Irene Barsokevitz Vasenius

God’s Handmaiden in Africa

By

Irene Vasenius Collings  

Irene Barsokevitz was about to truly live her faith for it would be written of her, “She was a genuine handmaid of the Lord who devoted herself entirely to the service of the Gospel.”[1]

She clutched the guardrail as she watched the coastline disappear as the clipper ship sailed away from Finland.  There were so many emotions tumbling through her heart.  Guiltily she wondered how the family would survive without her.  Her mother had died that summer.  She brushed a chestnut curl from where the wind had blown it onto her face.  She would miss her seven brothers and their families, especially Emil she had taken care of his son for ten years after his mother had died.   Her father had died about that time, too.  She missed hearing him lead the local band.  Only her name was no longer Barsokevitz for on October 19, 1909, she had married the slim, gentle man who stood at her side.  But this honeymoon voyage was much more for they were sailing for Germany to join others and then to Asmara, Eritrea, Africa, to become medical missionaries.

Not surprisingly she had been attracted to a clipper captain, for her maternal grandfather had been one.  Fredrick had taken Swedish navigation courses for 1st mate from 1899-1900.[2] He worked up the ranks to become a clipper ship captain. 

While dating they had attended motivating sermons by Pastor L. R. Conradi[3] and converted to the Seventh-Day-Adventist faith.  Frederick felt he could not do his duty as captain[4] of the clipper ship if they arrived in a port on the Sabbath.[5]  So after much prayer and discussion he decided to go to the United States of America to attend George Washington University, Medical College where he received a medical degree in 1909.   Shortly after returning to Finland, Irene and Fredrick were married and now were on their way to join staff for a potential string of missions.

In Asmara the other missionaries included L. R. Conradi, mission director; Pastor Anol Grundset, mission superintendent; Valdemar E. Toppenberg, a Danish nurse; J. Persson, mission worker; and E. N. Lindegren, mission worker.  Irene worked to learn the native languages as Fredrick contacted the authorities to obtain permission to erect other stations. But, unfortunately, Fredrick’s numerous attempts to acquire permission for the establishment of medical work in other parts of Ethiopia were in vain.  The authorities suggested buying a place in or near Asmara, so they purchased an old Italian homestead one mile south of that town.   Conradi had thought that the medical approach would open doors in Ethiopia, but for now that door was closed.

Mission appropriations were small and strictly limited, and so Doctor Vasenius and Pastor Grundset worked on the scaffold with the rest of the staff until the mission compound, consisting of two houses, a school building, workshop; stable and good well had been completed. Even the stones for foundations and walls were quarried by them.

Irene now had a new project for their son, Aarne Elias Vasenius, arrived on September 27, 1910.  The first post card is written to her niece and the second has their child pictured.

In 1911[6] the Vasenius’ were transferred to a mission located on a high hill which could be seen from Lake Victoria “a circuit of mission station that had recently been opened in the area of Musoma on Lake Victoria. Doctor Vasenius is listed as being at Ikizu[7], where a school had been started, part of the time, and at Buseqwe, part of the time. The latter is about half way between Ikizu and Musoma. In 1912  Doctor Vasenius gave more than 800 treatments to the sick in Buseqwe District, but health care was clearly not their principal work.  "...We have pathetic cases of women coming to our missions to give birth to perhaps their sixth or seventh or even ninth child, not one of the previous ones being alive.... Occasionally the mothers come (back) to show their child, and a great portion of them give their hearts to God."[8]

Irene taught the natives how to cook and clean. While her specific duties have not been documented it is known she loved children, so probably taught school. She had a fine singing voice and so conceivably led the singing and taught the hymns to the natives. Whether or not she trained as a nurse or merely functioned as one is not clear, but some accounts[9] (including family history) refer to her as one.  Irene, known for always being jolly and cheerful[10]  “was a proper female servant of the Lord who devoted herself to evangelic gospel service"[11]

One of the patients was a pregnant woman married to an East Indian trader. The husband paid for the delivery and medical services with an African gray parrot.  Irene loved her new pet.  Fredrick clipped its wings so that the bird could fly around but not escape back into the jungle.  They named the parrot, Polly, who learned to mimic the human voice perfectly. When people sat down to eat she said, "Our kind, heavenly father," in Doctor Vasenius' voice. She called, "Doktor," like the German or Dutch man who came to play chess or checkers.

Another one of their neighbors, a British Army officer ordered a gramophone.  But upon arrival the officer told Fredrick he didn't like it. As Fredrick looked over the gramophone he remembered hearing Irene’s father leading the band.  Irene loved music.  So Fredrick looked at it decided to purchase it. The next time the soldier came to the mission Doctor F. W. Vasenius offered to play some music on it. The officer stammered and turned red-faced. When the gramophone played beautifully the doctor explained that he had merely taken the packing out.

The doctor successfully treated his son's malaria, a coworker’s dysentery, and the Vasenius' had a second child in 1912, a girl they named Oune.

