Defender of Widows
// Rachel DeTellis
In Psalm 68:5, God’s stance toward widows and the destitute hints at how He wants His people to treat them: “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling.”
Vesta and Felicia are two widows who live in the Bord-Mer community near the mission. Both of these ladies are older now, but worked for many years serving lunch in our school kitchen.
Left: Vesta Jean is a former cook at Bord-Mer and is a faithful church member.
Right: Felicia was one of the earliest employees at New Missions.
Left: Rachelle cooks for the students at our school in Lassale.
Right: Madame Emmanuel joyfully serves as a cook for our high school students.
The mission built a house in the village for Vesta and continues helping her, as her grandson—her sole relative—is the only person assisting her. We have also employed her grandson as a way of helping her. In Lassale, a woman lost her husband to a fishing accident. She was left with several children suffering from malnutrition, and her house was a dilapidated shack. A visiting team built her a small, simple home. We enrolled her children in our schools, and employed her as a cook in Lassale. Madame Emmanuel, a pastor’s wife, lost her husband tragically and was left with a family to raise. She has a job cooking for the high school students. The list goes on and on. We want to always be on the lookout to do more for the widows in our community. ~Rachel DeTellis
