned to the donor, as were some materials considered inappropriate for inclusion in the collection. If sampling was carried out by the archivist, this is noted in the description of the series which follows. The collection is divided into the following series:

I. FEGC origins and early work

II. Japan

A. General

B. Christian Academy in Japan (CAJ)

C. Publications: Yamabiko

D. Clippings

E. Stories

III. Philippines

A. General

B. Asian Theological Seminary

C. Faith Academy

D. FEBIAS

E. Good News Clinic

F. Publications: NIPA News

G. Clippings

H. Stories

IV. Alaska

A. General

B. Publications: Pipeline

C. Clippings

D. Stories

V. Taiwan

A. Publications

B. Clippings

C. Stories

VI. Hong Kong

VII. Spain

VIII. Other/New Fields

A. Countries

B. International Council

C. Miscellaneous (includes clippings)

IX. U.S. Home Office & Activities

A. General

B. Conferences

C. Missionaries/Personnel

D. Publications

X. Photographs: Philippines, Japan, US

XI. Films

I. FEGC Origins and Early Work Series This series, apparently the files of Philip Armstrong (Home Secretary and then Executive Secretary during the time period covered), includes correspondence, reports, minutes, job descriptions, publications, promotional pamphlets, etc., which document the earliest phase of FEGC's history. The documents record both the planning and work of the mission once it was incorporated but also of its predecessors (GI Gospel Hour and Youth For Christ in the Philippines and Japan, Christian Servicemen's Center, etc.). Issues that arise in these are relationships with other mission bodies, FEGC's location on the evangelical/ fundamentalist spectrum, mission finances, furloughs, potential missionary candidates, the relationship of field councils to the home council, the relationship between missionaries and the indigenous church and whether or not to establish affiliated churches, and mission personnel policies. The Executive Secretary files are particularly helpful in illustrating the convergence of various issues requiring attention at the same time. The principal correspondents in this series include Armstrong, Leon Hawley, Leonard Sweet (Japan Field Chairman), Russell Honeywell (Philippine Field Chairman), FEGC's Chairman of the Board, Stanton Richardson, and those individuals noted in the Container List for this series. II. The documents not only detail the decisions and events during this formative period, but also describe the ministry philosophy and identity FEGC was developing for itself. Particularly around 1952, there was a great deal of discussion about FEGC's organizational structure and the authority of the home and field councils. This discussion/conflict originated from the Japanese field, whose members wished to retain more local control of decision-making. Armstrong characterized the issue in his February 1955 report (Folder 1-7), as a question of whether the mission was a "spiritual organism rather than an organization." The issue touched on both administrative form and theology, and in some cases led to the resignations of missionaries in Japan. The files include both letters generated from the Japan field and by US administrators. This conflict brings to light the mission's organizational development, internal communication, view of administration, and mechanism for dealing with conflict. Many of the documents from the 1948-1953 period related to Japan touch on the struggle over this issue, sometimes with veiled reference while in other instances very explicitly. Particular attention should be given to the 12/18/51 letter in Folder 1-11 from the FEGC of Japan in which the field council states it case and complaint.

The scripts in Folder 2-20 consist of those for radio broadcasts, dramas for church presentation, and slide/narration scripts. The staff letters which conclude the series are not personal correspondence but rather prayer letters or excerpted compilations from the letters of numerous missionaries. The Crusader was a monthly mission publication intended to inform supporters and stimulate prayer. A complete series of the publication was transferred to the Center Library (See Location Record: Periodicals); included in Folder 1-9 with a few early copies of the serial is a 1948 edition of Crusade Bulletin and two 1949 editions of the Los Angeles Crusader.

II. Japan Series

A. General. This subseries brings together a variety of files, some labeled for an area of work (i.e., literature or radio) or an organization (i.e., Nihon Shinyaku Kyodan) or a type of document (i.e., Evaluation findings). Several of these (Folders 3-6,7,8) are quite substantive, including correspondence, reports, statistics, financial statements and projections, studies and planning documents. Folder 4-11 documents the evangelistic use of radio beginning in 1948 when members of the Evangelical Missions Association of Japan (EMAJ) agreed to cooperatively maximize the use radio for spreading the Gospel. The nature of the church which FEGC was helping to give birth to continued from the 1950's to be a theme addressed by FEGC and the churches which grew out of its ministry. C.E. Blevins' manuscript, Christianity and Missions (Folder 4-6), Folder 4-9 on Nihon Shinyaku Kyodan (association of indigenous churches developed from FEGC ministry), and the 1976 evaluation findings (Folder 3-10) each contribute to the picture of this discussion. The 1976 report is particularly helpful in that it offers a 20+ year perspective on the issues discussed early in FEGC's history and their application on the Japanese field. The areas touched on in the report include mission purpose, personnel, objectives, operation and recommendations.

