37 Facts About Calista Vinton

Calista H Vinton was an American Baptist missionary who labored for 30 years in Burma preaching, teaching and caring amongst the Karen people.

Calista Vinton was born on 19 April 1807 to Thomas and Lavinia Holman in Union, Connecticut.

Calista Vinton completed her education by alternately teaching and studying.

Calista Vinton met Justus Vinton, who was studying at the Hamilton Literary and Theological Institute.

Since Justus and Calista Vinton were sufficiently familiar with the Karen language, they immediately commenced their mission work to the Karens in the jungles around Moulmein.

Calista Vinton established many schools in mission stations and staffed them with native scholars she had trained.

In 1846, a third child, Harvey Howard, was born to Mrs Calista Vinton; he died before his first birthday.

In 1847, Mrs Calista Vinton's health failed and it was thought best to return to America to recover.

Rev Calista Vinton needed a rest after fourteen years of strenuous jungle work.

Rev Calista Vinton took two Karen disciples, Myah A and Kone Lowk, to assist him in his translation of the bible into Karen.

Rev Calista Vinton spent most of his time in America visiting churches to reawaken the missionary spirit, often accompanied by Myah A and Kone Lowk.

Mrs Calista Vinton, who was still very ill, rested at the home of Deacon Granger in Suffield, Connecticut.

Calista Vinton wanted to contribute something to the cause of mission but was fearful that people would blame her for "giving from the depth of her poverty".

Consequently, she concealed the money in the toe of one of a pair of stockings she was knitting; she handed them to Myah A and told him to give them to Mrs Calista Vinton and tell her that the contents of the toe were for the mission to the Karens.

When Mrs Calista Vinton learned how poor Mary Ann was, she wanted to do something special with that holy money.

Calista Vinton mentioned about it to a deacon from Hartford.

Mrs Calista Vinton thought if she could get some more wrappers, she would send Frankie to Boston to buy some bibles for the Karens.

Calista Vinton wrote the "Frankie" story and sent it to the pastor of Suffield Church.

Mrs Calista Vinton sent off "Frankie and the wrappers" to a Boston publisher with a note about his story.

Rev and Mrs Calista Vinton then decided they would build a house of the Lord for the Karens and it would be called Frank's Chapel.

Seventeen Karen churches in the district asked Rev Calista Vinton to come to their aid, and he went to Rangoon.

Mrs Calista Vinton was completely responsible for running the mission school in Kemmendine, which had 200 to 250 pupils.

In 1858, Rev Calista Vinton went on an excursion to Shwekyin, to select locations to post his native preachers and came home with the jungle illness and died on 31 March.

Mrs Calista Vinton continued the mission work of Rev Calista Vinton assisted ably by native preachers, Mao-yay, Nga-lay, and Yai-pau.

Calista Vinton deputized two very able assistants, Fidelia and Eliza who were earlier trained by Sister Miranda in Karen Normal School in Moulmein.

In 1858 Calista Vinton arrived back from Suffield and mother and daughter were reunited.

Calista Vinton engaged in the mission work immediately teaching mathematics, vocal music and supervising the boarding school.

Calista Vinton found both his mother and sister to be in failing health.

Nevertheless, Mrs Calista Vinton went on a tour with Brainerd, and the disciples in villages rejoiced at seeing the "son of his father".

In 1862, Mrs Vinton and Calista left Rangoon for Falmouth, England and visited many British friends, most of whom had retired from civil and military service in Burma.

Calista Vinton was resolved to devote his life to mission work but had not decided on his field.

Mrs Calista Vinton persuaded him to make the Karen mission his field.

Calista Vinton sailed to England in December 1863 and took the overland route through Egypt and Red Sea to Calcutta and Rangoon.

Mrs Vinton engaged immediately in the work of the mission and started building a second mission house for the newly married Rev R M Luther and her daughter Calista.

In 1872, the Baptist Missionary Union vindicated Rev Vinton of the "deputation" and Brainerd and Calista rejoined the Union.

Calista Vinton later became the district secretary of the Baptist Missionary Union and a pastor at Newark, New Jersey.

Calista Vinton wrote a memoir of her parents, The Vintons and the Karens, Memorials of Rev Justus H Vinton and Calista H Vinton, and published it in 1880.