HISTORY

BACKGROUND

In 1967 Ron Russell sailed single-handed from the UK to New Zealand. Whilst sailing in the Pacific Islands he was converted in Fiji through Brethren outreach and married Aggie, a Fijian/Chinese lady living in Savusavu. In 1969, in a small hand built 34ft yacht called Dayspring, Ron and Aggie began distributing Bibles and Christian literature from their base in Fiji around the Pacific. This was the beginnings of the Dayspring Ministry, which saw Bibles of many translations and other Christian literature and films disseminated throughout the Pacific for over three and a half decades.

The ministry was supported by the Bible Society, Brethren assemblies in Auckland and various church bodies and individuals from around the Pacific. A Trust was established in 1977 formalizing a support structure for these missionary activities. 

Between 2001 to 2005, after a period of around ten years based back in New Zealand primarily involved in weekend outreach missions, Dayspring III was requested to return to the Pacific Isles. Campus Crusade for Christ commissioned Ron and Aggie to transport the Jesus film to the islands, along with supporting mission teams. Provincial villages and islands were reached in SE Fiji, Tuvalu, Kiribati and Vanuatu. The campaign to Wallis and Futuna ended unexpectedly when Dayspring III struck the reef off Wallis Island, along with another chapter in Ron and Aggie's work.

THE HERITAGE

Over the time of Ron and Aggie's active service with the Dayspring yachts, hundreds of lives were touched and many island nations had the opportunity to receive and hear the gospel in their own language. This was in a large part through their partnership with the New Zealand, South Pacific and United Bible Societies, which work to translate and to provide Bibles at affordable prices in native translations. During the 1970s some 51 New Testaments and six Bibles were published throughout the Asia Pacific region.

An example of the impact of the Dayspring Ministry Mission was in 2004 in the island of Tanna (Vanuatu) where 4,666 ex-John Frum Cargo Cult members who had accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour, were welcomed into the church. Their conversion was put down to the hard work of Campus Crusade mission workers, the efforts of the Dayspring team who transported the Jesus Film (in Bislama language) and the moving of the Holy Spirit!