After her O levels, Mum completed a year at school before starting a pre nursing course in Poole. She had wanted to attend a London hospital for nursing training but unfortunately had been unsuccessful in applying due to her sister’s mental health condition which she had to declare on her application form. However, while at Poole, she learned that University College Hospital didn’t have the same prejudices. So she approached her Matron at Poole for a reference to apply for the course. The Matron, feeling that the pre nursing students should go on to train there, made Mum choose to either apply to the London hospital and leave the course, or continue and do full training at Poole. Mum applied and was accepted at University College Hospital.*

In London Mum’s horizons were broadened– she met with Christians from different church backgrounds in the Nurses Christian Fellowship and attended All Souls C of E church where John Stott, a famous evangelical Christian, was the rector. During this time she was impacted by a book called Sacrifice - about being prepared to follow God whatever his plan for us might be. It was 3 weeks after this that Dad wrote to her saying that he had decided to give up his share in the partnership on his farm and go to Bible college before going overseas to do agricultural mission work. Mum hadn’t wanted to be a missionary - she wasn’t keen on snakes and dangerous insects and she wanted to get married! The women missionaries she had seen were old fashioned single ladies. She started writing to Dad. Some verses in Hebrews 13 which talked about marriage, being content with what you have, being obedient to God and God promising to always be with us, helped her to realise it was God’s plan for them to be together*. Aged 21 she was accepted by the mission, got engaged and then didn’t see Dad for another 3 years because the mission required Mum to do a year’s midwifery training, followed by two years of missionary training. Mum completed her midwifery training at St Mary’s Hospital in Portsmouth and the missionary training at the Bible Training Institute in Glasgow.