Canadian Mennonite
Volume 6, number 4
February 25, 2002

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Abbotsford, B.C.

Photo: Irene Goossen in a B.C. raspberry field shortly after she arrived in Canada from China in 1948.

When Irene Goossen watches the news from war-torn Afghanistan, she is more than an interested observer. The images bring back memories of her childhood.

Goossen was born on the border of Afghanistan, in China, and grew up in Sin Kiang, a city of many ethnic groups: Turks, Taranchi, Uzbeks and Tatarins, as well as Russians and Chinese. Many of these were Muslim.

Goossen's Mennonite family had fled Russia, hoping to go through China, over the mountains into India, and from there to Canada. But they didn't make it and for 18 years they lived as virtual prisoners in Sin Kiang. They were unable to own property and couldn't leave the city. They had to report regularly to the police station. Into this context, Goossen was born in 1932.

Goossen's first language was German. At school she was taught by military leaders who had also fled Russia, and so she learned Russian. She played with neighbour children and so learned an Arabic dialect-she can still understand some words when she watches the news from Afghanistan. She still remembers hearing their prayers.

"When you watch TV and see all those huts there, that's what we lived in. That's what the people dressed like. Nothing has changed," she says.

The Mennonite group that fled into China numbered 22. Most of them were women and children, as the men were taken by Chinese authorities. Goossen's father was arrested in 1939, sent back to Russia and executed. Her grandfather and brother were jailed in China. Her grandfather died, but her brother was returned to them after five years.

Her mother, being the eldest woman, became the leader of the group, making decisions and doing everything from performing marriages to preparing bodies for burial and leading the funerals. Initially the group worshipped in their homes, led by the men, but when the men were taken and the Bibles and song books confiscated, the women began worshipping with Russian Baptists.

Life was difficult. Goossen remembers her mother being jailed for a week when she asked her boss for a raise. She was a cleaning woman for a bank. The group lived with fear. But hardships didn't deter Goossen's mother from holding on to her dream about coming to Canada.

In 1946, war broke out between the communists and the nationalists. When Afghanis gained control of the area for a time, Goossen's mother went to the police station and asked officials for visas. The documents were denied but permission to leave was given to the whole group.

Packing what belongings they had into 10 wagons, the group began their dangerous journey. Goossen was 13 years old.

"'You'll never make it' some said to us," Goossen recalls. "'You'll be attacked by bandits.' We slept outside in freezing weather. How did we survive? I don't know, but mom made it clear that God would take care of us and he did.... We weren't attacked by bandits or anything. God must have had many angels watching us!"

It took two years to get to Canada. They travelled 400 km-by wagon, by truck, by foot, by train in a coal car-through the Gobi Desert to Lanchow, then to Kaifang where there was a Mennonite Central Committee office. Here they were met by John Friesen, the only MCC worker who understood German and could communicate with the group.

They spent some time here recuperating from their journey, attending school or working, always concerned that the Chinese government would once again prevent them from their dream of going to Canada.

But in 1948, they finally travelled to Shanghai where they were to board a ship bound for San Francisco. Three days before they were to depart, the briefcase containing their visas and medical papers was stolen. Goossen's mother called a prayer meeting, Friesen called every official he knew and had people working overtime to make duplicates of all the papers.

Half an hour before the boat was to sail they were ready to board. On April 20, they arrived in San Francisco where they immediately boarded a train for Vancouver. After more than 20 years, their dream had come true.

Today, Goossen lives in Abbotsford where she attends Bakerview Mennonite Brethren Church and volunteers at the MCC Thrift Store. She admits that it still makes her emotional to think about her journey.

"It makes me thankful that we are here," she says. "If we had stayed, I think they would have killed us."

And as she watches the news, she is moved with compassion.

-MCC B.C. release by Angelika Dawson

Kitchener, Ont.

In Orland Gingerich's Bible was the following prayer: "And now, Oh God, either through your servant, or despite him, speak to your people." With this prayer, Ken Bechtel invited the congregation to remember Gingerich at a memorial service on February 3.

Gingerich died on January 23 of cancer at the age of 81. He was ordained as minister in 1951 and as bishop in the Amish Mennonite Conference in 1954 (now part of Mennonite Church Eastern Canada). Never having gone to high school, he completed a seminary degree, becoming the first trained pastor in his conference. He served several congregations, including Steinmann, Pioneer Park and Bloomingdale Mennonite churches.

Gingerich has been described as "a risk taker," leading the church through struggles and paving the way for a new generation of leaders. He was concerned to "make haste slowly," bridging the gap between those wanting faster and slower paces of change, always concerned for unity.

This "church statesman" was a soft spoken but sharp minded leader whose vision included the broader Mennonite family. At the same time, he treasured his own heritage, publishing a history entitled The Amish of Canada in 1972.

Gingerich was an original board member of Conrad Grebel College, a member of the Mennonite Historical Society, and involved with Mennonite Central Committee agricultural concerns. Whether advocating on behalf of Old Order Amish, or responding to someone's different faith choice, Gingerich had deep respect for others, including those "on the fringes."

A man who served with "Amish humility," Gingerich is survived by his wife Agnes and 10 children. About a week before his death, he told his brother, "I am waiting patiently for my last call."

-From reports