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Only Child in a Big Family

A medical missionary dedicating himself to Taiwan, Samuel Noordhooff was born on June 29, 1927 in Iowa, USA, as the only child of the family. It was the Great Depression days and his family was not well-off. He had to deliver newspapers in the early snowy mornings and worked in the farm over the weekend. However, he did not feel his life was any worse than other children’s. The hardship made him a diligent man. This is why he had no problem adjusting to the fighting spirit of Taiwan.

Determined to Become an Eagle Scout

Although he always had to work part-time, he managed to squeeze out time to have fun with friends. He liked football and was the guard in the high school team. He loved the scout activities because it was a way to develop leadership and leadership can move you up the ranks. His wife Lucy said that he works hard all his life. Meanwhile, he also asks others to work hard. Finally, he has time for swimming, golfing and tennis now that he is retired in the US.

Dream for Missionary Work Overseas

Religious life was an important part of his childhood. All his parents and relatives are devout Christians. There would always be people returning from missionary trips to Africa, Arabia, China or other places and share their stories in the church. Samuel was encouraged by these stories. Hence, he was no strangers to the stories of overseas missionaries but he never thought that many years later, he would become one of them, occasionally returning to the churches in the US to give talks and raise money.

Affirmation of Life Goals

After graduating from high school, he decided to join the military. He spent over two years in the navy, serving as a technical assistant in the surgery room. He learned how to conduct some tests in the laboratory. This experience was very important to him and made him decide to be a surgeon. Also, he could immediately find a job in the test lab in a local hospital after his military service and save money for a medical college. Years later, he came to practice medicine in Taiwan. Some people found that this superintendent from the US actually performed surgery himself and sometimes even denoted blood to patients. However, he did not think it was any big deal since he often sold blood to fund his medical education. After he graduated from the university, he met Lucy and started the story of their life.

A Surprising Call

The year 1959 was Dr. Noordhooff’s last year of training as a resident. He and Lucy were looking for a good place for practice medicine but had not decided where to. One evening, his friend Dr. Beldman gave a letter to Samuel. It was from Dr. Clarence Holleman, Superintendent of Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taiwan, hoping to recruit a missionary doctor. Dr. Holleman is an American. His wife needed to go back to the US because she could not handle the humid climate of Taipei. He wrote a letter to the US, hoping to recruit a doctor to take over Mackay Memorial Hospital. Dr. Noordhooff and Lucy were interested and started correspondence for two, three months, exploring the possibility of becoming a missionary doctor in Mackay Memorial Hospital.

Final Answer

Since the church learned about their intention to become a missionary, all the priests and laymen started to pray for their decision. After two to three months, the answer was yes. The church began to prepare this young couple who had nothing to the remote and backwater place. In September 1959, he took a train to San Francisco and took the boat sailing toward the East.

References :
Yu-fang Liang(2000).《Love, To Mend the Imperfectness: Dr. Noordhooff’s Forty Years in Taiwan》.Taipei City:Common Wealth .
Image Sources :
Yu-fang Liang(2000).《Love, To Mend the Imperfectness: Dr. Noordhooff’s Forty Years in Taiwan》.Taipei City:Common Wealth .