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Church of the Nazarene member Maria Veiga Amado Nhanha, or Nhanha for short, passed away 5 May at the age of 112. She was born 9 October 1905 just outside the city of S\u00e3o Filipe, Fogo, an island in Cabo Verde (formerly known internationally as Cape Verde).<\/p>\n
Regarded as one of the best child workers in her area, Nhanha had a gift for loving children. Nhanha didn\u2019t become a Christian until later in life, and it wasn\u2019t long afterward that her pastor asked her to help care for the children in a local Church of the Nazarene.<\/p>\n
General Superintendent Eug\u00e9nio R. Duarte, a Cabo Verde native himself, witnessed Nhanha’s love first-hand. His wife, Maria Amelia, is Nhanha’s niece.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven today, those who were [pastor\u2019s kids] then speak about her with gratitude for the way she influenced their lives,\u201d Duarte said. \u201cShe took care of them as if she was a second mother to them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Children\u2019s ministries was just one of Nhanha\u2019s many passions. She was a \u201cgifted host,\u201d a \u201cminister to pastors,\u201d and had a love for Sunday school \u201clike no other.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had the gift of hospitality like very few that I know,\u201d Duarte said. \u201cThe city near where she lived, S\u00e3o Filipe, was a place where people would go for business, and there would be transit going to the other islands. The Nazarene pastors who went by or who would stay in S\u00e3o Filipe said she was a wonderful host. She ministered to us pastors in a very unique way by providing food, a place to stay, and the kind of care that impacted so many pastors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether through personal outreach or church initiatives, Nhanha\u2019s passion to serve the church was remarkable. She always invited people to church, particularly to Sunday School, and for those who couldn\u2019t come, Nhanha still offered them a way to serve.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people were not willing to go with her or could not go to Sunday School with her, she would, in her own way, say \u2018okay you cannot go, I understand, but you can make a contribution to the Sunday School ministry by giving an offering to the Sunday School offering plate,\u2019\u201d Duarte said. \u201cNo one would say no to that, so she raised money for Sunday School because she believed in it.\u201d <\/p>\n
Sunday School was not the only ministry she cared for. In fact, there wasn\u2019t a service at her church that she wasn\u2019t involved in.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no service in the church that she did not attend,\u201d Duarte said. \u201cEven as an old person she would go to youth service; she was that faithful to the church and to God.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nhanha impacted many through her love and kindness.<\/p>\n
\u201c[Nhanha] influenced everyone who lived close to her,\u201d Duarte said. \u201cSo much so that people would go to her home to visit just to enjoy her company. She was a very gracious person, a very friendly person. Not only to people in the church but to people outside the church.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amid all of her good works and years of service, Nhanha was known for her humility throughout her community.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople in town knew her as a person of integrity, as person of good character,\u201d Duarte said. \u201cShe always gave credit to Jesus, not because she was able to do great things, but because of who Jesus was to her and what Jesus did for her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nhanha was preceded in death by her husband and is survived by six children, 23 grandchildren, 63 great-grandchildren, and 33 great-great-grandchildren.<\/p>\n
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