The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1929, Page 61

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THE LUTHERAN PIONEER. 61

Items of Missionary Interest.
(By the Eprror.)

Alexandria, La.— The mission-school at this
place has an enrolment of 110. This is the highest
number that was ever in attendance. Pastor E.R.
Berger and his helpers naturally rejoice because of
this fine attendance. By the way, Pastor Berger
wishes to thank the F. E: Goechring & Son Mercan-
tile Co. at Frohna, Mo., for the box of clothing re-
ceived from them.

Ten Years of Service. — Rev. H. F. Wind has
been the faithful and efficient head of the Inner
Mission work conducted by our brethren in Buffalo
for the past ten years. The anniversary of his labors
was celebrated in a special service. Pastor Wind is
the founder of our flourishing colored mission in
Buffalo and is still supervising the work. We un-
derstand that he is to be given help in the growing
institutional work. 5

The Work of an Institutional Missionary. —
How much work is done by an institutional mis-
sionary in one of our larger cities may be learned
from the quarterly report recently submitted by
Pastor Wind, of Buffalo, to his board. In the
quarter reported on he visited 1,882 patients, of
whom 445 were Lutherans. These patients were
found in eleven different institutions, to which he
paid 155 visits during this period. He made nine
visits to homes of prisoners. Ten people who were
in difficulties with the law were given spiritual and
other advice, and their families were helped in a
material way. He held fifty-six conferences and
interviews in behalf of these people in the course
of the quarter. ‘Twelve visits were made at the
homes of missionary prospects, sixteen interviews
were held, and two whole families and eighteen in-
dividuals, including sixteen immigrants, were di-
rected to local churches.- Sixty-three divine services
were conducted in institutions, five in churches, and
two over the radio. leven lectures and addresses
were given in the interest of institutional missions
and twenty-three Bible classes were held. Fourteen
children were baptized, eighty-two persons were
given Communion, one was confirmed, and two
were given Christian burial. Tracts, church-papers,
gospels, prayer-books, and like literature were given

away to the number of 3,518 copies. Physical relief -

in the way of groceries, clothing, coal, and other
necessities was provided in a number of instances.
This special relief work involved sixteen visits to
homes, six visits to other welfare agencies, and forty
interviews and conferences. A number of sick were

cheered by friendly visits and gifts. At Christmas-
time alone 2,212 people, among them 200 poor
children in private homes and public institutions,
were cheered with gifts and tokens of sympathy and
love. Twenty volunteers helped the missionary in
preparing and distributing these gifts. The mis-
sionary held seven Christmas services in institu-
tions, with an attendance of about 1,500. Thirty-
seven children were aided in child welfare work
during the quarter, free medical attention was se-
cured for a number, and thirty-two visits were
made to the homes of these children, not to mention
seven visits made to other welfare agencies, seventy-
three interviews, telephoning, letter-writing, and

_ other labor done in behalf of these children till they

were properly provided for.

Death of Rev. 0. H. Restin. — Rev. O. H. Restin,
for the past twenty-six years immigrant missionary
of the Missouri Synod at the port of New York,
died on February 25 at the age of seventy-one years.
Thousands of immigrants experienced his uniform
kindness and helpfulness upon landing on our
shores, and they received such advice and direction
from him as they needed. At his funeral services
transatlantic steamship companies and foreign dip-
lomatic representatives were in attendance. — Pas-
tor Gallman, of Beardstown, IIl., has been chosen as
his successor. .

South America’s Need. — Our missionaries and
their wives are doing a great self-denying work in
South America, and our small, struggling congre-
gations are trying hard to become self-supporting -
and to bring spiritual light into the dense spiritual
jungles of Brazil and spiritual bread into the vast
spiritual deserts of Argentina. But much remains
to be done in these republics, not to mention the
other states under the Southern Cross. Millions
of natives live in grossest darkness, and vast
stretches of territory are still entirely untouched by
the missionary efforts of the Christian Church.
Cities containing millions are without all Gospel-
teaching.

Argentina. — In this republic eighteen mission-
aries are working at seventy-two places, serving
7,500 souls. In Argentina there was a gain of five
per cent. in membership during the last year. Sev-
eral Christian day-schools are maintained.

Brazil.— The number of our missionaries in
Brazil has increased to forty-four in the last few.
years. ‘These laborers are now bringing the Gospel
of Jesus to over twenty thousand souls at 214
places. Hight trained teachers and a number of
other men are teaching in Christian day-schools. _