Harold Fife, FEGC's minister-at-large, conducted a number of trips to FEGC's fields and other areas. While routine arrangements for these trips predominate Folders 3-12,13 and 4-1 through 4, they include Fife's reports and excerpts from correspondence on his ministry in Papua New Guinea, Irian Jaya, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Australia (Folder 4-2) and again in the Philippines (Folder 4-3). Takeo Miyamura (the subject of Folder 4-8), a Japanese student at Gordon Conwell Divinity School and then at Harvard Divinity School, was a member of the Shinyaku Kyodan and regularly corresponded with Armstrong, both during and following his education. The principal correspondents in this subseries are Philip Armstrong, Johnny Siebert, Rollin Reasoner, Charles Hufstetler, Roland Friesen, Richard Oestreicher, David Rupp and Harold Fife.

B. Christian Academy in Japan. Correspondence, reports and minutes predominate the subseries on the school developed for the education of missionaries' children, although examples of school publications and promotion are also included. Early meetings of representatives of the cooperating missions were held in the US; most of the meetings documented took place in Japan.

C. Publications: Yamabiko. Yamabiko was a monthly newsletter written for the mission family, containing news on the mission's work and staff in the Japan. ("Yamabiko" was the Japanese word for echo.) The series begins with No. 21, dated 1953. The newsletter consists of a monthly calendar, book reviews, poetry, articles on missions-related issues, features about staff and other assorted news. For the time span covered, the newsletter offers an extensive glimpse of SEND's activity in Japan. D. Clippings. This subseries consists largely of excerpts from SEND newsletters, prayer letters, etc., on the mission's work in Japan; brochures or other related items may also be included. Folders are arranged first by subject or institution, then geographically, describing mission activity and staff. Those files arranged geographically predominate. Most of the sheets have items stapled or glued to them, with a subject heading at the top.

E. Stories. The concluding subseries of Japan materials consists of works authored by SEND missionaries, providing examples of their work, Japanese culture, and dramatic accounts of the needs and success of their ministry. Articles are arranged both by single title, and in groups by author.

III. Philippines Series

A. General. This subseries, like its counterpart in the Japan series, brings together a variety of files, some labeled for an area of work (i.e., Student work) or an organization (i.e., FIFCOP Mission) or a type of document (i.e., Reports or Articles of Incorporation). While the Container List enumerates these files specifically enough, some description of several organizations with which SEND worked should be given to provide context for these files and suggest the subjects covered in their contents. These contain not only correspondence but may include by-laws, incorporation documents, reports, etc.

ABCOP, the Association of Bible Churches of the Philippines is "a national organization of independent Bible believing churches in the Philippines," which along with SEND and Overseas Missionary Fellowship "join in full partnership, fellowship and cooperation..." The materials related to ABCOP document not only its own history and SEND's intersection with it, but cooperative missionary effort. Church Assistance Program (CAP) was a non-profit corporation which rendered "financial assistance to needy evangelical and Bible churches in their lot purchases and building construction." Training Overseas Program (TOP) was a SEND project envisioned to be a means of training indigenous staff outside the Philippines. Two items which might remain hidden are worthy of highlight: the constitution of the Philippine Council of Fundamental Churches (Folder 11-14); a report on an American independent Pentecostal group, the Jesus Church, which had been exported to the Philippines and was a source of concern among missionaries in the Philippines (Folder 12-8). Pamphlets on several Christian orphanages are also available in Folder 12-3.

