In Memory of Florence

TTT

IN LOVING MEMORY OF FLORENCE HOWLETT

1910 - 2008

Tin Buồn
Chúng tôi trân trọng báo tin Bà Florence Howlett ( Thường gọi Bà Winton, cùng với Bác sĩ Ervin Winton Giáo sĩ y tế đầu tiên, có công sáng lập Bệnh Viện Cơ Đốc Sài Gòn năm 1955 ) đã ngủ an trong Chúa vào ngày 22-07-2008 tại Angwin PUC, California USA, Hưởng thọ 98 tuổi. Toàn thể Tín Hữu Cơ Đốc Phục Lâm tại Việt Nam và Hải Ngoại gởi lời chia buồn đến gia đình. Cầu xin Chúa an ủi tang quyến và chăm gìn thân thể Bà cho đến ngày Chúa hồi lai.

CĐPL V-N Hải Ngoại,
tinhuu.net

From: Rolly Howlett - rhhowlett@puc.edu
Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:36:01
Subject: FLORENCE HOWLETT

Dear Friends,

This is to inform you of Florence's passing on Tuesday, July 22, 2008. She is resting and awaiting her Lord's return when she will see her Savior face to face. Services to be held August 1, at 11:00 A.M. at PUC Church in the Scales Chapel. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to: Tieng Noi Hy Vong, Vietnamese SDA Church, P.O. Box 5704, El Monte, CA 91734.
Rolland is recovering from double pneumonia and is currently at Calistoga Gardens. Condolences may be sent to Rolland Howlett, 470 College Avenue, Angwin, CA, 94508.
Your prayers are appreciated at this time.

Children,

Mary Dunn
Louise Driver
Pat O'Neil
Billy Winton

Đọc tiếng Việt xin bấm vào đây

These are the excerpts from the book: LOTUS BLOSSOM RETURNS. written by Florence Howlett. Publishing by Pacific Press 2005

..... During Dr. Winton working in Phuket Thailand hospital, the telegram arrived from the Mission headquarters in Singapore that changed her whole outlook. Florence beamed when Ervin read her the telegram. It said, WOULD YOU GO TO SAIGON. NEED MEDICAL WORK STARTED THERE.
.... Saigon! Vietnam was the one place above all others in the world she most wanted to go to. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and before long Ervin wired a reply: They would happily accept the new assignment.
..... The next day, Florence and her family sadly said farewell to all the friends and hospital workers in Phuket Thailand they were leaving. She loved them all so much. But real joy was found in doing God’s bidding, and they were bidden to Saigon.
…. Pastor Nerness continued. “ We are so grateful that you have accepted. The challenge of beginning a real hospital in Saigon. But you need to know that we haven’t much money earmarked for use there. You will need to purchase supplies and equipment here in Singapore to take with you. You won’t be to find much when you get there.” He paused and looked down at the papers lying on his desk. Then with an almost embarrassed expression on his face, he said, “All we can give you at this moment is two thousand dollars. I’m sorry about that, but do what you can with it. God will have to supply the rest.”

A SMALL BEGINNING

Two thousand dollars! How in the world could anyone hope to equip a whole hospital with only two thousand dollars ? A single piece of good equipment might cost ten times that amount! But Florence and her husband were missionaries, and Dr. Winton was a master at repairing broken things. So they set out to scour Singapore for inexpensive medical equipments and supplies.
…..Florence was impatient to see the building where the hospital would be. At the main intersection of two busy streets, Pastor Wallace pointed to a small, two-story building. “There it is! “ he said proudly. “ Oh, no!” Florence blurted out. " That doesn’t look big enough even for a home, let alone a hospital ! "
….Then the committee voted on a local board of directors for the hospital. Pastor Elton Wallace would serve as chairman, and Florence would be the secretary of the board. The committee also voted to go ahead with remodeling the first floor so that the outpatient department could be opened as soon as possible.
….Florence hired a carpenter right away and put him to work on the remodeling. Ervin spent his time fixing the plumbing and electricity; Florence set up an accounting system and prepared the many forms that would be needed.

MIRACLES, MIRACLES!

