Charlotte Brown

Charlotte Brown was a missionary and teacher who opened a school at Matamata, New Zealand, with her husband Alfred in 1835. There she taught Maori children, including twelve-year-old Tarore, how to read. Charlotte explained John 3:16 to the girl, describing God's gift of His Son and the promise of eternal life for believers. She then gave Tarore a precious Maori-language copy of the Gospel of Luke. Tarore carried it in a woven bag around her neck, read it faithfully, and shared its message with her father. When tribal conflict made the mission unsafe, Charlotte joined the schoolchildren and other missionaries crossing the Kaimai Range toward Tauranga. Her patient teaching and simple gift helped place Scripture in hands that later carried its message of forgiveness and peace across New Zealand.