Esther Lewis (1887 – 4 November 1958), born Esther Evans, was a Welsh educator and

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, 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.Tho ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Early life

Esther (or Hetty) Evans was born in Efail-y-Banc,

Rhydargaeau Rhydargaeau is a village in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It lies along the A485 road which connects it to Pontarsais in the north and Peniel and Carmarthen, to the south. The village is located in the community of Llanllawddog Llanllawddog () is ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, 1887. Her father was a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

. She trained as a teacher in

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...

, and taught at Penygroes School near

Ammanford Ammanford ( cy, Rhydaman) is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, with a population of 5,411 at the 2011 census. It is a former coal mining town. The built-up area had a population of 7,945 with the wider urban area even bigger. Acco ...

before she was called to mission work in 1914.Rees, D. Ben (2002).
Vehicles of Grace and Hope: Welsh Missionaries in India 1800-1970
'. William Carey Library. p. 116. . Retrieved 1 September 2012.

Career

Evans served as a Presbyterian missionary at Sonapur and

Karimganj Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district. Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13& ...

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

, India. She was a teacher to women living in

zenana Zenana ( fa, زنانه, ur, , bn, জেনানা, hi, ज़नाना) literally meaning "of the women" or "pertaining to women", in Persian language contextually refers to the part of a house belonging to a Muslim, Sikh, or Hindu f ...

. In 1925, she was appointed headmistress of the school at Karimganj, succeeding Dilys Edmunds. When the school was closed in 1935, she continued in Karimganj as a missionary, working with Jane Helen Rowlands to run Dipti Nibash, a refuge home for widows and orphans. In widowhood in the 1940s, she volunteered again for mission work, and taught women in

Sylhet Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...

Personal life

Hetty Evans married David John Lewis in early 1945, in Cymer Afan, while she was on furlough in Wales. She was widowed eight months later, when Lewis died. She died in 1958, in Wales, aged 71 years.

References

1887 births 1958 deaths Welsh Protestant missionaries People from Carmarthenshire Protestant missionaries in India British expatriates in India Female Christian missionaries {{UK-reli-bio-stub