In 1957, three Southern Baptist representatives, nurses Ruth Ford, Everly Hayes and Dr. Kathleen Jones, founded the first Baptist hospital in the city of Kediri on the island of Java in Indonesia. Ford previously served in China during World War II. On the day Pearl Harbor was bombed, she was on a ship that was captured by the Japanese. She was held prisoner for two years before her freedom was traded for that of a Japanese diplomat. Hayes previously served as a medical superintendent in China during the rise of communism. She worked with Dr. Bill Wallace, who she witnessed being arrested. Fifty-three days later, Wallace was martyred. Hayes was put under house arrest during this time. Jones grew up as a missionary kid in Brazil and felt called to use her medical profession overseas.