B. Asian Theological Seminary (ATS). This subseries documents the birth and development of ATS, including minutes of meetings when it was first envisioned, reports, lists of students, news releases, promotional material, a school and course overview, correspondence, student and faculty surveys, etc., relating to the planning, administration, educational philosophy, faculty, proposed affiliation with Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and finances of the school. The primary correspondents were Frank Allen, Elliot Johnson, Cary M. Perdue, Charles M. Sell, and Russell Honeywell, as well as US office administrators. There is some overlap between the minutes and reports file, with minutes appearing in both. Unrelated to ATS in particular, a reference file (Folder 14-1) contains several items worthy of mention: "A Guide to Conducting a Self-Evaluation," the article, Christian Education Problems in Missions, the study paper, "Current (1968) Trends and Theological Education," and lists of recommendations formulated at the Missions Seminars (1969, 1970) on Christian Education. C. Faith Academy. This subseries documents the formation, rapid growth, operation and philosophy of the Academy, a school for the education and housing of the children of missionaries. Among the contents are reports, correspondence, promotional materials, newsletters, handbooks, statistics, a yearbook, etc., documenting the schools inception, its goals, educational philosophy and statement of faith, tuition rates, and student to staff ratio for each mission utilizing the Academy and assisting to staff it. The files provide both an institution-wide perspective of the Academy and that of the mission, particularly through correspondence of its administrators and through its staff and students at the school. One item worthy of mention is the 6/19/71 report, "How Do Faith Academy Teachers Relate to the Church in the R/P?" in Folder 14-2. Folder 14-4 contains clippings under the sections titled "Faith Academy," "Boarding Department," "Evangelism," and "Faculty/Staff." D. FEBIAS. Included among the FEBIAS records are correspondence, minutes, reports, annual catalogs, organizational charts, commencement and celebration bulletins, newsletters, brochures, each documenting aspects of Christian education at the Bible college level in the Philippines. The materials also touch on the accreditation of the school and development of its graduate school program which led to the development of the Asian Theological Seminary (see above). The principal correspondents in the files on the FEBIAS side include Frank Allen, Russell Honeywell, Charles Hufstetler, and Reuben Judson, along with FEBIAS's first Filipino president, Gadiel Isidro, and his successor, Mike Lacanilao. The predominant FEBC administrators in the US concerned with FEBIAS's planning and development were Philip Armstrong, Olan Hendrix, Virgil Newbrander, and Richard Oestreicher. The documents in this series document the school's history from its beginning, the development of Christian education in the Philippines and the articulation of FEBIAS's educational philosophy, and the relationship between expatriate missionaries and national Christians. A history of the school until 1952 is available in booklet form in Folder 15-10, while other abbreviated histories can be found in promotional materials. Also of interest is correspondence with the US State Department and other government agencies, from which the mission was attempting to obtain supplies and pre-fabricated buildings left in the Philippines following World War II to be used for temporary school facilities (Folder 14-7).

E. Good News Clinic. Correspondence predominates in this subseries, documenting the medical work among the tribal Ifugao people. Also included are reports and minutes from clinic board meetings, newsletters and organizational charts. Among the agencies with which the clinic and the mission were interacting on issues of medical supplies, reference texts and staff were the National Council of Churches' Christian Medical Council for Overseas Work and the nondenominational Christian Medical Society and MAP International. The files also include the statement of philosophy regarding medical missions of Overseas Missionary Fellowship, to which FEGC referred in developing its own statement, a copy of which is also included.

F. Publications: NIPA News. The publication, like the Japanese Yamabiko, was a monthly newsletter written for the SEND family containing news on the mission's work and staff in the Philippines. ("Nipa" was the Filipino word referring to an indigenous palm tree.) The series begins with Vol. 8, No. 1, dated 1970. The newsletter consists of a monthly calendar, book reviews, poetry, articles on missions-related issues, features about staff and other assorted news. For the time span covered, NIPA News offers an extensive glimpse of FEGC activity in the Philippines.

G. Clippings. This subseries consists largely of excerpts from SEND newsletters, prayer letters, etc., on the mission's work in the Philippines; brochures or other related items may also be included. The folders are arranged first by subject or institution, and then geographically, describing FEGC activity and staff. Those files arranged geographically predominate. Most of the sheets have items stapled or glued to them, with a subject heading at the top.

H. Stories. The concluding subseries of Philippine materials consists of works authored by SEND missionaries, providing examples of their work, Filipino culture, and dramatic accounts of the needs and success of their ministry. Articles are arranged both by single title, geographically or topically.

