In the final episode of They Also Served, we shift our focus from the trailblazing women of the past to the women shaping the church today. Historian and host Dr. Heidi Olson Campbell sits down with educators, administrators, theologians, and seminary students from around the world to explore what inspires their service, who mentored them, and how they’re mentoring others. From breaking barriers to building up the next generation, these women remind us that the call to serve didn’t stop with his...
Jul 25, 2025•27 min•Ep. 12
The Progressive Era in the United States brought many social and political reforms. Many professions that were previously closed off to women and people of color became more accessible and for Seventh-day Adventist women, the medical field brought opportunity for mission-minded work both domestically and abroad. But this new era didn’t last forever. A new set of challenges for these women - nurses, doctors, and health educators - was on the horizon. In this episode, we explore the lives of Mary ...
Jul 11, 2025•52 min•Ep. 11
In the marketplace, on boats and on streets in late 1890s India, male missionaries found open doors: men interested in hearing their message or reading their material. But when it came to entering people's homes and evangelizing women, doors were shut in the male missionaries’ faces. In some countries, including India, it was against cultural customs and norms to allow foreign men to talk to their daughters and wives. These closed doors for male missionaries provided open doors for female ones. ...
Jun 27, 2025•29 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Few 19th century Protestant missionaries arriving in China realized that Christianity had first come to China over a thousand years before they had. Even fewer realized how much they had to learn. Not just the language-and that would prove hard enough-but thousands of years of culture. They wanted to change the world. Most missionaries arrived with a racial bias and assumed that Western culture was superior to Chinese. But they had a lot to learn and would find that if they would succeed in thei...
Jun 13, 2025•35 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Christianity has been present in China since the 7th century—long before the arrival of Jesuit or Seventh-day Adventist missionaries. Yet for much of Chinese history, social norms meant women lived relatively private lives, interacting mostly with one another. “When I was reading Chinese Christian history,” guest Dr. Susangeline Patrick recalls, “I didn't initially see a lot of women's stories.” And yet today, women are the backbone of China’s Christian movement—serving as pastors, leaders, and ...
May 30, 2025•28 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Petra Tunheim could have lived an ordinary life. She died on a ship to Singapore, traveling back to the island that she loved - Java - but she was born far from Java in Norway. Her childhood was far from extraordinary. She was born to an ordinary couple with already a large family in an ordinary town in Norway, raising sheep and keeping up with her nine brothers and sisters. But at 17, her life took one of the many turns that would make it extraordinary and lead to her living on four continents ...
May 16, 2025•30 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th century often didn't speak the language and didn't know anyone in the new country they were going to, at least at first. Missionary boards typically sent couples like Joseph and Jennie Westphal into the field together so that they would not have to go it alone. But this didn’t stop single women missionaries in South America like Lucy Post and Olive Westphal from carrying out their calling of service. They found ways to build support networks of commun...
May 02, 2025•32 min•Ep. 6
As women contributed to the cause of the church in the early 20th century, they faced the challenge of juggling professional and domestic tasks, often caring for multiple generations while providing financial for the family, yet were often paid less - even half as much - as their male counterparts. Despite working themselves into the ground, women continued to work for the benefit of their church, and Alma McKibbin was one of them. But Alma barely made it out alive. Thank you to our guest, Laura...
Apr 18, 2025•36 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Anna Knight always wanted an education. Born in 1874 to a white, defected Confederate soldier and an emancipated slave of mixed heritage, she grew up in a post-Civil War South where education for Black children was severely restricted—or outright banned. Yet, Anna’s unwavering determination propelled her beyond these barriers. Once denied access to basic schooling, she rose to become a nurse, educator, and administrator, earning recognition as a trailblazing leader among Black Seventh-day Advent...
Apr 04, 2025•33 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Many women in the Millerite Movement had eagerly hoped for Christ to come on October 22, 1844. They had dedicated their time, energy and resources to spread the good news of Christ's soon return through print and by mouth. But what happened after Christ didn’t return on October 22, 1844? Did women return home to be the “angels of the household”? Or did they play a role in the formation of the churches that came out of the Millerite Movement, shaping the landscape of American Christianity forever...
Mar 21, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Women were active participants in the Millerite Movement, a mid-nineteenth century American revival movement. They not only believed Christ was coming soon, they actively disseminated the good news. And if Christ was coming soon, they needed to work together to improve the lives of those around them. This episode explores the lives of little-known Millerite women who were actively involved in the Millerite, temperance, abolition, and suffrage movements and how these activities intersected. Guest...
Mar 07, 2025•36 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Why study women's history? Why are women's roles in the development of Christianity so often invisible? Historian Dr. Heidi Olson Campbell uncovers why the way history is written and preserved can leave many important stories untold and why telling these stories matters for understanding our past and our future. Guests: Laura Wibberding, Dr. Lisa Clark Diller, Dr. Ed Allen, Dr. Kevin Burton, Dr. Ella Simmons, Celeste Ryan Blyden. Show Notes Book | They Also Served (1940) by Ava Covington...
Mar 07, 2025•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Coming March 7, on this season of They Also Served: Stories of Adventist Women. Join host Heidi Olson Campbell as she explores the untold stories and "unvisited tombs" of women in Adventist history. Premieres March 7, 2025. Subscribe now!
Feb 28, 2025•3 min
