Darlene Deibler Rose was a

born-again Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sep ...

Christian

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

during and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in what would later be the Western Highlands province. She was the first American woman to enter the Baliem Valley of

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

, working there with her first husband, the Rev. Russell C. Deibler. After WWII broke out, the Deiblers were sent to separate prison camps. Russell died at

Pare Pare Parepare is a city (''kota'') in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, located on the southwest coast of Sulawesi, about north of the provincial capital of Makassar. A port town, it is one of the major population centers of the Bugis people. The city had a p ...

in 1944, but Darlene survived four years in a camp for women at Kampili, where she developed

beriberi Thiamine deficiency is a medical condition of low levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1). A severe and chronic form is known as beriberi. The two main types in adults are wet beriberi and dry beriberi. Wet beriberi affects the cardiovascular system, ...

. Her Christian faith sustained her during those years. Her experience is documented in the autobiographical ''Evidence Not Seen: A Woman's Miraculous Faith in a Japanese Prison during WWII'' (

Harper & Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...

, 1988), which has been optioned for a possible film. After the war, Darlene married Jerry Rose and resumed missionary work in New Guinea. After nearly thirty years in New Guinea, they relocated to the Australian Outback. She died on February 24, 2004.

References

External links

Audio of Darlene Deibler Rose telling her experiences
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rose, Darlene 1917 births 2004 deaths American women civilians in World War II Protestant missionaries in Papua New Guinea Female Christian missionaries American Protestant missionaries Protestant missionaries in Australia American prisoners of war in World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Japan American evangelicals American expatriates in Papua New Guinea American emigrants to Australia