Coal Miner's Granddaughter • Book by Joan S. Hust

For some of you that can't believe I wrote a book here is the proof.

Coal Miner's Granddaughter: Childhood Memories

TEACHING IN ZAMBIA • JOAN HUST

  TCCA

Jim Hess was a Brethren missionary in Chingola.  He drove me every week to Ndola to teach at TCCA (Theological College of Central Africa).  He taught a course in mechanics, and I taught the book of Romans, Outlining, and the Psalms. One day we were early as there were no police checks on the road so he was going to the bakery to buy a treat for the students.  I decided not to go back in town as I wanted to hear the testimonies of the students in preparation to have them speak on my weekly television and radio program.  Just as Jim was driving onto the road we heard a gunshot. The bullet hit the back window and went through the passenger seat. He jumped out of the HI Ace and the officer in charge knocked the soldier to the ground.  The soldier was on drugs. I correspond with two of the students, and one of the students come to the states annually to preach the Gospel in honor of Jim Hess who led him to the Lord. 

HE takes care of HIS children.

NCHANGA CONSOLIDATED MINE SCHOOL (Grades 1-7)

This school was for the children of the Copper Mine employees in Chingola.  The headmaster was from Great Britain as were most of the teachers.  I was the only one from the USA.  There were three terms. Jan-March and April was a holiday.  May-July and August was a holiday.  September-November and December was a holiday.  It worked out well.  The clerical staff was Zambian ladies.  They were dedicated to their job and were most supportive of the teaching staff.  My classes were fourth and fifth grade students. The mine provided transportation to my Clubhouse weekly program on TV and radio in Kitwe, and Ndola, and I would have them on my program.  They would recite poems, Bible verses and sing in English and Bemba.

Would you believe that two of those students live near me in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and five of them live in the Seattle, WA area where my older son works for World Vision? It has been so much fun to make contact with them.  Not long ago I met up with another one of my students that was on the Clubhouse program weekly when I was in California. I had a call from NYC this past year and he was from Chingola and was on my weekly program.

SACRED HEART CONVENT SCHOOL

Sister Mary Crucifix was the Headmistress. She was from Long Island, New York. I taught fifth grade, and the afternoon sessions I taught music and crafts. There were two Zambia nuns on staff, and several ex-pats. There was a catholic church in Chingola. Mother Superior stationed in Lusaka would visit the school once a year. She was a lovely lady and had a great sense of humor especially the time I locked up most of the statues from the school garden.  The reason was that you had to being them in the building every day so no one would take them.  The teachers and staff would walk around all the statues and say prayers.  My plan was to put them all out when she visited the school. I was not expecting her the day she arrived unannounced.  All went well but Sister Mary Crucifix smiled when she told me to check the office so I would know the next time to expect her so I could have all the statues out.

When I returned to the States I called Sister Mary Crucifix and Pam Steyne’s mother and I had lunch with her at a small Italian restaurant in the neighborhood where she was born on Long Island.

As the various students come to my mind I pray that HE will use them for HIS glory.  I am so fortunate to be a part of their lives. 

Zambia National Broadcasting • Club House

I was most fortunate to be given time free of charge and directed and produced a weekly children’s program for nine years called CLUBHOUSE on TV and radio. NCCM and local businesses in Chingola provided transportation back and forth to the studio in Kitwe and Ndola. Weekly rehearsals were held at the St. Mark’s church in Chingola with the Zambian and expatriate children. Friends from the Seattle, WA area sent us tee shirts for the children with CLUBHOUSE engraved on them. We sang songs not only in English but in the local tribal languages which were Bemba, Lozi, Kaonde, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja and Tonga. I visited many villages and many heard our programs on their wireless radios. 

It has been twenty five plus years and I hear from many of the children that were on my weekly radio and TV program. I even recognize their voices most of the time even before they tell me who they are when they locate me and give me a much appreciated telephone call.

God blessed me so much! 

Zambia • Joan Hust Missions

Find Chingola where I lived with my family for nine years and I’ll bring you back an ngwee.  It is a landlocked country in Southern Africa.

 I will fly to Lusaka, the capital city.  Dr. Kenneth Kaunda was the president when I was living there.  I have asked a friend of mine, Dr. Nevers Mumba, who was in my Sunday school class when he was ten yrs. old, and now is the multiparty Democracy president to arrange a meeting for me with Dr. Kaunda.

 The official language is English, but the local language is Nyanja and Bemba.

I taught at the Sacred Heart Convent School, Nchanga Trust School and TCCA, Theological College of Central Africa.  We would sing the national anthem, Stand and Sing of Zambia, Proud and Free, with great enthusiasm.  I especially loved the chorus that was sung after the third verse:

Praise be to God, Praise be, praise be, praise be,

Bless our great nation, Zambia, Zambia, Zambia

Free men we stand Under the flag of our land.

Zambia, praise to Thee!  All one, strong and free.

I was sitting at my desk at home when Zambia this year won the first Africa Cup of Nations title in soccer.  I wish I could have been there to celebrate with them.  I only lived with my family in Zambia nine years. It definitely changed my life.

