International Pioneering – China Segment 2 by Priscilla Hofert
CHINA SEGMENT 2: ENGLISH CORNER by Priscilla Hofert, October 2022
In the fall of 1998 we were told about English Corner at Nankai University, which was set up to help the Chinese improve their English, It met each Sunday from nine to noon. It was a great place to be of service to those who wished to learn English. So this is where we would come, even in the winter when it was cold.
One older man who came seemed very serious; we thought he might be a spy to see if we would say anything negative about
China. It turned out he had learned English in China from an English teacher, before the Communist take over. He had taught at the high school that Nankai University had set up on their campus, and as a result he had housing on the campus. I called him Professor Li. He often helped explain a phrase which I would use, when he realized the students and bystanders needed help to understand the phrase or idiom. He also would ask questions regarding fine points in English grammar. Eventually we invited him to our home and he invited us to his home. When he read “Hidden Words” he fell in love with the Baha’i Faith.
Through the years we kept in touch using emails and phone calls. Turns out he was born in 1936, the same year I was born. The last few times I talked with him, he said his health was not so good. Then we found out that he had died January 1, 2022. We did not know how to respond, as his wife did not speak English and maybe his email had been cancelled. A few days later his son, realizing that we had corresponded with professor Li and remembering Li mentioning us to him, sent us, in English, the news of his passing saying that he had passed away at home. Happily that gave us a chance to respond saying how much we had cherished his friendship over the years. We sent our sincere condolences to his son and the whole family.
In the fall of 1998 we met Jessie at English Corner. She asked if she and her two friends could come and study English at our home. Thus began a friendship that has lasted through the years.
Jessie, with her two friends, Daisy and Peppy (Rita), came to our home for 4 years, first just to talk and then to study Building a Better World (which was the text created for the Chinese, to introduce the Baha’i Faith) and later to study Ruhi books. At graduation time they invited us out to dinner to celebrate their graduation. After graduation Jessie and Rita obtained masters degrees in Canada and met Baha’is in Canada. Daisy kept coming to see us in Tianjin, though now she had gotten a job in Beijing so she came only occasionally. After Jessie and Peppy ( Rita) got their masters degrees they returned to China. The three of them studied Ruhi with an American Baha’i in Beijing. They often visited us in Tianjin. In 2008 when we left China many tears were shed.
Today they are still active teaching where they are. Two are still in Beijing and one is in Canada. All three are now married and two have children.
Those of you who had a chance to attend John’s memorial service October 1, 2021, saw the lovely video they sent telling of their memories of John.
It’s reported by other former pioneers to China that now the Chinese have no need of pioneers, as they are joyfully taking the lead in spreading our Beloved Faith.
Daisy, for example is helping start a preschool for teaching virtues, but cannot mention the Baha’i Faith at this time.
English Corner in springtime 
English Corner in summer 
John talking with students 
Daisy, Jessie, and Peppy (Rita 
Their friends with Priscilla