IV. Alaska Series

A. General. This subseries contains correspondence, a questionnaire (without statistics), reports, a handbook, minutes, newsletters, prayer letters and promotional material, documenting the work of Central Alaskan Missions, a division of FEGC since 1971, focused on church planting work, medical missions operating out of Faith Hospital, the Christian education work of Alaska Bible College, and radio broadcasting on stations KCAM and KRSA. The implications of the merger are revealed both in a favorable summary advocating the decision (Folder 45-2), and the correspondence of the Alaska Bible College. Folder ABC Correspondence also documents personnel and accreditation issues. The promotional material file contains overview information on each area of ministry in Alaska. B. Publications: Pipeline. This newsletter parallels NIPA News and Yamabiko, and includes news on the mission's work and staff in Alaska.

C. Clippings. The clippings, like those in the previous series, reflect both topical/institutional arrangement, followed by a geographical one. Brochures or other related items may also be included.

D. Stories. This subseries is similar to the Japanese and Philippine subseries without being subdivided further.

V. Taiwan Series This series is limited to the field's prayer/newsletters, clippings and stories. While not documenting the initial entry into Taiwan by SEND, the file records activity there from 1980, as well as each of the types of ministry or geographical regions in which it was working.

VI. Hong Kong Series The Hong Kong series, while quite brief, traces work back to 1958, when Mildred Young began her work, and continues the record through SEND's development of its church planting work in 1987.

VII. Spain Series. This series is limited to a single folder, documenting through reports, correspondence and clippings, the processing of deciding to begin work there, conducting a survey, and appointing the staff to work there.

VIII. New Fields

This series comprises the record of FEGC's consideration of expansion of its ministry into other countries. The time period covered of this considered expansion was approximately from 1965 to 1978. Although small in volume, the series is rich in information, both on missionary activity and organizational development.

A. Countries. Those files identified by country consist largely of reports (first-hand, statistical, government), correspondence, and geo-political data on countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Iran, Jamaica, New Zealand and Thailand. The files by individual country document not only the internal discussion of the feasibility of developing work in a country or the status of fledgling work, those factors requiring greatest consideration, obstacles and advantages, government attitudes, and recommendations, but also the interaction with other mission agencies already active in an area or considering cooperative efforts. In some cases, the files include documents drawn upon from an earlier time or added later. To illustrate the variety of documents in these files, the following folders are cited as examples:

Folder 21-2 Analysis of C & MA work in Cambodia.

Folder 21-4 Correspondence about the possibility of placing a missionary in Iran as a pastor in an English speaking church in Teheran, whose constitution is among the documents in the file. Also agreements International Missions, Inc. had with three other agencies: Africa Inland Mission in its fields; West Indies Mission in Surinam; and Worldwide Evangelization Crusade in Iran.

Folder 22-1 Report which, rather than addressing the possibility of establishing work in Jamaica, focuses on developing a source in Jamaica of missionary candidates.

Folder 22-3 1964 edition of Guide to Christian Work in Thailand.

Those agencies with which FEGC was principally communicating during these explorations were the Christian and Missionary Alliance Church, International Missions Inc., and Overseas Missionary Fellowship. These files not only document the planning and exploration being carried out, but also illustrate the process by which an organization anticipates change and cooperation with other organizations.

B. International Council. This body was initially called the Inter-Field Council. These files document the internal administrative consideration of expanding FEGC's work, including general discussion in addition to continuing consideration of some of the countries identified in the previous subseries. Among these files are:

Folder 22-4 "Opening New Fields."

Folder 22-5 A news release summarizing the work of the meeting; consideration of witness to China via Chinese living in countries where FEGC already had established work.

Folder 22-9 Document which addresses the development of work among Muslims in the Philippines. The 1978 meeting files contain the greatest documentation of both preparation for and discussion at the meeting. Among the documents are sections from FEGC's administration manual on new fields, minutes, correspondence, a "New Field Proposal," a 12/8/53 article written by Armstrong, "Beginning Pagan Work in Northern Luzon," trip reports/surveys, and Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society's How to Update the Field's Overall Plan. Among the issues addressed was the role national workers could be expected to assume in expanding FEGC work, whether within established fields or in opening new fields. The minutes from the 1978 meeting are extensive, extending beyond the new fields issue to include reports from various fields, administrative issues concerning the mission, and the reappointment and anticipated replacement of the general director.