“ Florence,” Pastor Elton Wallace said one morning, “ You’ve been working nonstop since you arrived in Saigon. It’s time for a break. The Mission has voted to send you and your family to Hong Kong for a month’s vacation.”
…. In Hong Kong, the Wintons spent time together as a family. Florence and Ervin took the children on outings and played with them, trying to regain some of the closeness they had lost in the mountain of work in Saigon. Once Florence finally regained her vision, she grew eager to return to Saigon. After all, there was a hospital to open.
…. On May 22, 1955, the outpatient department of the new Saigon Adventist Hospital opened for business with little equipment and few medicines.
…..One of these women, Mrs. Mann, was a wife of the United States Operation Mission (USOM) medical adviser. Mrs. Mann talked to her husband, to do something about getting help for the Saigon Adventist hospital. Finally a plan took shape. The Vietnamese government would loan some of the medical equipments that had been sent to it from America so that the Saigon Adventist Hospital could care for the pregnant mothers of USOM. The permit to pick up the equipment was issued. It was an answer-to-prayer day for Ervin and Florence when they hired a very large moving van and set out for the warehouse with a driver and an interpreter. The truck was loaded medical equipments.

THE PERFECT PIECE OF PROPERTY ( Đất Mới )

.... The staff was growing so fast, it was hard to keep up with the expansion…. One of the first items on the agenda was a proposal to look for property for a new, expanded hospital facility.
.... After some seaching, a seven-acre lot was found that would be perfect for the hospital’s needs. The property boasted a large, fully furnished French villa with three floors of living space, plus servants’ quarters and four-car garage in the rear. There was also easy access to the main boulevard leading from the airport to the palace in the center of town. Florence and Pastor Storz visited Mr. Paulan to inquire about the land. The asking price for this property was about US $40,000 more than the hospital had indisposable income! It seemed outrageous even to talk to Mr. Paulan about buying the property. Florence wanted that piece of land and she felt God wanted it too, he would bring in the money somehow.
……Mission personnel offered special prayers asking God to lead in the matter. The local board members all felt that the land should be purchased. So Pastor Storz and Florence went to see Mr. Paulan again. His face lit up when he met them, and his handshake was warm and friendly. His partners had sent word for him to make a deal with the Adventist hospital. They would not even require a down payment! Florence turned to Pastor Storz, her face beaming with joy.
He smiled and needlessly asked, " Shall we buy it ? "
“ Certainly.” Her reply came without a second of hesitation.
The terms were drawn up, giving the hospital one year to pay for the property, with no interest charge, no down payment, and immediate occupancy. The first payment was due when the property cleared escrow, the balance to be paid in two equal payments. And Mr. Paulan handed Florence the key to the villa.
Florence and Pastor Storz walked out of the office, their hearts overflowing with rejoicing. Florence knew God’s hand had prepared the way. When they reached the hospital, they shared the good news, and excitement spread rapidly through the entire staff.
……During the following week, the gateman at the new property informed Pastor Storz that Mr. Paulan had brought some Americans to look over the villa and grounds. The pastor immediately set out to find Mr. Paulan. " I don’t understand, sir," he said when he faced Mr. Paulan in his office. "We signed a contract in good faith. How is it that you are showing the property to someone else ?"
" Please do not worry," said Mr. Paulan in a soothing tone. " Some Americans from the Standard Oil Company are interested in purchasing the property. They offered me double the price but I told them it was already sold and that the deal could not be changed no matter what they offered me." When Pastor Storz reported to Florence, she felt relieved and thankful. Surely the Lord must have worked on Mr. Paulan’s heart to make him stick to his contract even though not a cent had yet been paid!

