A LITTLE-KNOWN BRAVEHEART – ANNIE CLEMMER FUNK

“I am the Resurrection and the Life, sayeth the Lord; he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die.”

The centenary (1912 – 2012) of the worst maritime disaster in history is being remembered around the world on 14^th/15^th April. On the night of 14^th April, 1912, the giant ocean liner, the Titanic, pride of the Cunard White Star Line and claimed to be ‘unsinkable’ by its builders, went down in the icy waters of the North Atlantic after colliding with an iceberg.

The Titanic Starting on Her Maiden Voyage, 10 April, 1912

Over 1,500 people perished in the disaster and only 750 odd could be rescued  by the Carpathia and other liners and the lifeboats of the Titanic.

April 15, 2012 is the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, just five days after it left Southampton on its maiden voyage to New York.

Not many people are aware that there is at least one Indian connection in the Titanic disaster. As reported in the Times of India dated 14 April, 2012 and other websites, there is a small town called Janjgir-Champa tucked away in a remote corner of Chhatisgarh. It is difficult to believe that such a place could have sent a passenger to England for the luxury liner Titanic.

However, this indeed happened and the passenger was a missionary lady called Annie Clemmer Funk, who had made this town her home. Her name bears an uncanny similarity to Anne Frank of Holland, who also died a tragic death at a young age during World War II. Annie Funk was among the 1,500 souls who perished on board Titanic on April 15, 1912. Annie was on her way to visit her ailing mother in America.  

She served as a missionary in the Central Province (a part of which is today’s Chhatisgarh) of India from 1906 to 1912. After several assignments in the USA, she volunteered to go overseas. We can imagine her courage and the tremendous dedication she showed to her work in selecting such a remote area of India in 1906 without any previous experience of the country or its people. Her belief in the Lord sustained her. A photo of Annie is given below:

Annie arrived in India as a Mennonite missionary in 1906 from America and served in Janjgir-Champa on her mission. In 1908, she opened a one-room school and hostel for poor girls and taught 17 students initially. She also learnt Hindi during her India stay so that she could communicate better with her students. The school was later renamed as Annie C. Funk Memorial School.

Not much is left of Annie's school with only outer walls surviving the wreckage of time but her story is a legend in Janjgir-Champa. All that is left of Annie's time here is a small plaque that describes her brief but extraordinary life and her tragic death on board the liner.

 Her work at Janjgir Champa was interrupted one day by a telegram, which urged her to come home to as soon as possible, and that her passage was paid. She was not told that her mother was close to death. From Janjgir-Champa, Annie reached Mumbai via rail and boarded a ship for England. She was to take the 'SS Haverford' from Southampton for America but the ship was laid off because of a strike by coal labourers.

She was guided to another ship - a new one called the Titanic. Some were saying this was a modern marvel that "God, himself couldn't sink." Though it cost more, Annie was assured that passage on the Titanic would get her home in record time. She boarded as a second class passenger after paying ₤13. The ship sailed from Southampton on the 10^th April, 1912. It is reported that she celebrated her 38^th birthday on the 12^th with her co-passengers.

On the 14^th April, near midnight, the ship struck an iceberg, in spite of repeated warnings. The "unsinkable" dream ship began to sink into the icy waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, about 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland.  Although elaborately furnished, sadly, it lacked an essential safety feature -- sufficient lifeboats for all 2, 207 passengers. It was immediately evident that many would not be saved. What about Annie? An unconfirmed report has it that Annie Funk, already seated in a lifeboat, gave up her seat to another woman - a mother with children. Whether true or not, those who knew her said, "That would be just like Annie." Annie, along with 1500 others, perished in the greatest catastrophe yet known. The mighty Titanic was no more. The date was April 15, 1912.

A memorial to Annie was erected at the Hereford Mennonite Church Cemetery in Pennsylvania. Its inscription reads:

ERECTED BY THE EASTERN DISTRICT CONFERENCE OF THE MENNONITE CHURCH IN MEMORY OF ANNIE C. FUNK MISSIONARY IN INDIA 1906-1912 DAUGHTER OF JAMES B. AND SUSAN FUNK BORN APRIL 12, 1874. DIED APRIL 15, 1912 AGED 38 YEARS AND 3 DAYS. SHE WAS COMING HOME ON HER FIRST FUR- LOUGH, WHEN DEATH OVERTOOK HER IN THE WRECK OF THE STEAMSHIP TITANIC OFF THE COAST OF NEWFOUNDLAND.- HER LIFE WAS ONE OF SERVICE IN THE SPIRIT OF THE MASTER-"NOT TO BE MINISTERED UNTO BUT TO MINISTER.

Annie is being remembered in the US on the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. A documentary titled 'Remembering Annie Funk' is scheduled to be screened in her homestate, Pennsylvania, according to the Mennonite Heritage Centre website.

I think that, on this 100^th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, we must let the world know of the priceless story of a Mennonite woman who gave herself to the people of Janjgir, India and perhaps, died sacrificing her life to save another.

In the timeless prose of Charles Dickens, “It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”

Acknowledgements: Thanks are due to the Times of India, The Hindu and the website of the “Mennonite Church, USA, Historical Committee & Archives” for the information used here. I would also like to thank Google Images for the picture of the Titanic.