C. Miscellaneous. The China-related files in this subseries continue the focus found in Folder 22-5, penetrating China with the Gospel and ministering to the Chinese community throughout the world. Folder 23-4 consists of a fascinating series of correspondence during 1966 about the merger being considered between Ceylon and India General Mission and FEGC; the merger was not concluded and CIGM was later renamed International Christian Fellowship.

IX. US Office & Activities

A. General. The contents of this subseries are thoroughly described in the Container List of this guide. Much of the promotional material is in brochure format, several of which are in German. Also included are various newsletter format publications published by the US office for staff, candidates and supporters. An interesting series of correspondence, beginning in 1965, relates to FEGC's conversion of its corporate name to SEND International. Correspondence and memos outlining reactions and suggestions predominate, both from FEGC membership as well as individuals from other mission agencies. Although a seemingly routine administrative task for the mission, the renaming process encompassed an analysis of its identity and philosophy, evaluation of acceptable and unacceptable terminology (i.e., mission, crusade, etc.), as well as consideration of the feelings of its staff. The series documents the proliferation of name possibilities, culminating in a computer-generated list of over 12,000 permutations based on desirable terms. Also included are sample ballots, the tabulation of a survey (no identifiable ballot accompanies the printout), and documentation of the aftermath of the change, including notifying the public of the change and modifying stationary. Also see Folder 22-8 which included an agenda item on the new name search. Several files focus on the accidental airplane crash resulting in the deaths of five people, including Philip Armstrong (the others killed were Paul Backlund, Bill Ballou, Wanda Ediger and Paul Mortenson). Press releases, clippings, obituaries, letters and cards expressing sympathy, and memorial service bulletins make up the documentation. General correspondence files are available for 1975 and 1976. This correspondence is of a more routine nature than most in the collection, yet reveals the administrative operation of the US office. The 1979 evaluation study provides an analytical look at FEGC, based on observations and data gathered from missionaries and International Council members (including organizational charts), noting both findings and recommendations.

B. Conferences. This subseries, covering FEGC's early annual conferences, consists largely of planning documents, but also may include brochures, form letter invitations, lists of registrants, schedules, business meeting minutes, summaries of messages, and reports made at the meeting. A major component of the files was photographs from the conferences.

C. Missionaries. This series consists of material by or about SEND missionaries as individuals. It is not a complete personnel file for all SEND workers. The series contains correspondence, prayer letters, biographical summaries, and articles in publications on or about the missionaries, and is a detailed source on the particular work carried out by particular individuals.

The collection also contains extensive photographic documentation of SEND's work, almost exclusively in black and white prints. Images of the Philippines and Japan predominate, but numerous shots of SEND's other fields as well as US-based headquarters and activities are also included. The people, place and events in the photographs of the Philippines and US are well identified with attached description sheets; the Japanese photos while identified by folders are much less individually identified. Some of photos include cropping notes on the reverse side for use in publications; many others appeared in FEGC/SEND publications as well. The photographs are subdivided by subheadings noted in the Location Record for photographs in this guide. Sampling was done for shots of FEBIAS facilities and students, etc. No attempt was made to identify all missionaries and staff depicted, although many of the photographs are labeled.

NOTE: Two volumes which provide in-depth overviews of SEND's history in Japan and the Philippines are A Branch Made Strong: A Short History of FEGC/SEND Japan, 1945-1985, by Mildred Morehouse and Bertha Neufeld, and Discovering the Roots of SEND International - Philippines, by Russell and Betty Honeywell.

Accruals and Additions

The materials in this collection were received by the Center from SEND International in May 1984, May and September 1986, September 1987, and October 1989.

Acc.#: 84-62, 86-49, 86-98, 87-118, 89-109

March 14, 1990

Paul A. Ericksen

C. Easley

K. Elwell

October 25, 1990, revised

Paul A. Ericksen

April 28, 2014

Acc. 07-62

Bob Shuster

Separated Materials

The following items have been given to the Billy Graham Museum:

Two Christian Boy's Brigade patches for Hachioji, Japan area. White and green on red field. Undated. Accession 89-109.

Title
Collection 406 Records of SEND International
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Roman Script

Repository Details

Part of the Evangelism & Missions Archives Repository

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