Praise God for the life of our long-term UK supporter Elsie James who has gone to be with the Lord after a full life serving her church as well as missionaries overseas.
“All of us in Grace & Light share the loss of our dedicated sister and supporter. Elsie has been part of us since our formation 14 years ago. I particularly have been so close to her,” says international coordinator Tassie Ghata.
“Her faithful prayers and monthly giving have helped shape our ministry and our successes; and we have enjoyed receiving the encouraging greeting cards she regularly sent to us in Nigeria.
"Elsie has supported Grace & Light faithfully every month for the past 14 years. Her support, which continued even when she moved into a care home, has encouraged many people in Nigeria to give monthly to also support Grace & Light’s work. We will remember Elsie in our hearts always.”
Grace & Light chairman Mark Hopkins says “Elsie was very dear to us as a family and to Grace & Light - so faithful and committed. It was time for her to rest from this old world and enter the new one in youth and strength.”
Elsie was born in London on 22 November 1923, lived in Brixton as a child and then, as an adult, moved to West Norwood where she attended Chatsworth Baptist Church. She taught at the local secondary school and also led Sunday School and Girls Brigade. After she retired Elsie continued her active service at church by leading the Monday Afternoon Fellowship for senior members.
More recently she has been living in a care home near her son and grandchildren. She died aged 92 on 21 September 2016.
We are thankful to the many guests at Elsie’s funeral who showed their appreciation of her life by giving generously to Grace & Life as well as to work with Syrian refugees in Turkey.
Such a committed supporter
Elsie's daughter Marion shares why Else was such a committed supporter:
"Mum had known Mark since he was a boy at Chatsworth Baptist Church and really enjoyed getting to know Isabelle when he brought his lovely bride home.
"She particularly got to love Isabelle when they paired up together in an evangelism training program at Chatsworth called Evangelism Explosion and shared their hearts together in a deep way.
"I can still remember how impressed mum was with the way Isabelle creatively wrote her testimony as if she had just bumped in to an old friend at the supermarket and was telling her what had happened in her life recently -- sharing naturally about Jesus.
"So when Mark and Isabelle first went out to Nigeria it was natural for mum to be one of their financial and prayer supporters. She always had a love for people from other countries and her own childhood in poverty in South London gave her a heart to care for the less well off. She was excited by the launch plans for Grace & Light and always supported and prayed for the work.
"She always looked forward to Mark and Isabelle’s annual visits when they would tell her their latest news; it was a real thrill for her to meet Tassie when she came to England."
Photos: Elsie James with Isabelle Hopkins; Elsie James as a young woman
