Before there was a Woman’s Missionary Union, there was Hephzibah Jenkins Townsend, a determined and courageous woman who transcended the societal constraints of the antebellum South to found a missionary society that would become the model for hundreds of others to follow. Hephzibah, mistress of a large plantation on South Carolina’s Edisto Island, gave birth to fifteen children. Her passion was missions, and in order to fund missions and to found a church, Hephzibah and her beloved servant Bella started a baking business. Force of character and a profound sense of justice were the hallmarks of Hephzibah’s life. This is her remarkable story. Rosalie Hall Hunt is an avid historian, especially of the women who have shaped missions. She is the daughter of missionaries, and she and her husband, Bob, served for thirty years as missionaries in eight Asian countries. She is the author of Bless God and Take Courage: The Judson History and Legacy,
We’ve a Story to Tell: 125 Years of WMU, and other books and articles. She speaks at churches, retreats and conferences. Hunt and her husband live in Guntersville, Alabama. In the story of Hephzibah Jenkins Townsend, we see the true meaning of sacrificial giving and the power of one voice to change our culture and world. - Wanda Lee, Executive Director, Woman’s Missionary Union, Southern Baptist Convention The wonderful research and the intriguing way Rosalie Hall Hunt shares Hephzibah’s story will encourage you in your service. May we all be found as faithful as Hephzibah. - Linda Cooper, President, Woman’s Missionary Union, Southern Baptist Convention There is no way to overestimate the importance of Hephzibah to the history of Baptist women in missions, and there is no way to really understand Hephzibah’s story without the master storyteller Rosalie Hall Hunt. - Ruby Fulbright, Vice President, North American Baptist Women’s Union