Joy Ridderhof facts for kids
Joy F. Ridderhof was an amazing American missionary who helped share important messages with people all over the world. She was born in Minnesota in 1903 and passed away in California in 1984.
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Joy Ridderhof's Early Life
Joy was the youngest child in her family. Her parents had moved to America from the Netherlands and Sweden. She was one of the first students to graduate from Columbia International University in 1923.
Missionary Work in Honduras
In 1930, Joy traveled to Honduras in Central America. She started her missionary work in a town called Marcala and in nearby villages. She worked hard to share her message with the local people.
A New Idea for Sharing Messages
After some time, Joy became sick with malaria and had to return to the United States. While recovering, she had a brilliant idea. She started making special recordings in Spanish. These recordings shared her message and could be sent to places like Marcala in Latin America.
Soon, people heard about her recordings. She was asked to make recordings in the Navajo language for people in the United States. Joy agreed, and more requests for recordings in different languages followed. This led her to create an organization called Gospel Recordings in 1939.
Global Recordings Network
Gospel Recordings later changed its name to Global Recordings Network (GRN). This organization helps deliver important messages to people who prefer to learn by listening, especially in places where many people cannot read. They use special hand-operated record players to share these messages.
GRN's work reaches many parts of the world, including Africa, South America, Asia, Australia, and Central America. As of 2012, the organization had made recordings in an incredible 6,139 different languages!
Joy's Legacy in Film
Joy Ridderhof and the work of Gospel Recordings are featured in a 2006 documentary called The Tailenders. This film helps tell the story of how her idea grew into a worldwide effort.
