Brother Knorr offered me and my wife a missionary assignment in the Malagasy Republic, now known as Madagascar. I wrote to Veera, asking what she thought of that assignment, and she promptly answered, “Yes.” When I returned to Finland, we rushed to get ready for life in Madagascar.

Joy and Disappointment

In January 1962 we flew to Antananarivo, the capital of the country, wearing fur hats and heavy coats, for we had left in the Finnish winter. In the tropical heat of Madagascar, we quickly changed our style of dress. Our first missionary home was a little house with one bedroom. Another missionary couple was already there, so Veera and I slept on the porch.

We started learning French, an official language of Madagascar. This was rather difficult because the two of us did not share a common language with our instructor, Sister Carbonneau. She used English to teach us French, but Veera did not speak English. So I translated Sister Carbonneau’s instructions into Finnish for Veera. Then we realized that Veera understood technical concepts better in Swedish, so I explained French grammar to her in Swedish. Soon we were making good progress in French and took up studying Malagasy, the local language.

My first Bible study in Madagascar was with a man who spoke only Malagasy. I looked up Bible verses in my Finnish Bible, and then we searched for those verses in his Malagasy Bible. I could do little to explain the scriptures to him, but soon Bible truth grew in that man’s heart, and he progressed to baptism.

In 1963, Milton Henschel from the Brooklyn headquarters of Jehovah’s Witnesses visited Madagascar. Shortly afterward, a new branch office was established in Madagascar, and I was appointed the branch overseer, in addition to my work as circuit and district overseer. All the while, Jehovah blessed us richly. From 1962 to 1970, the number of Kingdom publishers in Madagascar grew from 85 to 469.

As we returned from the public ministry one day in 1970, we found a note at our door ordering all missionaries of Jehovah’s Witnesses to report to the office of the interior minister. There an official told us that the government had ordered that we leave the country immediately. When I asked what crime required my deportation, the official said: “Monsieur Kuokkanen, you have done nothing wrong.”

“We have been here for eight years,” I said. “This is our home. We cannot leave just like that.” Despite our efforts, all the missionaries had to leave within one week. The branch was closed, and a local Witness began to look after the work. Before leaving our dear brothers in Madagascar, we received a new assignment, to Uganda.

By 1990 opposition to the work in Madagascar had diminished, and Brooklyn headquarters surprised us by asking if we would go there for a one-year assignment. We wanted to go but were facing two great challenges. My elderly father needed care, and Veera continued to have health problems. I was saddened by the death of my father in November 1990, but Veera’s improving health gave us hope of returning to the missionary work. We went back to Madagascar in September 1991.

Our assignment in Madagascar was for one year, but it lasted ten. During that time, the number of publishers increased from 4,000 to 11,600. I greatly enjoyed serving as a missionary. Yet, at times I felt discouraged, wondering if I was neglecting the physical and emotional needs of my dear wife. Jehovah gave both of us the strength to continue.

[Pictures on page 14, 15]

From circuit work in Finland, 1960 . . .

. . . to missionary work in Madagascar, 1962