BEGINNING WITH AN IMPOSSIBILITY

…..About a month later the gateman came to Pastor Storz and Florence once again. He was so upset that he could hardly speak. When he finally blurted out his message, Florence felt a cold shiver run down her back. “Sir,” the gateman began “A contractor brought his whole crew to the property this morning. And they are still there, laying out the property for a large housing project! ”. Pastor Storz left church immediately and accompanied the gateman back to the villa. The men were hard at work, just as the gateman had said. Pastor Storz said to the contractor “This property has been purchased by the Saigon Adventist Hospital. Please take your men away immediately.”
The contractor gave a smug grin. “ Look at this,” he said, holding up an official-looking document. “ This land has been requisitioned by the govement for the construction of refugee housing!”
……. Pastor Storz told him. “There has obviously been a mistake, would you please cease construction until I can look into this matter?” The contractor considered this a moment before he replied. “Yes, I will take my men away until we have further orders.”
Again, Pastor Storz hunted up Mr. Paulan, who expressed surprise to hear that the government had sent a contractor to the property. “Yes,” he said, “the government requisitioned the land more than four months ago, but the law is clear about these requisitions. It specifically states that if building has not begun within three months of the time the order was issued, the owner is free to sell his property. So I legally sold it to you.”
Together the men set out to talk to the government authorities. When they arrived at the proper office, they were informed that the minister had gone to Australia for several weeks to attend the Olympics. His assistant said he could not change the order requisitioning the land, but he would issue a command to stop construction until the minister returned and produced the original order. Again God intervened, and the new hospital property was still theirs—at least until the minister returned. When he came back and heard that the property had been sold for a new hospital, he was delighted. He voided the original requisition immediately.
     Contributions from local friends and businesses funded the first two payments to Mr. Paulan. When Florence’s family and some American doctors heard about the land purchase, they also wanted a share in helping to pay for the new hospital property. Soon the Mission was able to make the third payment – and owned the new property free and clear.
     But one more obstacle suddenly arose. A new law came into effect that no foreigners could own property in Vietnam. Legally, all of the Mission-owned property was held in the name of Pastor Elton Wallace. In addition, the government considered the Mission a French organization, and French organizations could not buy property - even to build a hospital. Negotiations began between the Vietnamese ambassador and the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Washington, D.C.
     One year and six months later, on America’s Thanksgiving Day in 1956, President Ngo Dinh Diem signed the papers that allowed the property to belong to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. What a day of thanksgiving that was! Now the property only waited for the new hospital to be erected.
…..The Wintons had a little more than a year until furlough time, and Florence had one more problem to deal with. It was a big problem. Beginning with the war for Vietnam’s independence, refugees had built small shelters on every available spot of empty land-Including the new hospital property. Over the years, these squatters had made themselves very much at home. Some had actually built small houses and planted gardens. Before the hospital could be built, these squatters would have to be moved off the property. But as in some other Asian countries, the squatters would not move unless they were paid—and paid well. Only then could the Mission build a brick wall around the property.
     This problem was resolved. The squatters were paid, and the wall was built—all before the Winton left on furlough. Florence happily wrote the check to pay for the iron gate at the entrance. She greatly anticipated seeing the new hospital under construction when the family returned in a year. Of course, it would take several years to complete the hospital facility, and the money for contruction must be earned before the board would allow them to proceed.
In the meantime, the villa was remodeled into three apartments for families and several studio apartments for unmarried graduate nurses. A church school for the American children met in a room on the third floor. It was a happy moment for Florence when she and her family spent their first night sleeping on the new property.
     This second year at the hospital had been a busy one, as the year-end reports recorded. Medical personel saw 40,000 outpatients and admitted 758 patients to the hospital. They delivered 103 babies and performed 147 major surgeries. The staff had grown to more than fifty employees, and every staff member was a baptized church member – an especially important statistic for Florence.
…. During these years, the gospel was spreading rapidly in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Voice of Prophecy had gone on the air as a result of Dr. Winton’s care of a grateful patient.
….. And then it was furlough time. The 4 years in Vietnam had gone by quickly. For solid week before the Dr. Winton left for their furlough, their friends and former patients gave them one farewell after another. They even had two banquets on the same day.
     Then came the last night – when the hostpital staff said Goodbye. Florence’s tears flowed freely. These people were her family. Many had come from small villages with a meager education. And now they were doing a marvelous task in caring for the sick in the hospital.
     The final act of that last evening was a dress parade. The staff had lovely Vietnamese costumes tailored "áo dài" for both Ervin and Florence. Someone placed a lei of orchids around Florence’s neck. A medal carved from ivory was presented to Ervin. On it were carved the words, " First Medical Missionary to Vietnam." The staff had one last request of Florence and Ervin – whenever the Winton told the story of the Saigon Adventist Hostpital, they must were these costumes.

At three o’clock on the morning of April 28,1958, Florence made out the checks for the hospital payroll. A few hours later she turned over the accounting books to Dr. Brooks. Weary and exhausted, she sobbed at the airport as she and her husband said Goodbye to the crowd gathered there. She was going back home, but her heart would stay behind in Vietnam.