Rachel Jeanette Entz

Mrs. Rachel Entz was born Rachel Austin in La Grange Indiana to Mildred and Loren Austin in 1934.  She was the third of four children.  She is survived by her older sister Joyce and her baby sister Gertrude.  Her older brother Merton is deceased.  Loren had two wives that died prior to Mildred, providing for her three additional siblings.  She was raised on a farm with seven brothers and sisters.

Loren was a pattern maker for Henry Ford.  He worked all week, coming home to the farm on the weekends.  Raised Methodist, Rachel was born again at age ten when a missionary speaker presented the Gospel.  She sang along with the radio and wanted to be an Opera singer.  She worked her way through nursing school.  She attended Bible school at Grace Seminary in Winona Lake Indiana where, in addition to her full time studies, worked as the school nurse.

Mom met Dad at Winona Lake.  She thought he was really handsome.  On their first date, Dad was so nervous that he forgot his wallet and mom had to pay for the date.  He talked Physics all night and bored her to death. What attracted dad to her was how compassionate and caring she was.  They both wanted to be missionaries; Dad to Africa and Mom to South America.

During their engagement, she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, which remained in remission most of her life.  Because of this, she gave dad the option to break the engagement, but he said no.  In June 1957 they were married in a double-wedding with her older sister Joyce.

Their first child, Sonya, was born in Elkhart Indiana in 1958.  Mom had so many complications that the doctor told her not to have more children.

 Because of mom’s health, the mission made them wait a year before going to Africa.  She said it was a miracle they ever allowed her to go.  They boarded the ship when Sonya was only 18 months old.  One year later, in 1960, their second daughter Laura was born in Nigeria.  Shortly after birth, Laura was very sick with the Measles; mom was afraid she would die.

They served two, four year terms in Africa.  During this time, Dad built and ran transmitters for the Christian radio station which broadcasted the Gospel to all Africa.  Mom worked as a nurse at the missionary compound.  During their first term it was only a clinic with a team of nurses.  During the second term the mission built a hospital staffed with two additional missionary doctors.  During this term, in 1966, third child, Douglas was born in Liberia.  The five of them returned to the U.S in 1968.

They moved to Iowa where dad worked building transmitters and mom worked at a local hospital on weekends.  In 1969, fourth child, Keith, was born.  There were serious complications with his birth and both Keith and my mother could have died.  During this time, my grandma, Katie Entz, came out to help us for several weeks.

In 1969 dad’s job ended building transmitters.  In 1973 they joined FEBC and moved to California.  In 1976 they moved to Seoul Korea.  Later that year their oldest daughter, Sonya, left for college in the U.S.  In Seoul, mom worked at the mission office, studied the Korean language, and taught English classes to the locals using the Bible as their text book.  Many of her students were born again and remained lifelong friends.  In 1979 their second daughter, Laura left for College.

They furloughed in California for one year were dad worked at the FEBC radio station near San Francisco. In 1980 they left to Korea with the boys for another four year term.  In 1984 they returned to California where he continued to work for FEBC until they both retired to Kansas in 1997.

Mom has always had her ladies Bible classes and five day kids clubs in California and Kansas.  In retirement, she accompanied my dad on mission trips to Alaska.

Our dad passed away in 2008.  In 2011 we moved mom to a duplex at Kansas Christian in Newton.  It was a hard adjustment for her, but after some time, she made the most of it.  The same story was repeated when she was moved to Wheat State.  Mom always adapted, made friends and got involved.  She always put others, especially her family, before herself.  She was selfless.  She believed in dad’s dream for their lives.

“God Realized His Missionary needed a Partner, Someone who would work beside him in good times and bad, so God made a Missionary’s Wife”