I am the eldest daughter of Ron and Margaret Teale, hoping to go back to Papua New Guinea with my husband and my father soon to continue the work and development of the station as already mentioned above. My father, Pastor Ronald and mother, Margaret Teale (nee Cantlay), were among the early pioneer missionaries in the Un-evangelised Fields' Mission in the Western District of PNG. They were called of God separately at first to serve Him in PNG. They first became acquainted at Melbourne Bible Institute, and then met again at Campaigners For Christ in Sydney through separate circumstances, where their friendship began.
Ron went to PNG, arriving first at Daru Island on Christmas Day, 1939 en route to Madiri Station, on the Fly River. Margaret Cantlay arrived in Pt. Moresby January 1946 where she was asked to start a school class for European children (the beginning of the Ela Beach Primary School) whilst she waited for a boat to take her to Daru Is. about the end of February 1946 from whence she was able to pick up a Thursday Is. Govt. Pearling boat called, The Nusa, to take her to Wasua in the Western District of Papua, on the north bank of the Fly River. Madiri was on the south bank of the Fly River.
My mother taught school classes and did medical work on several mission stations over the time she lived in the Western Province. My father pioneered Awaba Mission Station with the company and help of Dick Donaldson for a while . Then on his own for some months until Charlie Nason came to assist him. Ron and Margaret were married in January 1947 at Balimo. Next day, they headed back together to work at Awaba, a 7 or 8 hour journey away, in a 12ft dingy with a 2 and 1/2 horse powered engine. Again Mum started another school there, and both of them taught school as well as doing medical work there. I was born in September the following year, in Cairns due to the possibility of complications that were indicated with my birth. My parents took me back to PNG when I was only 9 weeks old! I was the first white baby seen in the Awaba area. Whilst on leave at my grandparent's home in England in 1950, my sister Ruth, was born at Woking, Surrey.
On a very eventful trip by ship back to Australia, during which my sister nearly died of an unknown liver condition, she was hospitalised in Adelaide in the care of a Christian lady doctor who'd been aboard ship with us at the time. My parents and I were not allowed ashore due to a Polio scare there at that time. They then were forced to travel on to Melbourne to my mother's Step Mother's home and wait there, till the doctor brought my sister back to us. During this time my parents went to prayer and fasting as my sister's condition was very serious.
She miraculously turned the corner after the doctors had given up hope and pulled out all the tubes they had attached to her for ten days! We then were sent to Madiri Station. In 1953, we had to fly suddenly to Melbourne with my mother seriously ill with cerebral malaria, and she was delirious and unconscious for at least three weeks until prayed for by a Pastor Phil Favaloro, a preacher in a Methodist church, at the time. He prayed, and the lights came on. My mother's condition made an immediate dramatic change toward health again!
After 2 years there, my parents again felt God leading them back to PNG. This time we started off in Pt. Moresby, and my parents worked in jobs there, whilst starting a night school at the Salvation Army Hall near Koki. I had a serious illness, thought by doctors at the time to be Polio. Once again my parents went to prayer and fasting on my behalf as I was in severe pain in my legs, lower spine and cervical spine with high fever and sore throat, and frightening nightmares. On the 5th morning of the illness, I was visited with a revelation of the scriptures which gave me a personal word of instructive faith to use the Name of Jesus. This enabled, me to be healed.
Not long after my illness, when we'd been about 4 years in Pt Moresby, the Salvation Army major then, Major Baker, asked my parents to pioneer a work for them at Onamuga, 20 miles out on a bush road from Kainantu in the Eastern Highlands. There was an arrangement between the Salvation Army and the Agriculture Dept. Mum was to start a school for the Salvation Army and Dad with his Agricultural Diploma, was to patrol the Kainantu and Tairora Districts teaching them how to grow Coffee and some other things. We were there about 2 and a 1/2 years when Mum & Dad were asked by Foursquare to go to look after another mission station at a place called Fore Station in the Henganofi area.
My mother started another school there. After about 2 and 1/2 years, Albert Booth asked my parents to take over his 99 year Lease. So, in October 1965 we moved to Pitanka where the present Mission work started,( six very long rough miles away from Onamuga where we started off from in the Eastern Highlands) !
This area is still very primitive & underdeveloped in many ways and needs medical people, teachers for primary, high school, vocational school eg to teach skills like carpentry, plumbing, agriculture, and even home skills such as sowing, and Home Care & Hygiene, cooking etc. We also hope to put in a Health Centre as our small Aid Post reaches people who come from far and wide already, and the Aid post Orderly has more than he can cope with. We also hope to start a Bible School for the Village church leaders . If after doing this course they then feel led to go further, they can go on to the Kapakamarigi Foursquare Bible College in the Henganofi Area, or Christian Leaders' Training College.
If anyone should feel that God is calling them to come up with us to this area of Papua New Guinea and help us serve the Him and that community, we would ask you to check with us regarding any details & qualifications & PNG requirements: get a character reference from your pastor and a reference from one other person of good standing in your church, bible college, other college or community worker. Also a certain amount of monetary support of your own or from your church will be necessary to start with, depending on what you are going to be doing. The Foursquare pastor in Kainantu may also like to write and ask you for some personal details, and for your Christian testimony as he is responsible for the actual oversight and interviewing of prospective missionaries & other workers & may have the ultimate say. |
