Two Baby Boomers Change their Lives by Retiring as Educators in the U.S. and Becoming Lecturers at a Bible College in Africa
The experiences of Drs. Keith and Dianne Byrd are recorded in his journal during their three years of living and teaching in Africa. The thoughts and emotions they experienced are given in a narrative that tells a compelling story of a loving relationship that developed between them and their African students. Some crisis experiences that caused them to greatly rely on their faith included: a life and death decision of a student,
the marriage of a Maasai man to a Kipsigis woman, and the death of another student as the result of an accident on a Kenyan road.
Columbus, GA (PRWEB) April 16, 2006 -- Baby Boomers are at a transition point in their lives. They are seeking new and exciting work and purpose in their lives.
Dr. Byrd’s book Second Careers in our Fifties: Missionaries to Africa gives an account of that transition point in his life. He and his wife retired as educators in the U.S. and set out to Africa to teach at Kenya Highlands Bible College. He kept a journal from beginning to end on their three-year adventure. The journal is included along with narrative of their experiences and his thoughts and feelings. This true story begins with their uncertainty and anxious anticipation and the initial adjustments to a new culture, including experiencing 9-11 and the war in Iraq in a culture that didn’t understand.
It continues with a car accident and its aftermath, relationships with students, the possibility of adopting a child, struggling in the classroom, a theft, a visit from their son and daughter-in-law, a graduation day tragedy, Kiswahili language study, and travels in Africa including Kenya, Egypt, and South Africa. The author tells of how a life was saved from what was learned in a psychology class he taught, the adventure of traveling to a Maasai wedding, sex education to African youth who had been taught nothing by their families, traveling back to the U.S. to raise scholarship funds for the students, a drama portrayed in chapel that later seemed to play out in reality for the lead character, reentry adjustment to the U.S., and Mama Douglas’ unique role with the students at the college.
Author Contact:
Dr. Keith Byrd, 334-448-1027, byrdhome1151@aol.com
Book Statistics:
ISBN: 1598002864
Retail Price(s): $18.95
Size and Format(s): 7.4 x 9.7
Page Count: 264
Availability: Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, www.outskirtspress.com/MissionaryAsSecondCareer
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