I was very involved with the children of Zambia and the children of the expatriates mostly from Europe, Britain, Australia, Sweden, and India. We were there on a two year contract but it turned out that we stayed nine years.  It is difficult for the wives of the men as they go to work all day and the wives have nothing to do.  It takes time to get acquainted, but I was active in the local church teaching, working with the youth, leading safaris, director and producer of a weekly TV program and the list could go on and on.  I loved working with the local children, the children from the many countries, and they went on the safaris, were in the Sunday school and youth group at St. Mark’s, and joined me on the live weekly TV programs.

I have met several Zambians that are here going to college, and working in the local church.  What a blessing and fun to get together with them as we know the same folks back in Zambia.  It is a small world.  This year my son called me and asked me to come home right away.  I reminded him and he knew it that I was in a very important meeting, but he insisted I come home right away so I did.  Lo and behold a Zambian gentleman was sitting at my kitchen table with a smile from ear to ear, and it was Dr. Charles Musonda from Mufulira, Zambia that was in my youth group in Chingola.  He has opened a House of Prayer here in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. 

 

I cherish your prayers, and thank you for helping me to go on my next mission trip to Zambia this summer.  My desire is to make Him known to those who do not know Him, and to encourage the ones that know Him to be a blessing to everyone.

Make Me a Blessing    Ira B. Wilson    1924

Chorus: 

Make me a blessing, Make me a blessing-

Out of my life May Jesus shine;

Make me a blessing, O Savior, I pray,

Make me a blessing to someone today.

Well's for Togo • 2009 Togo trip

2009 TRIP:

It was a very hard trip but I held up well.  I did not know the people that I stayed with, but they were Godly people.  When you walked in their home you felt His presence. Their names are Holali and Kossiwa Assignon.  His English was very limited.  She knew how to say my name.  He is the son of the pastor that I stayed with when I visited Togo in 2005.  He is a pastor. They are a terrific team, hard workers, evangelize, and reach many folks for the Lord.
They have three young men that I called Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in their home that help them.  One was a tailor, and he works in their garage. One has been accepted at the University, and the other is in secondary school.  It was a new experience for me to be the only white, travel alone, and no English speaking person to carry on a conversation with for 5 weeks.  I met two blind translators that helped me in all my speaking engagements.  I spoke several times a day, started a weekly radio program that they could continue after I left.  It was to my advantage that they accepted me with the Togolese people from the church, and being a producer of radio and TV programs in Zambia for nine years helped me help them. I taught vacation Bible schools in all the cities, taught Sunday school everywhere, spoke at all church services, three women’s conferences with hundreds of ladies, gave health lectures, and taught medlineplus.gov to nurses and physicians.  Every village we came across I spoke to the adults mostly from the gospel of John, taught and acted out Bible stories with the children, and then had them present it during the church services. 
It is unbelievable how He used me with the Holy Spirit flowing through me.  Many were touched and came forward to the invitation to accept Christ as their personal Savior.  There was a lot of walking and evangelization in the villages with tracts in French with many young people with me who knew the Lord and the three main languages that were French, the business language of the country, Ewe, and Kabiye. 
The flights were good once you were on the plane, but a real challenge to get get in and out of the airport in Accra, Ghana. It was recommended that I fly in and out of Accra instead of Lome, the capital of Togo.  What did I eat?  I chose to eat African food with the local people.  It worked out well.  I felt accepted everywhere I went, and they were so happy that I would sit down, and eat their food.  The average meal was rice or nshima (corn), tomato sauce that was rather hot with green leaves of some kind and sometimes a little piece of chicken or dried fish. Huge loaves of bread were sold on the streets every day. They would cut it vertical, and sometimes you could have avocado spread on it.  It was the end of the mango season, but the ones that I ate were scrumptious and the size of a small watermelon.  
 

Wells for Togo:

I worked with Pastor Paul and Appoline Assignon in the Kara Kozah area.  People on that area walk many miles for water.  One family who live 2 hours away  have a vehicle bring 12 jerry cans filled with water every Sunday when they come to church for the pastor and his family which is quite a blessing.   The hallway in the pastor’s house is where you see all shapes and sizes of containers filled with water to use.  I want to help this situation by building wells in the area by the profit I make from selling my book COAL MINER’S GRANDDAUGHTER CHILDHOOD MEMORIES. 

 

South Africa • Joan Hust

When I visited some schools this is the stanza that I remembered and I enjoyed it so much. 

National Anthem

Sounds the call to come together,
And united we shall stand,
Let us live and strive for freedom
In South Africa our land.

I just really loved the people and places I visited in South Africa.  It is too big to visit everywhere, but I was able to go shopping in Johannesburg, Capetown and Durban. My son, Jacob, was a student at Treverton School in Mooi River.  It catered to boys and girls from all grades, and Post-Matric. It is an inter-denominational Christian school founded on a Baptist heritage. Jacob loved it and did very well. He looked very handsome in his blue blazer, white shirt and tie.  During his time there in sports he excelled in running.  He was the fastest runner during his time at the school.  Their mission was to provide a balanced all-round quality education based on a strong Christian foundation.  Between semesters we went to Cape Town. It is located on the shore of Table Bay. We stayed at a Christian hostel in Fish Hoek, and really enjoyed not only the area and shopping but the fellowship and testimonies from the local people at the African Reformed Dutch church.