History of Shan Churches in Burma 1861-2001 - Khamkoo

Baptist mission among the Shan 71
KanNaLone church building was built in 1951 under leadership of San Lu. It was Shanspeaking
Church. It helped solve the problem of long worship service at NaungPha Church due to
multi-languages. The first pastor of KanNaLone Church was recorded as Rev. Po Hla. As reported in
1927 by Telford, in the absence of the pastor of Shan Church, San Lu conducted the religious services.
He also taught Sunday school class and he had, on different occasions, gone to KengTung market to
preach the gospel to his fellow Shan. He even had conversations with SaoPha about Christianity. The
SaoPha was a staunch Buddhist. San Lu had a likable personality. Two storeys Phak Ka Sai memorial
hall was built in 2001 in KanNaLone Shan Baptist Church compound. It is useful for further activities
of the Church. There are six rooms for Sunday school and a big assembly hall upstairs.
KengTung Hospital
Medical work began with the arrival of Dr. and Mrs. Howard Clinton Gibbons in 1903, and a
hospital building was completed. After three years of service he moved to MuongNai and Dr. Robert
Harper arrived KengTung in 1907. Dr. Robert Harper worked in KengTung from 1907 till 1915. He
also started mission school. There were many gaps in missionary terms, especially in medical work. Dr.
Henderson’s son Ralph, came out for three years, Miss. Elva Jenkins had the medical work for two
years, while Miss. Gladys Riggs greatly improved the school. Dr. and Mrs. Max D. Miles served in
KengTung from 1925 to 1931. Dr. Richard Buker served from 1926-1940. Dr. Richard Buker was very
much involved in medical work among leprosy patients. He built hospital and started nursing training.
In 1929 report, he had treated 20,684 patients, done 82 surgical operations, seen 370 in-patients and
trained 17 nurses. Miss. Elva O Jenkins and Miss. C.E. Henderson also helped hospital work from 1930
to 1934.
Dr. Richard Buker and hospital staffs
The Shan work in KengTung took on new life with the coming of the Ray Buker in 1934 after
serving their first term in Bana, Pangwai and Mong Mong. In 1936, Saw Khin arrived KengTung to
serve in hospital. She was the first Shan nurse to serve along side Dr. Buker. She married to Ba Hein in
1937 and lived in mission compound until World War II. After World War II she moved to KanNaLone
and started Shan fellowship with few Shan believers. Dr. Richard Buker treated many people with
leprosy in KengTung free of charge. Dr. Richard Buker started a training course for “nursecompounders”
for men. The dispensary gave 20,000 treatments, the hospital had about 400 in-patients,
and about 1,000 leprosy patients were under treatment in villages scattered over KengTung State. Dr.
Buker made long trips to villages, examining hundreds of people, to find the dread disease in its early