India Missions

Asapalli is a Christian school and boarding facility. It is located in the northeast region of India, in  Assam. It was founded in 1944 by the late Julia Rose. Miss Rose, born again at the age of sixteen, was called by Jesus to witness and spread the gospel to the tribes of this region in northeast India.

Today, the school offers programs to approximately 200 students. Over 50 percent of the students are Hindu. All of the Asapalli board members and faculty teachers are committed to the teachings of Jesus Christ. Asapalli is busy carrying the good news of salvation to the surrounding area and developing students who can be missionaries to their people.

Asapalli also educates and equips its students to live successful God-centered lives.

In September of 1935, Miss Julia Rose, a native of West Fulton, New York, located in the beautiful Schoharie Valley region of upstate New York, traveled to northeast India. She settled in the district of Assam.

Born in 1907, Miss Rose accepted Christ at the age of 16 and decided she was called to spread the gospel. “I felt I should tell those who didn't know (about Him). I really never wanted to be a foreign missionary. However, I got the appropriate forms from my church, and on the first Wednesday of January 1934 I dropped off the forms in a mailbox on the way to my prayer meeting. That night, the church approved the support of a missionary to India.”

For five years, Miss Rose and another couple established a Baptist mid-mission in Adams. Five years later, Miss Rose decided to break away from the Baptist missionary program to do independent work with Kabuki Range Nags.

The Kabul Range Nags people are considered members of the sweeper class in India. As you may know, the class system still prevails in India. The sweeper class is considered the lowest. They have no written language or skills. They clean streets and latrines. They are known for being dirty, sick, and undernourished. It is this class that Julia Rose felt she was called to minister. Julia stated, “I felt they should have someone to educate them; of the 45,000 people in the tribe during the 1940s, there was not one high school graduate among them.”

In 1944, Miss Rose opened the Asapalli Christian Boarding Hostel. Julia started the boarding home with five children: 3 boys and 2 girls. She would go on evangelistic tours to various villages, and she brought orphans back to Asapalli. From 1946 to 1977, the home expanded to 27 beds.

As Miss Rose's health began to fail, she searched for an individual who could take over the day-to-day operation of Asapalli. That person was to be Heriton Lamare. Heriton came to Asapalli in 1955 at the age of 12. While there, he came to love Jesus. Mr. Lamare graduated from Asapalli and continued his education at university. He then returned to his beloved Asapalli, and in 1984, Miss Rose officially handed over the responsibility of day-to-day operations. Today, Mr. George Gideon is the Executive Secretary of Asapalli.

George Gideon Gangmei was born in 1969. Mr. Gangmei is a commerce graduate and theologically he earned a TH.M in the New Testament from the University of Hyderabad, India. The current Executive Secretary, George, is responsible for the day-to-day activities here at Asapalli.

In 1987 a proposal for starting a school came before the Board. Although the funding for this project had not yet been physically manifested, the Board believed that this was the next step in the growth of Asapalli.

The school was instituted in 1988. That same year, the demand from surrounding communities for more student seating capacity was sought. Temporary sheds were constructed from bamboo, and Asapalli continued to unfold to the Lord's glory.

Asapalli currently has the capacity to seat over 200 students. The enrollment for the year 2001 is 155 students. The school owns 8 acres of land. The administrative staff includes 17 school teachers, 17 manual laborers, 2 office workers, and 1 general caretaker.

The objective of Asapalli, as stated by George Gideon, is “to train the students through education to learn to discriminate the false teachings of the local pagan faith, to learn to choose the Living God by being able to read the Bible and other writings. We also teach the children to "stand on their own two feet" so that they may be ready to "face the world." The motto here at Asapalli is "for the equipping of the saints for the work of service to the building up of the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:12).

Asapalli today maintains strict discipline. The Board believes that discipline is the backbone that helps bring order to one's life. Children are taught spiritual discipline, character building, and physical work. Through this method, discipline is instilled on spiritual, mental, and physical levels.

Let us now look at a typical day for a student of Asapalli:

• 5:30 AM Rising Bell
• 5:45 AM Devotion Bell - Students are to read the Bible and pray in their rooms
• 6:00 AM Bell - Children begin to attend Bible class
• 6:30 AM - Students attend study hall for school lessons
• 8:15 AM - Breakfast
• 9:00 AM - Morning Devotion
• 9:30 AM - School begins
• 2:30 PM - School ends.
• 2:45 to 4:00 PM - Social work
• 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM - Playtime and bathing
• 6:00 PM - Dinner
• 6:30 PM - Study
• 9:00 PM - Evening prayers and devotions
• 9:30 PM - Bed
• On Sundays, students are allowed to sleep until 7:00 AM. They carry water from the well. Sunday school begins at 9:00 AM and continues until 10:30 AM. Church service is from 3:00 PM until 4:30 PM, and Praise and Worship is from 6:00 PM until 8:00 PM.

Every contribution makes a difference to lives of the children of the Asapalli Christian School & Hostel. Prayerfully consider how you can support the Mission of Asapalli. Your contribution of $30 per month will allow a student to attend The Asapalli School and Hostel.

If you are interested in sponsoring a child, please visit our Child Sponsorship Programs page for more information.