Jean Windsor first went to the United Church Training School (UCTS) in 1951-52 as a “Canada 3” student. (See photo of grad) These students took 8 months of training and then had to commit to working for the church for the remainder of a 3 year commitment. Jean was sent with the board of Home Missions to Saint John, NB, where she was for 16 months and then for the remainder of the time as Girl’s Secretary for Maritime Conference. While she there she met Garnet “Red” Sherwood; he was the Boy’s Work Secretary. They became good friends.

Jean then went to work as Christian Ed Director in Moncton, New Brunswick and in 1958 she returned to the UCTS to complete her second year. She had always intended to go back and finish, and she wanted to go overseas. She was designated a Deaconess and commissioned by the Woman’s Missionary Society in 1959 and went to Hong Kong. After 2 years of language training she began youth work in Hong Kong with the Council of Churches. In 1965 she returned to North America for furlough and did a Master’s degree in Christian Education at Union, in New York. She also decided to marry and in 1966 she and Red got married. They served together in Hong Kong, although he was the only one paid, but she was appointed too. They had two sons and while they were young she was pretty much full time parent but she also worked in church work. In 1979 they retired and returned to Canada. Red is now deceased. She did not lose her diaconal status, she doesn’t really know why, because she thought it was the rule that if you married you were out, but because she was appointed as a missionary she assumed she was continued in the order. She didn’t have much connection with the Order. She remembers in 1959 that Stephen Mathers, Chairman of the Deaconess Committee and Tina Campion, the Secretary of the Order, came to visit her class at UCTS and told them about the disjoining rule and she was aghast.

Jean is now living in Penticton, BC, and is active in the church there.

Written by Caryn Douglas, based on an interview with Jean in 2009.