Pastor Conradi visited this mission, “Another eight hours’ march brought us to Kidzu, on December 15, (1912)…Four years ago the work was started in this field, and though we had some adversities at first, yet the work has recently developed well…They have a good dwelling-house finished, and the school is also under roof.  They have about one hundred fifty students, of who one fourth are girls…Dr. Vasenius thus far finds that the natives are rather shy in securing medical aid, especially if they have to pay something in return.  But gradually they are learning the advantage of a Christian doctor over the heathen medicine-men.  On account of heavy rains we were unable to start before three in the afternoon of the seventeenth.  Our path descended into a great plain, traversed by several rivers.  In the distance we could see the range of hills … and game of all sorts.” [12] 

Frederick told his wife how much he loved her during a rainstorm when they stood under a tree.[13]  Unfortunately, very shortly, Irene and Oune would be buried under that tree. For on January 22, 1913, both Irene and her baby, Oune, died of a virulent form of malaria known as Blackwater Fever.

 “The meeting was darkened by the death of a nurse, who had died of Blackwater fever,”[14] stunned the 4th annual meeting of the Victoria-Nyanza Mission Field.  “Unfortunately we had to mourn the loss of Sister Vasenius, the wife of Doctor Vasenius.  She had been in Africa since 1909 and died in 1913 in Ikidzu.”[15]

Fredrick tried valiantly to carry on without his beloved wife.  He would take his two year old son with him on his tours.  Aarne remembers going around to villages with his father and asking the children, “What’s this, what’s this,” to learn the terms of things in the tribal language.

The following summer, in August 1914, world events changed everything for Britain declared war on Germany, and Germany declared war on Russia, France, and Belgium.  The war even affected Ikidzu for the German district officer moved his headquarters and archives to the mission, claiming there was more room.  As the Brits advanced in Tanganyika most of the SDA missions were looted and destroyed. The British forces made landings on the shores of Lake Victoria, to rout out the Germans.  When Toppenberg arrived at Ikidzu the doctor and German official were preparing to retreat to the south.[16]

Doctor Vasenius chose to serve with the British since his native Finland was a duchy of Russia. He became a 1st Lieutenant in the British Army in charge of a military hospital in Bukoba, British territory, from 1916-1918 [17]  and placed Aarne with a Dutch Nanny in South Africa for the remainder of the conflict. And then, on the 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month, in 1918, the signing of the Armistice brought the Great War to an end.

Doctor Vasenius decided not to return to Finland since his son would have to attend school there on the Sabbath.  A tramp steamer took them to America where they would settle in Chisholm, Minnesota.

[1] Frend und Leid  published in Hamburg 1918 p 18 Translation by Russell Staples, SDA mission director

[2]  Who’s Who Among Finnish Americans, Fitchburg,  MA 1949

[3] Staples, Russell,   Letter to author  “Pastor L. Condi was the primary leader of the (SDA) church in Europe, with headquarters in Hamburg.  He was possessed of vigorous missionary spirit and in the early years of the 20th century inspired the rapidly growing churches in Germany and Scandinavia, including Finland to be involved with missionary work.  For the greater part the Germans went to German colonial territories, including Tanganyika and Scandinavians went to countries in the Middle East.  They planned to commence work in Ethiopia, which they expected would be shortly opened for missionary service.”

[4] Family members disagree whether Fredrick was  a captain or navigator

[5] Family oral history

[6] Who’s Who Among Finnish Americans, Fitchburg, MA 1949

[7] Ikizu is also spelled Kidzu in the literature

[8] Pfeiffer, Baldur, editor, Seventh-day Adventist Contributions to East Africa, 1903-1983  Verlag Peter Lang, Frankfurt, Germany page 82

[9] Heinz, Daniel, and Richard Ludwig Conradi; Missionari die Siebentien-Tegs—Adventism in Europe,   Frankfurt au Main, Verlag Peter Lang 1986 page 72 Translation by Father Ron Stolcis

[10] Told to Aarne and Fern Vasenius on a visit to Finland, by Vera Barsokevitz, Irene’s niece

[11]Frend und Leid  published in Hamburg 1918 page 18  Translation by Father Ron Stolcis

[12] Conradi, L. R.  THE ADVENT REVIEW AND SABBATH HERALD,  THE WORLD WIDE FIELD, “German Victoria Nyanza Mission,  April 10, 1913

[13] Story told to Grace Vasenius by her father-in-law, Dr. Vasenius

[14] Heinz, Daniel, and Richard Ludwig Conradi; Missionari die Siebentien-Tegs—Adventism in Europe , Frankfurt au Main, Verlag Peter Lang 1986 page 72 Translation by Father Ron Stolcis

[15]  Toppenberg, V. E.,  s, wrote numerous articles for the Mission Field published in Germany, This 1913 article  was a report of the 4th yearly meeting of the Victoria –Nyanza Mission Field. Translation by Father Ron Stolcis

[16] Toppenberg, Valdemar E., Africa Has My Heart,  Pacific Press Publishing Association, Mountain View, California 1958 p.62-68 

[17] Who’s Who Among Finnish Americans, Fitchburg ,  MA 1949

 
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